Evening star., 1947-09-05
CONGRESS and Europe

Despite the sudden outbreak of excited
talk on the subject, there is nothing par
ticularly surprising about the possibility of
a special congressional session to deal with
critical economic events in Europe. When
the Senate and House adjourned earlier
this summer, there was widespread feel
ing that they might have to reconvene
before their regular meeting in January.
The question still is open to speculation.
II current reports are accurate, however,
the President will have to decide the an
swer one way or the other, in the next
week or so.
AS presented by Undersecretary of State
Lovett and others in a position to know,
the reports strongly suggest that the situa-
tion calls for emergency action wholly
apart from the long-range program con-
templated under the Marshall proposal for
European recovery. According to the rather
limited information so far made public,
the urgency of the problem may be sum-
married as follows: Q Owing to "acts Of
God"-like Britain's exceptionally severe
winter and an unusually poor wheat crop
in France-Western Europe'S progress to-
ward an economic comeback has been
much slower than expected. (2) This has
had such an adverse effect on the areas
rapidly dwindling dollar supply that ITALY,
for example, will have nothing left by
the end of December to finance vitally
needed imports from us. 90 Unless the
United States extends help without delay,
there will be grave collapse between now
and January. And (4), because enactment
Of the So-called Marshall Plan will be
virtually impossible until some time in
ls48, the help will have to take the form
OF stop-gap measures to be adopted in
the coming fall.
Assuming that these generalized state
ments are not exaggerated, there thus
would seem to be good reason for special
session of Congress. The program en-
visioned under the Marshall proposal
kind of peacetime lend-lease-involves the
outlay Of many billions of dollars over a
period of years. The emergency help
would be of type to tide over the hard
pressed countries until the long range
recovery measures 60 into effect Presum-
ably 1t would be in the form of orthodox
loans and credits. British Foreign Secre-
tary Bevins vague suggestion for the re-
distribution Of our gold certainly would
not enter the picture. That suggestion has
come as real bafier to financial circles,
including Britain's. 1t does not make sense
for the simple reason that it would not
ease the crisis on either long-term or
short-term basis; according to most ex-
perts, even If we gave away lot of our
Fort Knnv trnp ps,Yrn -rryy7iekN te hopN1yy
ceivable-it would come right back to us
from countries needing our dollars to buy
from US. Unless he can prove its feasibility,
Mr.. Bevin's idea will get nowhere either as
regards the Marshall Plan or any possible
intermediate assistance.
IT 1t Is true, however, that prompt emer-
gency aid Is needed as prelude to the
Marshall program, there can be no doubt
that America will be serving its own best
interests to extend it, The World Bank
and our Export-Import Bank may be able
to help up to a point, but Undersecretary
Of State Clayton is said to believe that as
much as $4,000, 100000 may be necessary
before the end Of the year. If that is so,
then special session of Congress can
scarcely be avoided.
1t is certainly fact, in any case, that
the United States-for the sake of its own
security and prosperity-must resort to
unprecedented and costly measures in the
months ahead to avert the kind of collapse
that could black out all freedom in Europe
and expose the whole continent to the iron
control of Communist Russia. AS Secre-
tary Marshall declared some time ago, we
have an "incalculable stake" in this, and
we cannot afford to forget it for minute.
Brituin's Wildcat Coal Strikes