Newspaper Page Text
Danger Seen in Indemnity Row »- — ' ■ ■■ ■■ — , i Demand of France Is Excessive Return of United States Will Restore Balance of Treaty, Declares Ex-Premier Lloyd-George. No Fair Verdict Now By THK RIGHT HONORABLE DAVID LI .OVD GEORGE, O. M., M. P. (Former HrKieh Premier.) (Copyright, 19in. hy Unlttd Feature* Syndlrat*.) (Exclusive World Rights Held by United Feature Syndicate.) ■Ronda. Spain (Via I.ondon), Jan. 13. .—The third conference with M. Poin care over reparations has ended, like ita two predecessor*, In a complete breakdown. The iirst was held in August, the : second in December and last week witnessed the third fiasco. I congratulate Ronnr I.aw on hav ing the courage to face a double failure rather than agree to a course of policy which would in the end prove disappointing and probably dis astrous. Agreement amongst the allies is in Itself a desirable objective for states men to aim at. but an accord to com mit their respective countries to fool ishness is worse than disagreement. France and Britain must not quar rel, even if they cannot agree; hut if French ministers persist in the Poincare policy the companionship of France and Britain over tills question will ho that of parallel lines which never meet even if they never con flict. What is the obect of this headstrong policy? There is no financier of re pute in any quarter of the globe who agrees that these methods will bring the allies any contributions towards their impoverished resources. Will Produce Crash. At the August conference all ex perts were in accord on this subject. But whilst these methods will pro duce no cash, they will produce an unmistakable crash. My recollections of tho August discussions enable me to follow with some understanding the rather confused reports which so far have reached me h^e. It is common ground amongst all the allies that Germany cannot under present conditions pay her Install ments. It is common ground that she must be pressed to put her finances in order and by balancing her budget restore the efficiency of her cur rency so as to meet her obligations. But Poincare insisted that as a con dition of granting the moratorium, pledges inside German territory should be seized by the allies. These pledges consisted of customs already established and of new cus tomes to be set up on the Rhine and around the Ruhr so that no goods should bo permitted to pass from theso German provinces into the rest, of Germany without the payment of .heavy customs dues. The other pages were sol74tro of German forests, of German mines and of 60 per cent of tho shares in certain German fac tories. Objects to Pledges. Bonar Law, judging by Ills official communique after the breakdown of the conference, seems to have raised the same objections regarding these pledges that I put forward at the August conference. They would bring in nothing comparable to the cost of collection: they would provoke much disturbance and irritation, and might load to consequences of a very grave character. In faot, those pledges are nothing but paper and provocation. The customs barrier on the Rhine was tried once before and was a com plete failure. It was tried then as a sanction and not as a means of rais ing money. For the former purpose it may have achieved some measure of success, hut from ttie point of view of collecting money it was a ludicrous fiasco. There are at the present mo ments hundreds of millions of paper marks collected at these new toll houses still located up in the safe of the reparations commission. They are admittedly worthless. As long as thes^ tolls lasted they were vexatious; they interfered with business; they dealth lightly with French luxuries working their way Into Germany, but laid a heavy hand on all useful com modities necessary to industry and the life of the people. They were ulti mately withdrawn by consent. M. Poincare now seeks to revive them. Seizure of German forests and mines will inevitably lead to even more seri ous consequences. The allied control established In the far interior of Ger many should require protection. Pro tection means military occupation In some shape or other. Military occu pation of these remote areas means Incidents quickly ripen into