Evening Star Newspaper, February 1, 1923, Page 1

WEATHER. “Fi P, rom Press to Home Rain tonight and probably tomor- | s‘ | Within the Hour” The Star’s carrier system covers every city block and the regular edition is delivered to Washington homes as fast as the papers are printed. I Tow morning; temperature above 'T:.lln. l,ohl‘hl 'h!co,d.r tomorrow d n e Corature Tof t#enty-four hours ended at 2 p.m. yesterday: Highest, 41, at 8 p.m, yesterday; lowest, 37, at 6 am. today. Full repert on pag 1= “ Closing N. Y. Stocks and Bonds, Page 28 Entered as second-class matter post office Washingto, . C, No. 28,766. RENCH STOP COAL TOGERMANY, LOCK LAST EXIT OF RUBR Mines Production Falls Off 50 Per Cent and Faces ¢ Complete Tie-Up. RAIL STRIKERS RECEIVE 2 MONTHS ADVANCE PAY More Deportations Increase Bitter Feeling—Many Trains Are Suppressed. Industrial isolation of the Ruhr from unoccupied Germany, begun today by the cutting off of coal and coke shipments, may be carried still further if Germany fails to come to terms. In interdiction will be put upon exports of iron, steel and other manufactures in that case, a Dues. seldorf dispatch quotes the French as announcing. With the tightening of the indus- trial cordon about the valley, the production of coal continues on a declining scale. The railroad strike is effective throughout the entire val- ley, and there is a growing shortage of cars, threatening enforced sus- pension of the mines. The rail strike likewise is effec- tive outside the Ruhr, at Cologne and Mayence. -The few through trains being run in the Rhineland are operated by French crews. In Germany the government has can- celed operation of numerous express trains to economize on coal. Increasing tension between the Lssen population and the occupying troops is reported. In Essen and other Ruhr towns reports that France and England had broken at Lau- eanne over the near ‘east question caused premature jubilation. Hugo Stinnes, the German indus- .trial leader, is visiting the Rubr for the first time since the occupation, a Muelbeim dispatch announces. Br the Associated Press, DUESSELDORF, February 1 (1 m.)—The order prohibiting the ex- ort of coal and coke from the Ruhr o unoccupled Germany has been in orce since midnight. There had een no reaction from the Germans 2 to early this afternoon. The French announce that should termany fail to come to terms the interdiction upon exports will be ex- tended to steel, iron and other manu- ‘actured article: now permitted to nter Germany. The general railroad strike is ef- ective at Mayence and Cologne and hroughout the entire Ruhr valley. ‘ne train daily, worked by French rews, is dispatched from Paris to layence, another from Paris to Cologne nd a third from Paris to Coblenz and sturn. i Train Nearly Wrecked. At Ingersheim yesterday the Paris- iayence express was switched off /n to a blind 'siding, but the engineer applied the brakes in time to avert! + vawastrophe. The patrols of French soldiers who | have been enforcing law and order| in the streets of Duesseldorf since | the demonstrations of last Thursday | were removed this morning. The cur- | few hour has been made il p.m. in- stead of 10 o'clock as formerly. Closing Last Exit. I The closing of the Dortmund gate- | way, the only remaining exit into un- ‘ceupied Germany, was undertaken by | the French early today upon the re- | ceipt of instructions from Paris to tomplete the isolation of the Ruhr. | This step, which translates into ac- tion the decision of the Fren Belgian governments to shut off the ‘0al and coke supplies from the rest | follows quickly the as- | of the Reich, sumption of the customs control by the allies yesterday, and leaves the Ruhr completely at the disposal of the sccupying forces. With all the Ruhr customs post: us well as many large warehouses, their possession, the French find fiat coal production is being conside ably reduced while the rail strike still effective. The shortage of cars the mines may result, it is feared, a suspension of mining operations r a few days because of the con- :stion at the pitheads. Coal Production Falls. Taking stock of yesterday's coal roduction, the occupying experts ound that slightly more than 50,000 ons were taken out. This is less han half of the usual amount and was the poorest showing for any day since the occupation began weeks ago. Among the increasing number of per- | sons reported are twenty-five high ‘school etudents of Aix-La-Chapelle.. They are charged with holding a demonstration. Automobiles are still used to take ejected civillans across the border. Speaking to some labor leaders in Essen last evening, the correspondent found _greatly divergent opinions re- garding the French occupation. The real leaders, it is believed, are now in Berlin. Nationalists Feared. Several of the local leaders spoke of the occupation as a violation of inter- national law as great as the entranca of the German army into Belgium. Men holding such views belong to the na- tionalist elements, which the socialists and communists fear more than they do the French. Mr. Gruetzner, president of Rhenish Prussia. in an interview published in he Cologne Gazette, says he has dis covered reliable information to the ef- fect that the French wish to annex the Ruhr, and that the installation of their 4Wn customs system is the first step toward that end. X ‘When this statement was called’ to the attention of French general head- uusrters, officlals lied that it was AContinued on-Page 2, Golumn. 