WAR DEBT DISPUTE

Sun (Auckland), Volume 1, Issue 38, 7 May 1927, Page 15

WAR DEBT DISPUTE

REPLY TO MELLON GOVERNMENT SUPPORTED CONTROVERSY NOT WANTED English newspapers are unanimous in their applause of the statement issued by the British Government in reply to the statement made by Mr. A. V/. Mellon, Secretary of the United States Treasury. In America a suggestion is made that the war debt problem has been raised in order to divert attention from Britain’s domestic affairs.

By Cable.—Press Association.—Copyright LONDON, Thursday.

The newspapers, which were taken by complete surprise with the Note to America, unanimously approve of its contents.

“The Times” says: “The last thing desired was the controversy with the United States about the debt, which we are steadily discharging, but Mr. Mellon’s miss-statements obtained a wide currency, and cannot be allowed to pass unchallenged.

“It is particularly regrettable that the Secretary of the United States Treasury should have appeared to sacrifice to demands of domestic politics the scrupulous accuracy he might so easily have observed.” The “Daily Chronicle” says: “The Note does its utmost to save Mr. Mellon’s face and facilitate his making the ‘amende honourable,’ if he desires.”

The “Financial Times” declares that “the note should clear the air and prevent a recurrence of the statements that create and foster harmful misunderstandings.” The “Morning Post” says: “The country will heartily approve of the Government’s action in stating the facts to the world. British people cannot but feel it is hard that they should be openly accused by a member of the United States Government of profiting by a settlement which lowers their whole standard of living, whether influenced by domestic exigencies or not. “Mr. Mellon published to the world erroneous statements which we trust he will see fit to withdraw.” The “Daily Telegraph” regrets the necessity for the Note, but says: “The necessity was not of the British Government’s making. It has been thrust upon them by Mr. Mellon’s extremely serious inaccuracies. It is difficult to compute the prejudice done thereby to Great Britain in Europe.” —A. and 1 N.Z.

MOTIVES FOR NOTE

AMERICAN VIEWS NEW YORK, Thursday. The “New York Times correspondent in Washington states that in some quarters the belief is expressedthat the publication of the British Note coincided with the opening of the International Economic Conference at Geneva. The controversy had been reopened at that time because of the possible effect upon negotiations there.

Another suggestion was that Britain’s internal politics might have had something to do with the move and that the war debt problem had been reopened in the hope of diverting attention from other strictly domestic controversies.

DISPATCH OF NOTE

COULD NOT BE AVOIDED By Cable.—Press Association.—Copyright (.British Official Wireless.) RUGBY, Thursday. In the House of Commons to-day the Right Hon. Winston Churchill, Chancellor of the Exchequer, was asked whether he was aware that Mr. Mellon had repeated his statement that Great Britain was receiving more from the Allies’ countries than she was paying to the United States, and that these statements were doing great harm to British interests in Prance and Italy. Mr. Churchill replied that both by parliamentary speech and formal note the Government had recorded their views on these transactions. He did not see how, in the circumstances, the Government could have avoided taking the steps which they had taken.—A and N.Z.