European Crisis

Hawke's Bay Tribune, Volume XIII, Issue 285, 17 November 1923, Page 5

European Crisis

l War Debts and Reparations s ' *—• FRANCE’S OBLIGATIONS TO BRITAIN. o UNANSWERED QUESTIONS. t (By Cable.—Press Association.—Copyright.] e London, November 15. Mr, Nevflle Chamberlain, replying to r questions in th© House of Commons. - said Franco’s debt to Britain with ace crued interest, totalled £612,000,000. f It was true th© French Chamber had r voted credits of 800,000,000 francs for i armaments for th© Little Entente. We e had received no interest on either e France’s or the Little Entente’s war jr debts. t Mr. A. M. Samuel: Is not this the a opportunity to represent to France that if sh© can find money for arma- , ments and make loans to other States, a she should make payments to Britain? } (Cheers.) Sir John Davidson: Cannot repret mentations also be mad© to Germany, e as they have bought nearly all Auetralia’s wool? No replies were given. e Th© “Morning Post” says; “It is e hard to resist the conclusion that the . Versailles Treaty is crumbling from the P administrators’ lack of faith. Neither ! th© Ambassadors’ Conference nor the e Reparations Commission can agree for e th© simple reason that both act under ? th© instructions of Governments, and t the two chiefly concerned, France and 3 Britain, view the European situation B from totally different standpoints.”— 1 (A. and N.Z.) 3 THE EX-CROWN PRINCE. AMBASSADORS UNDECIDED. FRENCH PROPOSALS. J i Paris, November 16. x The Conference of Ambassadors sat _ for two hours fruitlessly. France is believed to have demanded: Firstly, 3 the ex-Crown Prince’s extradition and 1 internment for life; secondly, the comL plete re-establishment of inter-AUied j military control at Berlin. . Franc© proposed: (1) That th© Allies jr should make a joint de march© to Ber--1 (2) that if th© Allies were agreed, 3 sanctions should later individually or 3 colectively be decided upon; (3) if the t Allies did not agree each Government should be allowed to take the measures it thought fit. A bald communique stated that the Conference adjourned until Saturday to allow further consultations with the respective Governments. It is learned that the British Ambassador remarked that from a judicial _ viewpoint, if the extradition of th© exCrown Prine© were demanded, it would be necessary to insist on the same treatment of all war criminals, whose handing over had not yet been demanded. M. Cambon declared that Russia was manufacturing arms and ammunition for Germany, and Stinnes employees had left the Ruhr in order to make arms and munitions in unoccupied Germany.—(A. and N.Z.) GERMAN CURRENCY REFORM. RENTENMARK EXPERIMENT STARTED. FIRST STEP TO GOLD BASIS. (Received 17, 1.16 p.m.) London, Nev. 16. The “Daily Telegraph's Berlin corresj pondent says:—This is a great day in the history of post-war Germany, perhaps of the whole of Europe. To-day tho issue of rentenmarks or bond-marks began, and the Government ceased entirely to raise money by discounting bills at the Reichsbank. Tho Government instead now draws on an immediate credit of three hundred million bondmarks given it by the Eentenbank isI sue of new currency. The civil service 1 thia week can only receive a third of • their wages in bond-marks. This 1* largely due to the printers’ strike. ’ It is expected the State’s outgoings daily will be met increasingly in bond- ’ marks by quick degrees. Lt is hoped these will soon become the chief medi- ( um of exchange in retail tra-Te. Before . this is achieveable there must be stable exchange between paper marks, bondmarks or gold-backed securities. This . is rendered difficult by tlie Government's recent interferences with the money market. The “Morning Post’s” Berlin correspondent says me next fortnight will show whether this first step towards a gold basis is on firm ground.—(A. and N.Z.) . 1