2) | ch and | three ! [Rhine Agitators Propose Coup to Declare Republic By the Associated Press. BERLIN, February l—Separat- ist agents and agitators in the Rhineland, in conference at Cob- lenz since the departure of the American troops, have been draft- ing plans for the proclamation of a Rhineland republic today.. &ys a Cobleg dispatch received hete last ever. hg. The codtemplated coup is to be carried out with the aid of the French and -Belgian military forces, who will promptly proceed to proclaim martial law, seize all lines of communication and evict the German officials, the dispatch adds. GERMANY T0 SPURN NEGOTIATIONS WITH | “It’s Bad Business, Worse for the Debtor,” Declares Cuno, of Occupation. By the Assoclated Press, BERLIN, February 1.—Chancellor Cuno, discussing the Ruhr occupation with a dozen American correspon- {dents last evening, summed up the situation by declaring: | “It's bad business—bad for the cred- |itor, but worse for the debtor, as the |former gets nothing while the latter {becomes systematically ruined.” | The chancellor confined his remarks ito an impassioned presentation of the |economic aspects of the Ruhr's ques- tion with reference to their immediate effects on Germany’'s internal situa- tion and her capacity for further reparation payments. He gave no hint that Germany contemplates tak- ing the initiative in the present situa- tion. Devas | “Is there ng Madness, He Says. he asked, “a single trace of economic logic or business sense in this armed assault upon one of the world’'s most complicated and highly productive industrial areas, which is not only pre-eminently qualified, but also obviously destined for active co- ’operatlon in the general task of world reconstruction?” Herr Cuno said he belisved 3 few facts and figures would be sufficient to characterize the “devastating mad- ness of the French and Belgian mili- tary autocrats.” He then proceeded to present statistical data bearing on the cost of the Franco-Belglan ad- vance as It compared with the repa- rations defaults for which Germany is being penalized. Costs More Than Claims. “If we inquire who is the actual | beneficiary of this military occupancy |of the Ruhr.” the chancellor contin- ued, “there can be only one answer: Nobody, least of all France, who up to the time she crossed the Rhine obtained from us daily $100,000 worth of coal. in addition to valuable deliv- eries of timber. This ejaborate mili- tary organization will Lonsume more moriey than she cla fis is due her through the alleged German default.” Chancellor Cuno said he believed that the Franco-Belgian“Rulr army would s0on show itself to be a highly irrational and unproauctive instru- ment, chiefly designed to spread con- fusion. ‘He referred at length to the annihilating effects of the French op- | erations upon the German civil service administration, local food prices and the destructive influence on the Ger- man mark, whereby Germany practi- cally has been eliminated as a buyer in the forelgn markets, inasmuch as she is naturally incapacitated as a purchaser of the wheat, cotton, cop- per and other essential commoditics needed to keep her industries in mo- tion and her workers employed, “If the French advance info the Ruhr is to be interpreted as a purely economic enterprise,” the chancellor asserted, “and calculated to promote the collection of reparations, Its in- itial effects on German finances and economics can hardly be viewed as facilitating that purpose.” CHANCELLOR DEFIANT. Will Refuse to Negotiate While Troops Remain. BY GEORGE WITTE. By Wireless to The Star and Chicago Daily : News. Copyright, 1923. BERLIN, February 1.—At the mo- {ment when the French completely | shut off all coal and coke shipments from the Ruhr basin to the rest of | Germany Chancellor Cuno gave a | message to the American newspaper | correspondents here to the effect that | not only was the German government jnot getting nervous, but that it had | no idea of entering into negotlations 1 | with the invaaing powers “until the !last man of their troops had been withdrawn from the wrongfully oc- cupled territory.” So today, three weeks after the first {French and Belgians had advanced |~ (Continued on Page 2, Column 4,) Joy in Ruhr at i By the Associated Press. ESSEN, February 1.