Evening star. [volume], August 06, 1924, Page 4, Image 4

About Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972

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4
What Europe Is Saying
About America
GREAT BRITAIN.—I.
RY FREDERIC WILLIAM WILE
EPITOR'S NOTE—The Star publishes
today the opening article in a series of
European impression* by Frederic William
Wile. Mr Wile went io Great Britain
early in July and is now ou the conti
nent. He is feeling the pulse of Europe
with a view to ascertaining exactly what
the OM World is thinking and saying about
us these days. His first article, written in
Eondon while the interallied conference on
the liawe* plan was in session, reflects
British public opinion with particular ref
erence to the all-absorbing ipiestion of the
billion pounds sterling which John Hull
owes Uncle Sam. That issue. Mr. Wile
points mu. colors and dominates all dis
cussion of Anglo-American relations at this
hour.
In his second article from Great Britain
Mr Wile will deal with the British view
of America's role in European affairs.
Seven years ago this summer, when
the Germans seemed to be submarin
ing the allies into defeat, the clamor
in Great Britain was. for America to
hurry in and help win the war. To
day the cry is for the United States
to come in and help win the peace. It
is not screamed from the housetops.
That sort of thing "isn't done" in the
British Isles. But it is uttered in ur
gent accents, just the same.
It is tactfully and discreetly voiced
hy the MacDonald government. Among
the populace the-appeal finds franker
expression, mingled with impatience
in many quarters and with downright
Indignation in others. Everywhere in
Great Britain' the United States’ re
luctance to "come in" and co-operate
in what is. euphoniously called “the;
settlement of Europe’’ is discussed
■with deep disappointment.
Because these .impressions are
recorded during the midst of the in
terallied reparations conference in
London, the United States’ attitude
toward European affairs is the main
theme of discussion at the moment
when Britons take thought of Amer
ica. But it is by no means their only
thought of us. Indeed, hardly any
denizen of John Bull’s principal
island goes to sleep at night without
thinking Os the $1,377,000,000 which
Britain owes the United States, and
of the $150,000,000 a year interest she
must pay us.
Debt “Ely in Ointment.”
The American debt is unmistakably
the fly in the ointment of Anglo-
American relations of the present
hour. Until it is readjusted or ic
moved it would be idle for anybody
but Pilgrim dinner orators or Eng
lish-speaking union entertainers to
dwell' upon the unalloyed friendship
between Great Britain and the United
States. That friendship is undoubted
ly too well founded to be under
mined, even by the explosives which
the unpopular Baldwin debt settle
ment left behind. But that it has
undergone a strain, and will continue
to 'be subjected to a strain until
remedial action ensues, is as palpable
as the British Empire itself.
No serious investigator of Anglo-
American conditions in Great Britain
can-' escape that conclusion. Our
stock in these parts might rise if we
beat -our protestations of "helpful
ness” in the European settlement into
tangible form of co-operation;
yet.the nightmare of the debt woujd
still stalk through British dreams.
The American in search of British
impressions must dig for them. The
war. changed many things in the
United Kingdom, but it did not an
nihilate the Britisher’s passion for
keeping his own counsels. He does
not hurl his views about America at
you. Unless you prod him. you might
leave his soil thinking he cherished
no semblance ofa grudge against us,
for-in his attitude toward the indi
vidual American he is still the soul
of friendly hospitality.
Help to Aviator Liked.
Unemotional though he be, the Brit
isher is easily touched by evidences
of American good will. When our
destroyers rushed from the Philip
pines.- to rescue Flight Comdr. Mac-
Laren's wrecked airplane off the
coast of Burmah, John Bull’s great
heart beat in genuine affection for
the United States. What he is -won
dering about —what he seems incapa
ble Os understanding—is why we do
not reveal in our political relations
with Great Britain that spirit of
knightliness which the rescue of Mac-
Laren, personified. The Britisher, in
other words, cannot comprehend why
wa do not "play the game" with re
gard to the European settlement, and
quite particularly why we do not play
it in connection with the debt.
There are two distinctly diverse
schools of thought on the question of
the debt. The minority school is rep
resented by the official and banking
THE STETSON SHOE SHOP CLEARANCE SALE
Hundreds of Additional Pairs of
High-Grade Women's Shoes
Formerly Sold From $lO to sl4£o
/\\ Taken from our regular stock
AND r eduged T °
s^.Bs
8 pairs
Mostly whites, fOT The newest
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ST some patents, JKI 1 .UU -
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K 5£75. *g.75 SJQ7S Fridny $ J pairs for
I Stetson Shoe Shop
r Thirteen-Five F Street
classes, who think Mr. Baldwin ef
fected a settlement, which, though
costly, enhances British prestige and
reflects honor upon the British repu
'ation for good faith. This school
feels that, high as the price of the
settlement is. the maintenance of
British credit, the bulwarking of the
pound sterling, and the acquisition of
American good will that resulted
from it outweigh every disadvantage
that the settlement's opponents
charge against it.
Advantages Pointed Out.
