The Ypsilanti daily press. (Ypsilanti, Mich.) 1928-1962, 1943-04-22

Guarantees For
Sterilization TO
be Difficult
BY Charles p. Stewart

HOW 10 guarantee bldOlllLat4oh
is one OF the most difficult prob
lens TO be solved, as insurance
against a badly gummed-up state
OF international economics IN
postwar days.
il is a subject for experts TO
discuss. Ordinary folk haven [
the remotest understanding Of H.
Well, why don't they get the eN-
perts to explain 1t to them? And
that is as mean a puzzle to tackle
as the other one. The experts
trouble is that they don't under
stand it, either. Some OF them
pretend to, but they disagree
among themselves to such an cNs
tent that their discussions don't
mean anything.
The two outstanding shar
the argument are Treasurer
rotary .Morgenthau and LD...
Keynes. the British treasury s
chief counsellor. The North and
South Poles are no farther apart
geographically than that pair are
on postwar sterilization. They
are polite about 1t, but that is
ALL they are.
OF course. the ignorant, unset
entific theory is that sterilization
consists Of getting balance into
the keel of a boat or plane, 81
that il will float right side up or
get back TO stability" after winds
and waves have jiggled II.
This stuff. though, IS interna.
tional currency sterilization
keeping two or more countries
respective kinds OF different mon
ey on a balance so that ono OF
them won't. sky-shoot while the
other is sLumping. II that hap
pens. II is as if you 90 into a
store to place an order Of groc-
eries-and the grocer won't rec
ognize your dough except at a
heavy discount and you won't rec
ognize his prices.
Now, basically, countries swap
goods with one another.
II they are different kinds Of
stuff-goods that We want and do
not have and that they want but
do not have-why, it is a simple
enough transaction.
The trouble Is that such deals
are not so straight-away.
This is illustrated in our tran
sactions with Latin America.
The Latins have coolies Of trOp-
icai or semi-tropiCal ray material
that We require and We have In
dustrial goods that they are anX-
ious for.
We generally get along with
them pretty well on that basis.
Argentina IS ~ exception. That
republic really Is in competition
with US. With the rest of them
we are on a swap-even basis. But
It is on a conspicuously unharm-
onious basis that We and the Ar
gentinos maintain our mutual re-
lationship. The Argentine will
have to get in line ultimately, but
it will be reluctant. II it could
get away with it, 1t might be
o-Axis-but for commercial rea-
sons.
Look at them! The Latin
Americans can make much more
money out of US. and the rest OF
the world, than otherwise. In the
long run Argentina will profit by
acuuiescing in the inevitable.
1t doesn't so much matter as
10 little country like the Argen-
tine.
Europe's small nations will be
satisfied with what they can get
out of the postwar settlement.
The situation for the great pow
ers is not so easily solved.
How are monies going TO be
swapped?
Is it TO be done between the
United States and Britain alone?
Well, then. how are they 10 be
fixed between us and the othersf
II reaches international pro
portions. There is where We get
TO international economies.