—The Ruhr for- got its own troubles last evening upon receipt of Lausanne dispatches from German sources announcing “the final break between England and France over the near east question.” “Certain war between Great Britain and France!” screamed the headlines on one of the newspaper extras. “Rubr problem nearing solution,” an- nounced another. Great crowds gath- ered in front of the bulletin boards in Essen and Duesseldorf to cheer ihe reports from Lausanne. For the first time in three weeks there was joy in the Ruhr, ' ‘The population had been waiting in front of the newspaper offices in the expectation that the mgen ultima- tum to Germany. ‘_wo_nlu bublished. ch INVADERS OF RUHR Of “Sure Franco-British War” WITH SUNDAY MORNING EDITION ening Star. WASHINGTON, D. C., THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 1, 1923 -FORTY-FOUR PAGES. ¥ FRANGE RESERVE | HGHTTOSNOWN TREATYWITHTURK Paris May Deal Direct Wit Angora If Lausanne Par- ley Fails. ) lSOVIET HITS AG {EEMENT | FOR CONTROL STRAITSE Allies Hold United font as Treaty | Is Presented to the Turks. | B7 the Associated Press. i LONDON, February 1.—The British | | government today received a mote { € _A France the substance of which | lis that France reserves the right to| jundertake separate negotiations with | | Turkey in the event of the Lausanne | | conterence failing. 1 The opinion was expressed in offi- clal circles here that the events of | the past twenty-four hours appear to have put the French note in abeyance. The news received from Lausanne states there is great hope { the conference will prove successful. | SOVIET REFUSES TO SIGN. ‘ Russians Will Not Approve Straits Control Pact. By the Associated Press. LAUSANNE, February 1.—The Rus- | sian delegation at the near east con- | terence, announced at the meeting of | the stralts commission today, that Russia would not sign the conven- tion providing for control of the! Dardanelles and the Bosphorus. i The spirit of concillation shown cn | practically all sides has preveated a rupture of the conference followiny | formal presentation of the allied draft | treaty to the Turks. The mutual gocd | will manifested by the British. FrenCh | and Itallan delegations has side- | tracked gny danger of a break in the! allied front, dut to developments. | arquis Curzon. the British foreign secretary, changed his plans for leav- ing Lausanne on Friday, and agreed to remain, together with his entire delegation, until Sunday night. Mean- while, efforts will be made by pri vate negotiations to obtain accor: the disputed points in the treaty. | Reasonable prospects of attaining | an agreement, probably by submis slon of several:of the matters in can- flict to arbitration, saved the confer-' ence from shipwreck. induced the Turks to adopt a more moderats ot- titude and prevented discord amung the alliea §r The result is that the Turks prob- ably will not present thoir counter- projects at a formal session of the conference. but will gpdsavor tq iron out the difficulties sgfedily in private conferences. Soviet's Hands Wree. The convention, declared M. Tchit- cherin, menaced the sscurity of Rus-| sia, the Ukraine and Georgia; imposed naval armament on Russian, and vio- lated the treaties of Moscow and Kars, between Russia and Turkey. The proposal ghowed tho impotency of thesconference to make p:ace, Rus- sia_had her hands free und hence- forth would maintala complete liberty of action. Even though the convertion was| signed by the others, for Russia the question remained open. Marquis Curzon said hg had always held that the adherence of ltussia wa: necessary to a permanent and satis. factory solution of the straits prob- lem, and hoped that Russia would '.Ign later. 1 TENSION IS LESSENED. | French-British Break Avoided. | ‘War Cloud Fades. BY PAUL SCOTT MOWRER. By Cable to The Star and Chicago Daily News. Copyright, 1923, PARIS, February 1.—The high diplo- ma‘ic tension over the near eastern situation which threatened a Franco- British break, and the possible re- sumption of Turko-Greek hostilities | has suddenly subsided. France has { rallied once more to the support of Great Britain. Premier Polncare ha: urged the Turks strongly to sign the draft treaty, and the French govern- ment today expects that peace will be definitely in sight by Monday. This sudden modification of the overnment’s previous atti- F\:de:c!,; n‘source of great satisfaction to that large and fmportant element ot French opinion which, while it wants peace in the near east, feels that France has gone too far with the Turks, and in any case does not desire a break with Great Britain on this ion. 9Y¢* e Sknown that M. Barrere, the veteran French ambassador to Rom who was one of the plenipotentlarie to Lausanne, returned to Rome be- cause of his profound disagreement with what he regarded as the too conciliatory attitude of the French government toward the Turks. Bar- rere’'s position finds many supporters in French diplomatic circles, and in case of a renewed crisis, it is now | fully expected that France will re-| main entirely lo: 5 Colcbwation . | | i | | i {When news of a break at Lausanne was announced, the people were greatly relieved and greeted the bul- |letins with tumultuous cheers. Extra ledmunl of the -Westphalian Gazette and the Duesseldorf Tageblatt were | &napped up prompily at 100 marks a copy. , Officers- on duty at ¥ronch head- quarters - volunteered the _information ! that nb officlal advice as to a Fran- co-British break had been received from Paris dnd that the joy of the Germans. is likely to prove premature, ‘“We will defeat the French!” was the ery heard again and again as patrols of soldiers dispersed the crowd. The population was in good humor, ho- . ever, and taunted the French soldiers | without offering any resistan { “Be careful you don’t break your neck.” a German youth shouted to a French' horsemah as the latter's mount slipped on the wet pavement and nearly fell. “You'll be needed to defend sl - - i >ontinues throughout the year “EASY" MARRIAGE LICE ;Social Agencies Committee Cites 14-Year-0ld Brides and Grooms in Report. 2 SPECIALTY MINISTERS !Find Clergymen Performed 22 of | 96 Weddings of Non-Resi- dents in 2 Weeks. ease with which marriage are obtained in the District of Columbia by young persons w are under the legal age, and the di AN covery of three or four clergymeh: here who make a “specialty” of per- forming marriage ceremonies, king no questions and demangding only that a license be produced_were the out- standing features of the report of the community committée, Washington Council of Social Agencies, made at the meeting of the commitee yester- day afternoon at the'Y. W. C. A. The comnilttee, which has made a survey of the situation here, cited several cases in its report of four- teen-year-old boys and girls who were married in Washington and who afterward appliea for annulment of marriage, glving their youth as the zeason for the latter action. A tabulation of the non-resident marriages over a two-week period, the report stated, showed “two of these clergymen” performed twenty-two of the ninety-six marriage ceremonies and it is estimated that if this ratio these two gentlemen add anywhere from a $1,000 to $1.400 to their incomes from fees. This may explain their willing- ness to perform marriage ceremonies with ‘no questions asked".” The committee decided to place the entire matter before the church or- ganizations of the city and a sub- committee was appointed to study the federal marriage bill recently_ intro- duced in the Senate by Senator Capper. 40 HURT AS EXPLOSION SHAKES -CENTER OF CITY By the Associated Press. SPRINGFIELD, Mass, Webruary 1. —The explosion of a storage tank of the Springfield Gas Light Company today injured forty persons and caused confusion and wreckage in the business section of the city. Of- fice workers and persons in the streets were struck down by debris. ‘Workers in the plant were reported seriously hurt but without fatalities. Automobiles in the streets were hub deep in wreckage. The municipal group of buildings centering about city hall, banks and business blocks were in ‘the area in which windows were broken. Per- sons in these buildings comprised many of the injured. The big storage tank was located at the foot of Elm street near water, and not far distant from the bank of the Conneecticut river. 300 MINERS ENTOMBED; 60 BODIES RECOVERED By the Associated Press. BERLIN, February 1.—Some 300 iminers were still buried today in the mine at Beuthen, Polish Silesia, in Which an explosion of fire damp yes- terday entombed 600 men. Sixty bodies had been removed at the latest advices. - What Has Occurred i up to the last minute Appears in - e Zoening Ffa2 5:30 Editipn : Miscellaneous news —sport news— financial news—and the court calendar for tomorrow. For sale by newsboys and newsdealers throughout the city. NSESEXPOSED, WATCHFUL ) ! AITING' Dies as Result of Jump From Window MRS, MARJORIE MANUEL LEWIS, | BGENT GAR FARE DEFENDED BY HAM Street Railway Head Replies to Senators Who Demand- ed Reduction. The street railway situation in the District of Columbia was aired again in the Senate today. Senator Ball, Chairman of the District committee, had read to the Senate a letter from William F. Ham, president of the Washington Railway and Electric Company, in which s'r. Ham declared that in the largest cities in Alabama and Tennessee street railway fares larger than § cents were charged, the amount advocated by Senator Hef- lin of Alabama and Senator McKellar of Tennessee to be charged in Wash- ington. His letter said in part: “Noting that the senators from Tennessee and Alabama have been outspoken in their criticism of exist- ing conditions, you might be interest- ed to know that in the four largest citles in Tennessee and the two larg- est cities in Alabama the fares are as follows: Nashville, 7 cents straight; Memphis, 7 cents straight; Chatta- nooga, 7 cents straight; Knoxville, 6 cents straight;) Birmingham, 8 cents, fifteen tickets for $1; transfer charge, 2 