more se rious complications. Two Points of View. Hence the reluctance of the British government of which X was the head to concur In this dangerous policy. Hence the refusal of Bonar Law’s gov ernment to accept responsibility for sanctioning such a policy. Even log ically It Is Indefensible. There are only two alternative points of view. One Is that Germany cannot pay under present conditions until her finances are restored, and that a moratorium ought to be grant ed for a period which will enable that financial restoration to mature. The second Is that Germany can pay and that she Is Only shamming Insolvency, and that all you have to do la to firmly apply the thumbscrew and cash will be forthcoming. Logically X catr understand either of these two alternatives. But I fall to comprehend the reason for a proposal that will grant a moratorium on the ground that Germany cannot pay and at the same time apply the thumb - gcrew until she pays, c I am glad the British prime min $ teug hu 4** W ta a*, Creighton Debaters \iPc>6er+ /ok f ^7AomaP\ 3?u?&aU J J. Thomas Uussell and Robert H. Patton who will represent Creighton against John C. Korfmacher and Lee Carter of St. X^ouis university in in tercollegiate debate at Creighton au ditorium Monday evening. They will debate the question, "Resolved That the United States Should Demand the Full Payment of the Debts Owed Her by the Allied Nations.” The winners of this debate will be the champions of this section and will represent the section in the semi finals of the prov ince. Korfmacher and Carter recent ly defeated a debating: team from Loyola university on the same ques tion. soclate himself with a proposal which will bring inevitable discredit upon those who share responsibility for en forcing it. Meanwhile, the prospects i)f Europe's recovery are once more j to be retarded by the vain stubborness of some of her rulers. What is tlie reparations problem? Why does it appear to be further from solution than ever? The great publlo in all lands is perplexed and worried by its disturbing insolubil ity. It keeps them wandering what may happen next, and that is never good for a nerve ridden subject like post-war Europe. The real trouble j is not in solving the problem itself, but in satisfying public opinion which surrounds it. I do not mean to sug gest it is an easy matter to ascer tain what payments Germany can make or for Germany to uay and keep paying these sums once they have been ascertained. But if the difficulty were purely financial it cou*d be over come. The heart of the problem lies in the impossibility at present of convincing the expectant, indignant, hard-hit and heavily burdened people of France that sums so fixed repre sent all Germany is capable of paying. The question of compelling a coun try to pay across its frontiers huge sums convertible into the currency of other countries is a new one. At first it was too readily taken for granted that a wealth which could bear a W'ar debt of £8,000,000,000 sterling could surely afford to bear an Indemnity of £6,000,000,000, pro vided that were made a first charge on national revenues, and it took time for the average mind to appreciate the fundamental differences between payment inside and transmission out side a country. No Sum Fixed. When I think of the estimates framed in 1019 by experts of high Intelligence jtnd trained experience as to Germany’s capacity to pay cash over the border, I am not disposed to complain of the impatience dis played by the French taxpayers at the efforts made at successive confer- | ences to hew down those sanguine es timates to feasible dimensions. I am content to point with pride to the fact that the common sence of the more heavily burdened British tax payer has long ago taught him to cut his loss and keep his temper. When his example is followed ail round the reparations question is al ready solved. When public opinion In all the allied countries has sub sided Into sanity on German repara tions, as it already has fh Britain, firanciers can soon find the way out and trade and commerce will no long er be scared periodically from their desks by seismic shocks given to credit every time a French minister ascends the tribune to make a state ment