INTERIM AID TO EUROPE

Press, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 25365, 12 December 1947, Page 7

INTERIM AID TO EUROPE

House Opposes Reduction

VOTE EXPECTED TO-DAY (N.Z. Press Association—Copyright) (Rec, 10 p.m.) WASHINGTON, Dec. IQ. The House of Representatives rejected decisively to-night all efforts to slash the 590,0Q0,W-dol-lar bill authorising emergency aid to France, Italy, Austria, and China, and final approval of the bill in substantially its present form appeared likely to come tomorrow. The House rejected, by 147 votes to 97, an amendment by Mr Lawrence Smith (Republican, Wisconsin) which would have reduced the aid figure to 500,000,000 dollars. A out of 300,000,000 dollars was rejected by 171 votes to 78. The House also disapproved an amendment, sponsored by Mr Chester Merrow (Republican, New Hampshire), which would have raised the total to 657,000,000 dollars to give the three European countries as much help as the Senate authorised and 60,000,000 dollars to China. The vote against Mr Merrow’s proposal was 165 to 24. The vote on this proposal followed a last-ditch fight against the entire relief programme by Republican and some Democratic opponents. The House put a ban on the distribution of relief supplies by Communist officials or organisations in countries receiving aid. The ban was proposed by Mr L. M. Rivers , (Democrat, South Carolina), who told the House that this amendment would say to Communists, Brother you are not giving away five cents’ worth of this food, and, furthermore, you are not going to allocate any of it.” -Th® amendment was approved by 109 votes to 57. y , H °use had refused to SIX? th f Cross the job of distributing food sent abroad under the