cents; Mobile, 8 ‘cents cash fare; ticket rate, 7 cents; transfer charge, 1 cent. Wage Scales Lower. “All of the above cities have over- head trolley construction, whereas we have underground construction, which, as you know, costs two or three times as much to construct and maintain, and besides have a wage scale for trainmen from 51 cents to 66 cents an hour.” In Mr. Ham's letter he called at- tention to the fact that the wages in the six southern cities which he mentioned paid by the street rail- (Continued on Page 2, Column 2.) | WONIAN DIVES FIVE STORIES TO DEATH Mrs. Marjorie M. Lewis, | | Motorists Also to Ask Better Court Machinery—May Call | more traffic policemen, a judge to pre- | viola * Yesterday’s Net Circulation, 95,323 . TWO CENTS. Want Debt Cut? Then Give Up | Liberty Bonds Persons favoring cancellation of the debt owed the United States | by foreign nations would be per- | mitted to contribute their liberty and victory bonds to be used in reducing it, through a resolution introduced today by Representative | Edmonds, republican, of Penn- sylvania. Contributors would be given the privilege of naming the country to which their offering should be credited and for each donation an equal part of the debt would be cancelled. | S0MORE TRAFFIC POLICE DEMANDED BY D.C. AUTOISTS z i Out Motor Corps. The immediate appointment of fifty de solely over the Traffic Court and an assistant district attorney to de- vote his uninterrupted attention to | ions of the traffic regulaions are the first three important steps recommended by Washington motor- | ists today In their imperative demand for strict law enforcement to halt| careless driving here. | Without this machinery to apply | the law In its strictest sense, it was pointed out. the adoption of more “hard-boiled” regulations would be| useless. Under existing condition Wife of Naval Officer, Vic- | i tim of il Health. i WAS COOKING BREAKFAST‘ Husband Out Walking When Wife Jumps From Window of New Hampshire Ave. Apartments. Mrs. Marjorie Manuel forty, wife of Lieut. Frank Lewis, Pay Corps, United States Navy, jumped to her death from the fifth | floor of the apartments at 1316 New Hampshire avenue shortly after § o'clock this morning. The body was found in the court- | yard at the rear of the apartment by attendants in the building. Lieut. Lewis was out taking a walk, when his wife leaped from the window lof their kitchenette. “I left the apartment at five min- utes after 8 o'clock,” he sald. “I was taking our dog for a walk. My | wife had said: ‘When you return, breakfast will be ready for you. " Lewis, aged Here Short Time. Mrs. Lewis had been in. Washing- | ton little more than a month, With | her husband she previously resided | at the Manchester. He had urged| her to employ a maid and another servant, he said, but she refused !She also refused to have a nurse ior to go to a hospital to recuperate from extreme nervous trouble follow- ing almost three months' attendance {at the bedside of her mother in San Francisco, who died last November. During that time, Lieut. Lewis de- clared, she had lost weight from 150 pounds to a bare 130, being so greatly reduced when he went to California to | accompany her here that he sald he scarcely knew her. Since Mhat time she had been in a highly nervous state and | had brooded over the death of her mother, Lieut. Lewis declared. The little dining room of the Lewis apartment this morning presented a pa- | thetic scene. The table was laid with a neat breakfast array, prepared before Mrs. Lewis leaped from the window. Mrs. Lewis is survived by three sis- ters and two brothers, in addition to her husband. They are Miss Edith Manual of San Francisco, Mrs, Geral- dine Sleeth of Vallejo, Calif.; Mrs, Su- san Nichols of Oakland, Calif.. Wil- llam Manual of San Francisco and Richard Manual of Fairfax, Calif. Funeral arrangements have not yet been completed. The remains, how- ever, Lieut. Lewis said, will be cre. mated, in accordance with the wish of his wife, and the ashes sent to California for deposit in a family vault. e leut. Lewis is well known in naval He has been stationed at circles. Goat Island naval station, San Fran- , Newport, cisco; Charleston navy yard, R. 1: Boston, Norfolk and with the He came here in early Pacific fleet. November for duty in the bureau of supplies and accounts. |Woman Smokers Suspected in Big U.S.FireDamage By the Associated Press. NEW YORK, February 1.