on reparations. Regarding the payment of repara tions sololy from the point of view of finance, the Issues can be stated simply and, I think, solved readily. It Is always assumed by those who have never read the Treaty of Versailles and the letter that accompanied It that this much abused and little per used document fixed a fabulous In demnity for payment by Germany. The treaty may have Its defects; that Is not one of them, for It fixed no ■uni for payment, either great or small. It stipulated that a repara tions commission should be set up In order, Inter alia, to assess damages Inflicted by Germany on allied prop erty, and- compensation for injury to life and limb In allied countries. In the second place—and this Is always overlooked—It was to ascertain how much of that claim Germany was capable of paying. Provision Ignored. On both these questions Germany Is entitled to be heard before adjudica tion. It is in accordance with all Jurisprudence that as Germany was the aggressor and loser she should pay costs. But It would be not only oppressive but foolish to urge pay ment beyond her capacity. The amount of damage was to be ascer tained and assessed by May, 1921. Capacity was to be then determined and revised from time to time accord ing to varying conditions. Even so fair a controversialist as the eminent Italian statesman, Signor Nittl, has ignored the latter provision in the Versailles treaty. No wonder that he should, for there are multitudes who treat every alteration effected In the annuities fixed in May, 1921, as If It were departure from the Treaty of Versailles to the detriment of the victors; whereas every modification made iu egtflfd JUigiC tbe p{s* visions and by the machinery Incor porated In the treaty for that express purpose. But there has undoubtedly been a departure from the treaty—a funda mental departure. It has, however, been entirely to the detriment of the vanquished. In what respect? I pro pose to explain, for the whole trou ble has arisen from this change in the treaty. The treaty provided that the body to be set up for deciding the amount to be paid in respect of rep arations should be made up of a rejl resentative of each of the United States of America, the British Empire, France, Italy and Belgium. With the exception of the United States, all these powers are pecuniarily interest ed in the verdict. Mot Impartial Tribunal. At best it was, therefore, on the face of it not a very impartial tri bunal. Still, Britain, as a great trad ing community, was more interested in a settlement than in a few mil lions more or less of Indemnity being wrung out of Germany, and the pres ence of the United States and Bri tain together on the commission con stituted a guarantee for a moderation of view. Now the only disinterested party has retired from the tribunal. T^he most interested .party is in the chair with a casting \-ote on certain questions. That is not the treaty signed by Germany. If you sign an agreement to pay a sum to be award ed by A, B, C, T) and E trusting for a fair hearing largely to the influence of A, who is not only very powerful but completely disinterested, and then A retires from the board of abitrators, you are entitled to claim that the character of the agreement is changed. Representatives of France and Bel gium on the reparations commission are honorable men who are most anx ious to do justice, but they have a vigilant. Jealous and exacting opin ion constantly ready to overpower their Judgment. The balance of the treaty has therefore been entirely up set. What is really needed is to re store that balance so as to secure a fair verdict on the only question in issue—how much can Germany pay? Like Ordinary Debt. When you come to consider that issue* you must view the claim for reparations as you would any ordi nary debt. You must make up your mind whether you wish to ruin the debtor or to recover cash. If there are no sufficient realizable assets, then, if you want your money, you must keep your debtor alive. If you want beef from your cow you must forego milk. If your object is to de stroy your debtors, you preqs for pay ment of more than he can be reason ably expected to pay and then seize his house, his lands and his