This school affirms that, in reality,
the scheme of refunding to which
Britain pledged herself is working no
appreciable harm upon the individual
taxpayer, .and that, measured in
practical terms, the settlement does
not uncomfortably saddle the British
treasury. Although John Bull paid
Uncle Sam two interest installments,
totaling $1.18,0nn.000. in 1323 and an
additional $23,000,000 on sinking-fund
account, the British budget last year
developed a surplus of roundly $450,-
000.000.
So. say those who decry the attacks
on the debt settlement, the tight lit
tle islands are "muddling through,"
as- is their fashion. American debt or
no debt. The pinch would only, come,
they point out, if the United States
some- day should apply pressure for
repayment of the billion pounds of
principal, more or less. Os that. Brit
ain sees no sign.
These are not the sole reflections
among the pro-settlement classes.
They frankly look upon the deal
which Mr. Baldwin concluded with
Mr. Mellon as a more or less tempo
rary affair. They expect a new deal
if and when the eternal reparations
question is solved. If and when Ger
many begins to pay. and Britain and
her allies are In receipt of red gold
from the common debtor, it is ap
parent on all hands that both the
British government and people look
to the United States’ readiness to re
consider the whole problem of inter
allied indebtedness.
Mope For New Attitude.
There is no visible sentiment in
favor of outright cancellation. The
average Briton recoils from the
thought of repudiation of obligations
honorably contracted. But every
mother’s son in these islands counts
upon our willingness to tackle the
debt proposition from another angle
when Europe has recovered her eco
nomic equilibrium.
Far less philosophical views of the
debt are taken in other quarters of
Great Britain, and these constitute
the majority school of thought. It is
led by the all-powerful press, con
trolled by Viscount Rothermere, Lord
Northcliffe’s journalistic heir, and by
Lord Beaverbrook. who once was a
humble Canadian. Fleet street’s hue
and cry against the debt settlement
are echoed ever and anon by Mr.
Lloyd George.
Day in and day out the Rother
mere-Beaverbrook combination as
sails the inquity of the "Shylockian"
arrangement to which, as it alleges.
Mr. Baldwin and his co-negotiators
in Washington last year succumbed.
It declares they had the wool pulled
over their eyes. It asserts that they
were outmaneuvered at every stage.
It says Britain only had to wait to
obtain vastly better terms, or even
to stand firmly on its dignity and de
mand that all of America’s debtors
in Europe be treated alike; that pay
ments should not be enforced from
one until imposed upon all.
See Uneven Pressure.
The majority school of debt thought
is insistent upon one other point,
invariably stressed whenever the
painful subject is discussed. That is,
that the United States loaned the
bulk, if not all, of the funds in ques
tion to Great Britain as the guarantor
of advances which America knew, In
reality, were for the benefit of
Britain’s allies. The taunt, there
fore, is that America "came down
upon” the guarantor and let the real
beneficiaries off.
Such a state of affairs offends the
British sense of fair play. They have
an idoim of their own for that sort
of thing. They say “it isn’t cricket.”
The majority school probably contains
a pretty deep substratum of senti
ment in favor of outright cancella
tion of the debt. It is made up of the
extremists—among them professional
dislikers of America —who chide us
for having come into the war “after
it was won" and for having come in
then "to save our gold.” The cancel
lationists would doubtless hesitate to
ask for anything that savored of
•THE EVENING STXR, WASHINGTON. D. C, WEDNESDAY, r ATJGTTST 6, 1921
repudiation. But they would almost
certainly be in receptive mood.
The other day the Society of For
eign Bondholders published its 60th
annual report- The business of this
venerable institution Is to collect re
pudiated debts owing to citizens of
this country. Among the “defaulting
and bankrupt" nations listed in the
report appears the name of the United
States, and it is down for a total of
about $216,000,000, including Interest.
This is only $66,000,000 more than
Great Britain is now paying us an
nually in Interest on her war loans.
Confederate States* Debts.
The "defaulted" American debt rep
resents unredeemed obligations of
some of the Confederate States of
America, incurred in those unhappy
days when certain elements in Great
Britain backed the wrong horse dur
ing the Civil War. Wide publicity Is
given to this “repudiated” American
debt from time to time, and British
ers contemplate'it with no little heat
When they consider the bargain which
Mellon drove with Baldwin a year
ago.
Both the minority and the majority
schools of debt, though, seem to have
convinced themselves that America's
swollen gold supply will of its own
crushing momentum goad us into giv
ing Britain a squarer deal. A distin
guished English publicist, dilating
upon the inescapable theme, recalled
William Jennings Bryan’s celebrated
convention speech of 1896, and said
that American "mankind" might. In
deed, yet be crucified upon a cross of
gold.
With the talk of the American debt
in Britain there is indissolubly linked
up the economic plight of this coun
try. The question of foreign trade is
wrapped up with it. The high taxes
under which John Bull's back is bend
ing are directly Involved. W r hat he
resents with unconcealed vexation is
the high tariff wall which America
has erected, making it virtually im
possible, the Britisher avers, for him
to pay off any considerable tithe of
his American obligations in goods.
Export Trade Vital.