—Wom- an smokers are suspected of havy- ing caused the heavy increase in loss by fires due to “matches .and amoking” in the United States dur- ing the last year, reported by the | Traffic | were falling to obey them. neither the judge presiding over th Court nor the office of the district attorney can devote sufficient time to traffic cases to thoroughly | understand them, it is said To Call on Motor Corps. i Until additional permanent police- | men can be employed, Commissioner | Oyster intends to recommend that the Board of Commissioners ask 50 or 100 | members of the Motor Corps of the Home Deferse League to volunteer for traffic duty, ic was learned toda They probably will be asked to assist in directing traffic so that uniformed policemen can be assigned to track- | ing down speed maniacs and other motor law breakers. ¢ In view of the sudden Increase in | traffic fatalities at the outset of the| new year, Commissioner Oyster is| known to be considering the advisa Dility of reducing the speed limit from cighteen miles an hour to twelve or fifteen. The Commissioners declared Washington's trafiic regulations were “good_enough” but admitted drivers The need for more policemen, he asserted, is intense. He called at- tention 'to_the fact that there are now only fifty-five motor cycle men | attached to the traffic bureau. Simul- taneously Supt. Sullivan declared 914 persons had been arrested here for speeding, in January, as against 636 in December. The in- crease, he said, was due to the fact| that Inspector Headley had sent a ! flying squadron of motor cycle men | through the city, showing what can | ve accomplished when the depart- ment has the men. The flying squad- ron alone arrested 337 of these speeders. Approve Hardison Course. The announcement by Judge Har- dison vesterday that he would impose | maximum sentences upon aggravated | offenses against the traffic laws was applauded by motorists, pedestrians | and District officlals today, and the} demand for the imposition of Jail sentences upon speed maniacs and| careless drivers was renewed with in- creased emphasis. 'There is an in-| cessant cry from all sections of the city for the present regulations to be amended wherever they fail to give | (Continued on Page 2, Column 17.) - COMMITTEE 0.KS 0.C GASOLINEIL Representative Fred N. Zilman of Maryland today submitted to the House the favorable report on the bill fa- thered by the District Commissioners to place a tax of 2 cents per gallon on | motor vehicle fuels sold within the Dis- | trict, which, it is promised, will ac- complish reciprocity in the matter of automobile tags between the District and Maryland. The House District com- mittee yesterday instructed Representa- tive Zihlman to write this report, in which he say: Provisions of Bill. “Eftective January 1, 1924, this bill provides a registration fee of $1 for | all motor vehicles and a tax of 2 cents per gallon on all motor vehicle fuel | sold within the District, same being in lieu of the present registration and a personal property tax. “It is further provided that this act shall be inoperative and of no effect unless, on or before July 1, 1¥23, the state of Maryland shall agree to per- mit on and after January 1, 1924, the free and unrestricted use of the pub- lic highways of that staiae by motor National Board of Fire Underwrit- ers today to have amounted to $25,992,033. The total loss by fire in the country for the year, ac- cording to. the report, was $495,000,000. “Can the more general use of tobacco by women during the past few years be the reason for the startling advance in the fire losses from the hazard of ‘matches-smok- ing’'?" says the report. “Insur- ance men are asking themselves this question as they contemplate vehicles bearing registration markers or place of the District of Columbla. “This tax on motor fuel is collected from the dealer monthly. Maryland Has Bill “The legislature of the state of Maryland has adopted a similar tax, effective January 1, 1924, and authori- zation is conferred upon the governor of the state to confer and advise with the proper officers in the DI trict of Columbla and enter into a reciprocal agreement which will end the long-drawn-out controversy that the record total, which compares with $16,435,563 for the cause in 1918." i Losses resulting from various other causes also increased, with the exception of those due to the misuse of electricity. Loss from fires so started was $12,723,209, a little ‘more than half the figure five years ago. has existed between the District of Columbia and the state of Maryland on the question of reciprocity in the matter of motor vehicle taxation. “It is estimated by the Commi; | that {nels during the day leven minor details of | gram |of ratification of the agreement DEBT COMMISSION MEETS 0 PRESENT PLAN TO CONGRESS British Embassy Notifies State Department of Ac- cepting U. S. Program. 