cattle, whether they can be disposed of or not. On the other hand, if you want your money you will find out what he can pay and then proceed Judicious ly, patiently and firmly to recover that amount. I do not mean what he can pay by condemning himself to a life of servitude and poverty. No brave nation will stand that long. That is not a . method of recovering an old debt, but of creating a new one. I mean what a nation can be expected to pay steadily, without re volt, for a whole generation. If you scrape the butter from tho bread of every German child for 30 years you may add to the sum of your indem nity a mlllfon or two of gold marks. That is not what was Intended by the Treaty of Versailles. Hungry faces make angry hearts, and anger spreads further than hunger. I mean what Germany can pay without condemning a generation of workers to Egyptian bondage and their children to semi starvation. Every oppression, if per i «ted in, ultimately ends in the ruin of the Red Sea. Europe has only Just escaped with great loss from its waters. We want to cross no other. Answer Given In Treaty. How are you to arrive at an exact figure of the annuities Germany can reasonably be expected to pay with out creating these intolerable condi tions for her people? That Is the question. The answer was given in the treaty as signed by settling up a commission to enquire and deter mine. That commission has been weakened and its character almost destroyed by defection of the United States of America. Is it possible to find a substitute? I ain afraid a ref erence of that question to a new com mittee of experts would not advance matters, for each country would de mand a m>regeniative on that com mlttee, and that would only mean the reparations commission over again under another name. The only hope of a fair and final decision Is to se cure the presence of a representative of the United States of America on the adjudicating body, whatever it may be. Is that possible? I need hardly say I am not venturing to ex press any opinion as to the American refusal to ratify the treaty as a whole. I am only stating quite frank ly my view that unless America takes a hand in reparations a real settle ment will be postponed until the hour of irreparable mischief strikes. If for reasons of which I am not com petent to judge America cannot oc cupy her vacant chair on the tribunal which may decide fateful issues for humanity, I despair or any real progress being made. Can Accept Judgment. The allied ministers can accept from a body representing leading powers who won the war decisions they dare not take on their own responsibility. That is the essence of the matter. It is no use blaming politicians. If they, of their own initiative, attempt to ride down public sentiment, which alone confers authority upon them, they will inevitably fail. In every country there are plenty of vigilant partisans ready to take advantage of tactical blunders committed by politi cal opponents or personal rivals. Bat the Judgment of an international tri bunal is another matter, and states men can accept it and act upon It without being taxed w ith . responsi bility for its conclusions. British opinion- cannot and will not accept a settlement based on the as sumption that abatements in the sum claimed for reparations, if and when made, must be discounted by the Brit ish taxpayer. France undoubtedly suffered more severely from the rav ages of war than any other belliger ent. But that is recognized in the proportion allocated her of repara tions payments. She recovers 52 per cent of the tgtal, i- e. more than all the other allied countries put together. Britain conies next in damage sus tained by her people. She is given 22 per cent. In many respects she has suffered more heavily than any other allied country, especially in tax ation and in trade. She is willing to stand it with the allies for loss as well as for protlt, but site will resent bit terly the suggestion that loss must necessarily be her share whilst such profit as there is belongs to others. The American people, who received no part of the compensation awarded anil collected, will, a fortiori, take the same view of their obligations in the matter. They certainly will not see