Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1945-09-23

Dp JOSep
The day of accounting has come for
the billions of dollars worth of goods
and services which were exchanged
among the Allies over more than four
years in their struggle against the Axis
powers. 1t presents the most mo-
mentous and complex bookkeeping job
in history and one likely to be at
tended by frayed nerves and hurt feel
ings.
Current conversations are going on
here with the British and Belgians.
They are prelude to negotiations with
Soviet Russia, China, France and the
30 other nations which received widely
varying amounts of aid from the United
States. Most of these nations have re-
verse lease-lend accounts to be balanced
against American advances. Except for
Belgium, which is unique in that it has
given this country more than it has re-
ceived, the balances are heavily in our
favor.
President Roosevelt made it clear to
Congress when lease-lend first was pro-
posed early in 1941 that we could not
expect cash in settlement for the sup
plies and services which the arsenal
of democracy" furnished its Allies.
Americas post-World War experience
showed clearly that billions of dollars
could not be transferred across exchange
In payment for nonproductive debts
r,it int into
national trade.
Little Cash Is Expected.
However, administration officials in
charge of settling the $31 900 900 900 bill
the United States is prepared to pre-
sent its Allies have no thought of wip-
ing it of the books" as has been sug-
gested in some political quarters. I'm
doubtedly it will be scaled down dras-
tically. There is no serious belief that
the Treasury will ever realize much cash
from it. But various other forms of
payment are expected.
If the current talks with the British
may be taken as prototype of others to
come, it is evident that the United
States intends to tie up the subject of
lease-lend settlements with the wider
problem of invigorating world trade,
establishing sound currencies and aiding
some of our hard-pressed Allies in re-
storing their shattered economies.
Indeed, the promise of liberal postwar
trade policies is legally bound up with
lease-lend. Article VII of the master
agreements" signed with most of the
countries which received aid from the
United States provided:
80 The terms and conditions (of
the settlement shall be such as not to
burden commerce between the two coun-
tries, but to promote mutually ad-
vantageous economic relations between
them and the betterment of world
wide economic relations. To that end,
they shall include provisions for agreed
action by (the two signatory countries),
open to participation by other countries
of like mind, directed to the expansion,
by appropriate international and do
nestle measures, of production, employ
ment and the exchange of consumption
goods =; to the elimination of all
forms of discriminatory treatment in
international commerce, and to the re-
duction of tariffs and other trade bar
rierS s"
Seeks to Break Trade Bars.
1t is on the basis of this agreement
that the United States now is insisting
that the United Kingdom, as a condition
of favorable lease-lend settlement and
a loan to restore it's economic health,
shall break up the empire preference"
tariff system adopted at the Ottawa
Conference in 1882. Similar demands
for most favored nation" treatment of
American exports undoubtedly will be
made to other governments with whom
the United States has lease-lend &C
counts
Cordell Hull, who, as Secretary of
State, negotiated the lease-lend agree
ments, was a firm believer in the theory
that most war and revolutions are the
direct or indirect result of high tariffs,
currency restrictions and other artificial
barriers to the free flow of world trade.
Consequently he used the agreements
as an instrument to further liberal trade
policies.
That objective, however, will not be
easily attained. When lease-lend aid
was extended to most of our Allies back
in 1941 and 1912, the Nazi flood of con-
quest was at its crest. The postwar
world seemed far away. Now, hard
pressed by their own domestic problems,
some of our Allies undoubtedly will be
reluctant to abandon restrictive trade
policies which, from short-term, i'm
mediate point of view, seem necessary
for their own protection. Already in
Great Britain some political leaders
are moaning over the possibility of
opening the rich Indian market to
American exporters.
However, the American officials in
charge of the current negotiations seem
determined that our Allies shall stick
by their bargain and abandon restric-
tive trade policies. They hold that even
If they should relax this principle, Con-
gress would insist on it, and that no
agreement made on other terms would
have chance of approval by the Sen
ate and House.
Want Agreement Kept.
The agreement of our Allies to lib
eral trade policies is regarded by Of
ficials as merely the carrying out of a
prior commitment and also as a step
which will be to their own eventual
benefit as well as ours. 1t is not a