Two at a Table

Most of the civilized world last week bated its breath on the eve of President-elect Roosevelt's White House conference with President Hoover on War Debts. All Europe had the idea that its economic fate was in the four hands--two of them long and sinewy, the other two white and heavy --at the White House table. Most U. S. citizens previewed the meeting as necessary and important but not epochal. Day after his return from California President Hoover picked up his desk telephone to find Governor Roosevelt talking from his Albany study. Their opening exchanges were easy, informal. Despite the campaign they were, after all, old friends from War days in Washington. The President inquired after the Governor's health, was glad to know he had recovered from influenza (see p. 12). The Governor suggested a day and hour on which to accept the President's invitation to the White House, adding that he would like to bring to the meeting one personal adviser. That was all right with the President who said he would have Secretary of the Treasury Mills at his elbow. "Good-by, Mr. President." "Good-by, Governor." Governor Roosevelt's adviser is Raymond Moley, 46-year-old professor of public law at Columbia University. An expert on criminal procedure rather than international economics, Professor Moley is a stocky, thin-haired pedagog who began his career as an Ohio schoolteacher. As Governor of New York, Al Smith first discovered him as a useful citizen to have in the background. Long a Roosevelt friend, he accompanied the Democratic nominee this fall on his campaign travels as chief factfinder and statistician. The Press glibly called him the head of the Roosevelt "brain trust." He compiled data from which Governor Roosevelt composed his speeches, supplied technical advice, kept modestly out of the spotlight. Last week Professor Moley boned up on War Debts before accompanying the President-elect to the White House. Before the 31st and 32nd Presidents was this international situation: Britain. France, Belgium and Czechoslovakia had formally asked the U. S. to suspend $118,436,438 in debt payments due Dec. 15 and simultaneously to authorize a reconsideration of their total $8,443,000,000 War debt principal. Because he was going out of office President Hoover called his successor to Washington to help formulate a continuing national policy. Governor Roosevelt's stipulation was that the meeting be "informal and personal." The next President was ready to discuss and confer but he was unwilling to commit himself to a major foreign program three months before taking office. President Hoover was reported to have a variety of plans ready to suggest in the hope that Governor

Roosevelt would give his moral, if not official, support to one of them. Would the U. S. refuse suspension on Dec. 15 as a preliminary to debt reconsideration? Did any reconsideration necessarily mean a reduction in the $22,000,000,000 the U. S. hoped to collect in half a century? Could the old War Debt Commission be revived, as President Hoover had suggested, to conduct negotiations? Would the debtors default if refused another moratorium? Would such a default set back world recovery? Would a world conference on debts and tariffs, such as Governor Roosevelt had suggested, produce a solution? Would it really be better business for the U. S. to revise War Debts downward? What about the U. S. taxpayer who would have to make up the amount of the revision? Could the debts be successfully used to bargain for better trade opportunities and arms cuts? If the U. S. insisted on full payment of political debts, would U. S. private debts abroad be imperiled? Such were some of the questions of the Hoover-Roosevelt conference. Any decision reached at the White House was worthless without the concurrence of Congress, and Congress seemed to have made up its mind firmly against any leniency toward Debtor Europe. President Hoover was informed by long-eared Senator Reed of Pennsylvania: "I've not found a single member of Congress who will vote for a suspension of debt payment. The proposal is dead." Debt revision produced a deafening Capitol chorus. Idaho's Borah: "I'm opposed." Oregon's McNary: "I'm against." Mississippi's Harrison, Tennessee's McKellar, Georgia's George (in close harmony) : "We're opposed." Wisconsin's La Follette (solo) : "I'm not for." Democratic House Leaders Rainey, Collier and Byrns: "We're against." Last week it seemed very doubtful if even the combined efforts of Messrs. Hoover and Roosevelt could move such a mountain of Congressional opposition. P: The 1933 deficit is mounting at the rate of $5,000 per minute. It now stands close to $700,000,000. Last week President Hoover held his first full Cabinet meeting in three months to consider economies. Members pondered the problem for two hours. Next day President Hoover called them back to the first extraordinary Cabinet session during his term, told them he was determined to turn the Government over to his successor with a balanced budget. Unless taxes were to be upped, expenditures must come far down. After the meetings the President declared that 1934 appropriations would be reduced by $700,000,000. P: President Hoover signed a formal request for the extradition of Samuel Insull from Greece. P: Received by the President as the new Ambassador from Cuba was Senor Don Oscar B. Cintas. They made little speeches to each other about the "traditional friendship" between their countries.

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