the force of a settlement to be made nt their expense as If they had been condemned to pay Indemnity. America's Aid Needed. The question Is not what remission or Indulgence shall be granted Ger many, but what payment she Is cap able of making. If Germany can pay a large Indemnity France gets 62 per cent of that and Great Brit ain only 22 per cent. If Germany can only make a disappointing pay ment, France still gets 62 per cent and Great Britain but 22 per cent. There is, therefore, no ground for debiting Great Britain and America with the cost of reduced expectations. The offer to hand over the worthless "C" bonds to the British empire in return for her claims is an insult to the Intelligence of the British public Let us get away from these shifts on to the straight roail. Back to the treaty—that Is the real remedy. ThtVe is no need to revise it—all that Is re qulred Is to restore It. If America reappears on the arbitrating tribunal she need not accept the rest of the treaty. Then a fair and enduring settlement would soon ensue and this irritating sore would rapidly heal anil the condition of the world would steadily Improve. -- ■ ^ Baby Eats Carfare Slip; Conductor Is Convinced Yorkvllle. O., Jan. 13.—Passenger* on local Intorurban cars are suppooetl to surrender zone checks, given then* when they pay their fares, upon leaf" lng a car. A woman, with a baby, could not produce her zone check. Conductor August Tieufcl asked her where the check was. She told him the bab* chewed It up and swallowed It. A trace of blue on the baby's moutif convinced the conductor, and he per* mitted the woman to leave the cal* without paying an additional fare. Sale of Men’s Hats Continues Monday and Tuesday—Any Man’s Hat in Our Entire Stock, Except Stetsons, $4, $5, $6 and $7 Values, $1.98 TIP TOP SUPPER DANCE Benefit of HARRIOT H. MUX ROE HOME FOR CONVAL ESCING CRIPPLED CHILDREN Brandela Itcntnurant, Monday, January 15 Dancing; at 10 p. m. That funny Fred Stone and entire cnat of Tip Top Co, will be there to play with you. "Get Acquainted With Your Boy" “Father and Son” Week Jan. 14 to 21 Again Monday—Vitally Interesting Savings m The January Clearance Sales JANUARY CLEARANCE of All Kinds of Needed Wash Laces VALS, TORCHONS, VENICES 5c and 10c Val Lace, yard. .3Vi ^ 10c and 12c Torchon I^ace, per yard .7\kt 20c and 25c Cotton Cluny. per yard .12H«I 75c and 21.00 Venice Lace, per yard .59^ 10c Zion City Lace, yard....5^ $2.RO Spanish All-over I.aee, Pl.SO —Sillt Spanish all-overs and flouneincs. 36 Inches wide, In Mack, brown and navy. Regular 22.50 value. It’noday.81.89 Silks Woolen In thle Canton Crepes, 92.45 Yard Regular $3.60 val ue Canton Crepes. , pure all silk qual- • fty, all colors, 40 Inches. • Satin Cantons, 93.65 Yard $5.00 value, lus trous satin Can tons. The sea son’s desired wear for the smartly draped gown. Printed Crepes. •2.95 Yd. A A new silk vl for spring In (i twenty new c o m b Ina tlons. ^ Clearance Chiffon Tnffetaa, • 1.88 lord Ilegular $2.50 val ue Chiffon Taf feta, finest qual ity, full lino of tolors. * [.'harmroie Satin, • 1.88 Yard The ever popular Charmeuse Satin. Dull finish, serv iceable, 40 Inches wife. Wool Polret Twill*. •3.95 Yd. Regular $5 quality, flno u 11 wool Polret Twill In black, navy, seal and sand. 54 Inches wide. Neckwear In the January Clearance Bertha Collar* New Bertha Collars In net and Venice lace combinations, cream or ecru. Regular $1.50 value. Monday special . #1.00 Bramley Collar ami Cuff Set* Bramley Collar and Cuff Sets in eyelet embroidery. Regular 50c value. Special ..-29<* A l.nr*e Assortment of Collar and Cuff Seta in the Tuxedo nnd Bramley styles. Berthas nnd vestees. Regular $1.00 value Monday ■pefcial .59c Main Floor Front Room Room Size RUG i Sale Continuing Our January Sale of Rugs and Linoleum mini vioor Note the Savings WIRM nags, 980.00 I Pliuttlewnrth Wilton Hugs, site 9x12. A very close woven rug in a fine selection of taupe, blues and rose. Worth $110.00, at..880.00 8-3x10-6 Wilton Rug, worth $05.00..875.00 5x12 Best Axmlnster Rug, worth $70.no. Special at .842.50 8-3x10-6 Best Axmlnster Rugs, worth $6.On. Special at .838.00 9x12 Colonial Velvet Rugs, worth $65.00. Special at .845.00 8-3x10-6 Tapestry Brussels Rugs, worth $27.00. Special at .819.00 6x9 Tapestry Brussels Rugs, worth $18.00. Special at .812.50 Small Ran Ranging from $2.50“ $10 Beat Inlaid Linoleum $1.50 Per Square Yard January Clearance of Ho use furnishings Most Astonishing Low Prices Food Choppers—Regu lar $2.00 value. Size 2. Universal food chopper at .