WAR DEBTS TO AMERICA.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIX, Issue 21161, 19 April 1932, Page 9

WAR DEBTS TO AMERICA.

NO CHANCE OF REVISION. AMBASSADOR'S STATEMENT. FATAL TO RAISE POINT NOW. By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright. (Received April 18. 10.45 p.m.) LONDON, April IS. The diplomatic contributor of the Daily Telegraph states that the United States Ambassador to Britain, Mr. Andrew Mellon, in private conversations has intimated that there is not the slightest chance of America agreeing to a revision of war debts at present. Mr. Mellon says it would he fatal to raise the question at this juncture. The attitude of the Democrat Party in the United States toward war debt revision early this year was reviewed by I lie Washington correspondent of the Times in a despatch, in the course of ■which lie said:—The Policy Committee, drawn from the Democrats of the Senate and the House of Representatives, met recently, and the first fruit of its deliberations was a tariff bill which was promptly introduced in the House by Mr. Collier, chairman of the Ways and Means Committee. With the reservation that the measure seeks political advantage rather than any amendment of general economic conditions —for there is not the faintest doubt of this —the provisions of its various sections are of interest. Section 4 is worth quoting in full. It reads: —That the President is respectfully requested to initiate a movement for a permanent international economic conference with a view to: (a) Lowering excessive tariff duties and eliminating discriminatory and unfair trade practices; (b) preventing retaliatory tariff measures and economic war; (c) promoting fair, equal, and friendly trade and commercial relations between nations; but with the understanding that the question of the cancellation or reduction of in torGovernmental debts shall not be considered or discussed hv the representatives of the United States in such conferences. That the President be, and is hereby, authorised and requested, at" as early a date as may he convenient, to proceed to negotiate with foreign Governments reciprocal trade agreements under a policy of mutual tariff concessions.