FRANCE’S CLAIMS

Pahiatua Herald, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 11559, 25 September 1930, Page 6

FRANCE’S CLAIMS

REDEMPTION OF RENTES ONE GOOD TURN SHOULD DESERVE ANOTHER. (Received 11.10 a.m.) United Press Assn—By Electric Telegraph—Copyright. PARIS, September 24. It is learned from official sources that the French Government contemplates a large scale financial operation as soon as conditions are favourable. It is ' believed it may comprise the redemption of part of the whole of the 1915 five per cent rentes. It .belatedly leaked out that in this connection the Government in July received a note from Mr Philip Snowden hacking the claims of the British holders of rentes' issued during the war, amounting to 1,641,000,000 francs, that they should be paid on the gold basis instead of with stabilised paper francs which are worth twopence compared with ten pence before the war. It is recalled that France unyieldingly insisted on her borrowers repaving on the gold basis, yet she refused the same right to British holders, ft is admitted on behalf of the British holders of rentes that they have no legal claim but it is urged that l a strong moral claim accentuated by the reflection that had Britain insisted on the full payments of the French war debt Fra nee would not how be the, largest gold-holding country in Europe with no unemployment, while Britain would not be under .such a staggering income tax and would not ha ve. such a large number of unemployed.