Britain breathes and lives and has its
being by export trade. That trade ham
pered or shut off. Us jugular vein is in
danger. When Britain contemplates an
Uncle Sam insisting upon his pound of
flesh with one hand and with the other
warding off British exports from enter
ing the American market, it envisages
an Uncie Sam that it finds difficult to
look upon as the generous, idealistic
soul he likes to consider himself.
The decline of British trade, especial
ly in such key industries as iron and
steel, is one of the prolific themes of
discussion at this moment. Many Brit
ishers. without stopping to reason out
the why and wherefore of their accusa
tion, charge us “grasping Americans"
with at least a grave portion of the re
sponsibility for British industrial woe.
This month of July there are approxi
mately 1,024,000 unemployed persons In
Great Britain. During 1922 and the first
six months of 1924 the treasury paid out
$57,600,000 in unemployment doles.
•Meantime there Is a steady advance in
the cost of wages and materials. Every
thing is dearer than ever before in his
tory.
The rich feel the pinch along with
the poor. Great landed estates in town
and country are being parceled and
sold because their maintenance is no
longer profitable. Never were so
many mansions In Park Lane, classic
abode of the aristocrat and the pluto
crat, shuttered and tenantiess.
High Income Tax Blamed.
The high income tax is blamed for
this state of affairs. Its effects ramify
in many directions and result in a sort
of vicious circle—a sort of beggar-my
neighbor condition. High as American
income taxes were until the passage of
the recent revenue legislation, they were
modest compared to what John Bull has
been contributing practically ever since
the armistice.
The present rate of taxation on profits
is 4s 6d in the pound, or 22 Vi per cent,
and in some cases mounting to 27 Vi per
cent. For individuals the difference be
tween the countries is more startling.
Income tax is levied on all incomes
above $75 a year. For married persons
the law exempts 11485. The rate in
creases up to 4s fid in the pound, as in
the case of profits. On incomes over
SIO,OOO supertax is charged. Until the
recent American tax reductions en
acted by Congress comparisons were
as follows:
Income. English t*x. C.S. tir
$9,000 $1,774.40 $5lO
22.000 6.443.65 2.205
45.000 16.455 65 7.280
Vaguely, but vehemently, all of these
considerations are associated in the
British popular mind with the American
debt. It is convinced that injustice and
hardship march hand in hand from the
beginning to the end of the Baldwin set
tlement The “man in the street,” now
more than ever a potent arbiter of Brit,
ish destinies since Labor took office, is
not prepared wholly to dissemble his
love for us. But until something is done
about the debt he is not likely to cherish
us with that full and undivided affection
of which he is capable.
(Copyright. 1924.)
HOW TO TORTURE YOUR WIFE, ; : • . ; —By WEBSTER.
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r^iHgug^ 1
PASTOR SHOT PASSING
KLANSMEN IN AUTO
Admits Speaking Against Hooded
Order, But Knows of No
Enemy in Body.
By the Associated Pres*
EAGLE LAKE, Tex., August 6.
The Rev. F. M. Johnson, jr., Kpiscopal
rector, was shot through the aim
Monday night while driving past an
automobile occupied by two men clad
in Ku Klux Kian regalia, it was
learned today.
The rector said he had been out
spoken against the Ku Klux Klan,
but said he knew of no enemy in or
out of the organization who would
want to take his life.
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REBELS FLEE COUNTRY.
Honduras Asks Nicaragua Aid in
Capture of Two.
MANAGUA, Nicarauga, August 6.
Advices from the Honduran govern
ment received here state that the
revolutionary generals. Julio Peralta
and Roman Diaz, have taken refuge
across the border in Nicaragua, near
the village of KI Jicaro.
Nicaragua, which is co-operating to
keep the frontier free of revolution
ist* and bandits, is requested to capture
the rebel leaders.
It Is reported here that conditions in
Honduras are serious because of the
various disgruntled factions.
More than half a billion cigars were
manufactured in Tampa during the last
fiscal-year.
WHITE INDIANS TAKEN
TO TORONTO FOR STUDY
By the Associated Press.
TORONTO, August 6. The three
white Indians brought from Darien.
Central America, recently by R. O.
Marsh and Dr. Herman L. Fairchild
of the University of Rochester ar
rived here yesterday for exhibition
before members of the British Asso
ciation for the Advancement of Sci
ence, which opened its annual meeting
last night.
Anthropologists attending the ses
sion are desirous of examining the
trio to determine whether thy repre
sent and offshoot of the white race.
Two thousand persons from the
United States, Europe and Canada
will be present at the meeting of the
association.
EPIZOOTIC HAS COST * -
CALIFORNIA $5,000,000
102.000 of Live Stock Slaughtered
to Date in Fight on Foot-ancl-
Mouth Disease.
By the Associated Prett*.
OAKLAND, Calif., August 6.i—The
foot and mouth disease in California
has cost approximately $5,000,000 and
has made necessary the slaughter of
102.000 head of live stock to date. Dr.
J. R. Mohler. chief of the Bureau of
Animal Industry of the United States
Department of Agriculture, said to
day. Dr. Mohler is directing the gov
ernment end of the campaign against
the epizootic.
There are 208 men still in the field
in the campaign, although 14 coun
ties have been released from quar
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