1$200,000,000 IN ANNUAL PAYMENTS ESTIMATED More Details Awaited From Lon- don Before Final Course of Action is Determined. Secretary Mellon, chairman of the American debt funding commission, today called a meeting of the com- mission for late in the afternoon to make plans for presenting to Con- gress the American-British agree- ment accepted in London yesterday. The call for the meeting followed official notification of the State De- partment by the British embassy the British cabinet had acted favorably on the American funding plan. More Detalls Awaited. More details of the British action are expected through diplomatic chan- and upon the completeness of these advices will de pend how far the American commis- | sion can o at today’s meeting in out- lining its next move. Some reports received in govern- ment circles ind! ted, it was said that the British acceptance, which was reported by Ambassador Harvey as “in principle,” was on a basis which would not materially change the plan as suggested. by the American commis- sion. Lacking flnal information on this point, however, debt commission officials declined 'to indicate the amount of payments which the 3 and 3% per cent interest rates, with the one-lalf of 1 per cent amortization payment would bring to the United States annually in retirement of the British obligations. Annual Payment Estimates. Various estimates of the annual payments ranged from $135,000.000 to more than $200,000,000. The interes: rate of s per cent, effective for the first ten vears, would, on its fac mean a payment of about $135.000.000 a year, but other phases of the pro- ‘may operate to change this amount. One of the first questions befors the commission is a decision whether to ask for & general amendment of the present law to encompass the British settiement, or to rely instead upon acceptance of the British terms specifically by a resolution of Con- gress. B Sentiment appeared to be gaining in the commission today for the lat- ter plan. which was said to have the support of President Harding. Sen- ator Smoot and Representative Bur- ton, the two congressional members of 'the commission, have stood for general changes in the law liberal- izing its provisions and giving the commission full power to complete the settlement. It was declared at the Treasury, however, that the com- mission members would get together speedily on some means of procedure that would guarantee early action by Congress. Plans for presenting the necessary legislation to Congress as soon as possible were discussed during the |day at a_ conference between Presi- dent H#mding and Senators Lodge of | Massachusetts and Watson of Indi- ana, two of the administration Senate leaders. The President was said by Senator Lodge to consider acceptance of tha settlement plan at this session of Congress as of prime importance. Procedure Undetermined. As to what procedure should be followed in submitting the question to Congress, there appeared today to be a division of opinion among mem- bers wf the commission. Immediate changes in the law broadening the powers of the commission so that it could complete the settlement, most of the provisions of which are out- side of the present debt-funding act, was represented as the course favor- ed by some of the members, including Secretary Mellon, who is chalrman and Senator Smoot, repuolican and Representative Burton, can, Ohio. President’s Desire. President Harding. however, is un- derstood already to have commu cated to members of the commission the view that Congress should act on the settlement by resolution, so as to permit a vote on the straight issue of its acecptance or rejection. Many Ctak, repuoli- | democratic leaders in the Sente have indicated privately that they would not oppose acceptance of the Brit- ish settlement, but would oppose changes in the law at this time. Any divergence in official views of th point is expected to be quickly ac- | Justed when the commission mee Later Representative Burton also talked over the situation with the President. While these conferences were in progress actual preparation of au- thorizing legislation was under way at the Treasury Department and, although officials there refused to dis- cuss details, it was indicated that the bill_probably would deal specifically with the proposed British settlement and would not embody a_general re- peal of the limitations htiherto set by Congress upon funding agree- ments. After sending the British notifica- tion to the State Department. tha British ambassador, Sir Auckland Geddes, called on Secretary Hughes and was invited to confer, also, with the American commission’ after its meeting later In the day. LONDON STOCKES IMPROVE. Announcement of Acceptance of U. S. Terms Gratifies. By the Assoctated Press. LONDON, February 1.—As the result of Great Britaln's acceptance of the American debt ‘funding proposals gllt-edged securities under the lead of the war loan improved smartly to- day, imparting confldence to the other sections of the stock market. A note of warning against too much optimism was sounded in conserva- tive quarters, where it was pointed out that the sanctlon of the American Congress to the proposals must still be obtained and other details settled. sioners of the District that the reve nue produced by the enactment of this "bill will be approximately $1.000,000 a year, which is an increase of about $150,000.” The Ruhr situation with its un- known possibilities also necessitat: caution, which will possibly offset the T (Continued on Page 3, Column & .