Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1943-02-26
Stettinius Confirms
Reports Thai British
Sell Lease-Lend Food
Action Described as
Mechanical Method
Of Distributing Supplies
By the Associated Press.


Americas wartime aid to her
Allies came in for considerable
attention on Capitol Hill today,
with Senators studying a high
Government officials affirmation
that England is selling lease-lend
food for cash and the House due
to hear a strong language" rec
concentration that more help be
given China.
Testimony released by a Senate
Agriculture Subcommittee quoted
Lease lend Administrator E. r. Stet-
tinius, jr., as saying the British gov
ernments sale of lease-lend food
"boils itself down to a mechanical
matter" and that it was "a small
matter when you consider the VOL
ume Of the aid that they are giving
us both in dollars and tonnage"
What about the story to the eff
feet that where we are lending
food to Great Britain, she is selling
those foods to the people of Great
Britain?" Senator Nye, Republican,
of North Dakota had asked. In
other words, is the government of
Great Britain getting an immediate
cash return?"
That is right" Mr.. Stettinius re-
pied, going on to say that this coun-
try is supplying the United King
dom about 10 per cent of its food,
under leaselend.
Government Gets Money.
Assuming" he continued, that
we are sending 5 per cent of the
bacon consumed by the civilian pop
ulation, it is not physically possible
TO distribute that per cent of the
bacon differently from the 95 per
cent they obtain or produce from
other sources. = The Ministry of
Foods transfers it to their chain
stores, and they sell it for cash"
Mr.. Stettinius said the cash thus
received goes into the eXchequer.
and it goes toward the production
OF supply to carry on the war. IT
might be used for payment of troops.
1t might be used for the building of
battleship; it might be used for
the repair of cruiser; it might be
used to buy the potatoes or the
wheat or the undertaking. or
these other items that the British
give to our troops free"
Meanwhile, the House Foreign At
fairs Committees formal report on
continuance of the Lease-Lend Act
was expected to recommend strongly
that all possible help be sent China.
This was said to be an alternative
to a proposed amendment which
would have earmarked a definite
percentage of lease-lend supplies for
China.
The bill to continue the Lease
Lend Act for another year already
has been approved unanimously by
the committee, with the probability
that the formal report will be COM
pleted today.
Several committee members pri-
Vately expressed disappointment
that they could not go further than
a recommendation But, against a
background of secret testimony
AIOill IlIC oCCI CtdI ItS VI war ana
Navy and from lease-lend officials,
they reported that the difficulties of
getting supplies through since the
closing of the Burma road were such
that a percentage ALLEGATION would
prove futile.
1t appeared certain that a ma
lority Of the committee would block
an attempt to write into the report
a recommendation that the admin
istration use lease-lend as a trad
ing point" to obtain postwar priv
ileges in foreign flying fields for
American commercial aviation.
Such plan had been pressed Wig
orously, particularly on the Repub-
liCan side Of the committee table,
during the hearings and brought
disclosure from the State Depart
ment that it had undertaken already
discussion with other governments
on the whole subject of aviation
after the war