DEBTS TO AMERICA

Dominion, Volume 27, Issue 189, 9 May 1934, Page 9

DEBTS TO AMERICA

Token Payments May Not Be Accepted SENATOR’S ASSERTION Nations Would Be Classed as Defaulters By Telegraph.—Press Assn. —Copyright. (Received May 8. 7.10 p.m.) Washington, May 7. A statement that token payments would not be accepted from debtor nations next June 15 was made to-day in the Senate by Mr. Hiram Johnson, author of the law which forbids Americans from having financial dealings with debtor nations that are in default. Mr. Johnson said: “I am perfectly sure that token payments will not be accepted by our Government,” adding that nations that had not paid their debt commitments in full would be in the category -of defaulters after Juno 15. A protest was taken to the State Department to-day by the Ambassador for Russia, M. Troynnovsky, against the ruling of the Attorney-General. Mr. H. S. Cummings, last week that Russia was in default. The debt discussion sprang up and bioadened to-day after the speaker. Mr. H. T. Rainey, of the House of Representatives. said that the new debt settlement with Finland was being worked out and it might become the basis for the settlement of other foreign debts. There was no. comment at White House on either the Rainey or Johnson statements. The State Department has been working on the agreement with Finland for some time, but in some quarters it was said that the application of such an agreement to other nations probably would depend upon their putting themselves on tlie same fully paid-up status ns I'inland

The Attorney-General declared on May 5 that the United Kingdom hud not defaulted when she made token payments on war debts instalments. He also stateel if Great Britain were in default of her war debts to the United States. Canada would not be in default by virtue of her being a self-governing Dominion of the British Commonwealth of Nations. The Washington correspondent of “The Times” said on April 3 that the British Treasury announcenjent of n surplus would prejudice their ■ case for war debt revision in (lie opinion of administrative officials who had followed the various attempts to negotiate new agreements. . . The effect on American public opinion, it was believed, would be to lose sympathy for the British position. The feeling was growing that President Roosevelt’s war debt message, which had so long been promised. would be confined to a recommendation that n new funding arrangement le negotiated with Finland, as she was the oniv country which had paid in full to date.' The object of such a move would be to shame other debtors and hold out to them a concrete reason for paying their arrears.