$1.69 Wash Hoards — Brass, glass or zinc wash boards. 85c value, spe cial at ... .59* // Soot Destroyer Remove the soot from your stove and furnace and get all the heating value from your coal. Karbonito Soot Destroy er removes soot: Stove size... .25* Furnace size .... 50* No. 2 galvanized waah tubs .... .65d No. 3 galvanized, wash tubs .... .69<* Galvanized Palls—U. S. government extra Leavy 14-quart galvan ized palls. 75c value, it .25* Oil Mopg, 4Se $1.00 regular val ue, large size tri angle oil polish mops, at.... 48* Wash Boilers. $1.08 Regular $3.00 val ue, heavy tin Wash Boilers — sizes 8 or 9. Sale price ....$1.98 Homekeeper’s Needs At Astonishingly Low Prices Linen Section Main Floor WWte Goods Section— I Center Irish Linen Table Damask— 70 Inches wide, fine Quality satin damask In new pat terns. Good value at $2.00 a yard, at.$1.59 Scotch Linen—Unbleached, 70 Inches wide, wonderful wearing quality, extra heavy weight. Biggest value since 1914. Per yard... .$2.50 Irish Linen Toweling—Bleached or nat- OF ural color. Special, per yard.UAJ C Satin Bed Spreads — These two values cannot be again offered at less than $7 to $8. Extra size scallop and cut corners. Very special at ....$5.45 and $6.50 Sheets at $1,30 Each^-81 x90 size seamless standard sheeting. Limit of ( to a customer. Just Out with 5oo loo, in color rjfie Spring MCCAIX QUARTERN JVoto on Sale in'our ‘Pattern Department, 25< ; b i January Clearance of Wash Goods . Start Spring Sewing Center—Main Floor 32- Inch Gingham*, 20c Tard New checks, plain shades and small plaids, fast col ors. 33- inch Percale*, 25c Tard Llaiit grounds, nary and Copenhagen blues, grays, etc. Shirting, apron and dress styles. Diamond Hill White Cam bric and Long Cloth, 19c Yurd Fine quality underwear and gown muslin. Japanese Crepe, 33c Yard Our 1923 Importation, thirty newest shades In this pop ular fabric, fast colors. Wonderful cloth for chil dren’s dresses, bouse robes, etc. Extra ] Special j In the ANNEX | Hosiery j Ladies’ Pure j Thread Silk ] Hose in black 4 and cordovan — j a regular $1.25 ! value, pair— i 89c Grocery and Market Specials for Monday liKUCEUIES 6 lbs. Pure Cane Sugar.. .50* 10 bars Pearl White Soap for . 35* 6 cans, small size, Nu-tro Milk for . 25* 6 lbs. Best Blue Rose Rice for . 25* ' 3 cans Fancy Apple Butter for . 25* Log Cabin Maple Syrup, quart cans for .... . 49* 1 cans Fancy Evergreen Corn for . 30* 4 pkgs. Macaroni, Spaghetti or Noodles for ... .25* EXTRA ,SPECIAL Six burs Pearl AVhitc Soap Only six burs to a 1 customer. Six burs... lut COFFEE » lbs. Golden Santos Coffee for . $1.00 l lbs. Famous Santos Coffee for . 95* J lbs. Excello Blend Coffee for . $5* Best Tea Siftings, lb... 17%* 3 lbs. Breakfast Cocoa..25* Plllsbury Circle Flour, 48-lb. sack for .$1.69 VEGETABLES A TO FRESH FRUIT Jonathan Apples for cooking, per lb.5* Choice Jonathan Apples, per box _ $1.69 Fancy Florida Grape Fruit. each . 5* Sunkist Oranges, extra fancy, per dozen ..., .25* t | Fancy Sunkist Lemons, per dozen .... .35* Fancy Cabbage, extra solid heads, per lb. ... .3* Fancy Head Lettuce, ea., 10* i bunches Hothouse Leaf Let tuce for _ 10* Ohio Potatoes, Nebraska grown —per peck ... .20* TRACKER DEPT. A* Shredded Wheat Biscuit, per pkg. .10* Sim’s Malt 0 Wheat, pkg.18* Kellogg's Corn Flakes, per pkg. .7W* DRIED FRUIT Santa Clara Prunes, lb-. 15* Fancy Muir Peaches, per lb.17‘i* Fancy Imported Filberts, per lb. .20* QUALITY MEATS Cone Leaf Lard, lb....114* Pork Chops, lb.15* Home-made Sausage...124* Choice Steer Shoulder Steak, Per lb.124* Sugar Cured Lean Bacon, Per lb.224* Ring or Long Bologna, Per lb.124* Fancy Tub Creamery Butter, Per lb.45* No. 1 Strictly Fresh Eggs. per dozen .... .43* Wilson's Nut Margarine.20* Saur Kraut, quart... .8* EXTRA SPECIAL Fancy Cooking Figs—Per lb., 15*5 Hve pounds 70c Extra Special In the ANNEX Percale Two to t^yard lengths stand ard per cales— mill ends. For Monday, yard— lie