No CrossRef data available.
Article contents
The London Conference on the Application of the Dawes Plan1
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 04 May 2017
Extract
The Dawes plan for recovering the reparation debt of Germany to the Allies under the Treaty of Versailles was accepted by all of the interested parties at London on August 16, 1924, and certain agreements necessary to enable the plan to be brought into operation were drawn up and initialed.Formal signatures to them were attached on August 30th after the French Parliament had approved the work of the conference on August 24th and 26th, and the laws for carrying the plan into effect had been passed by the German Reichstag on August 29th. The process of putting the plan into operation was thereupon promptly started. Immediately after the signatures had been attached on August 30th, the French Government issued instructions for the evacuation of a section of the Ruhr, and the Reparation Commission on the same day announced the appointment of the principal officials who are to administer the plan, namely, the Agent General for Reparation Payments, Mr. Owen D.Young of the United States, ad interim,(the appointment of Mr. Seymour Parker Gilbert, formerly Assistant Secretary of the United States Treasury, as the permanent Agent General was announced September 4th); Trustee of the Railway Bonds, M. Delacroix of Belgium; Trustee of the Industrial Debentures, Signor Nogara of Italy; Commissioner of Controlled Revenue, Mr. Andrew McFadyean of Great Britain. Two days later, namely, on September 1st, the first instalment of twenty million (20,000,000) gold marks, due from Germany under the plan, was paid to the Agent General for Reparation Payments, and the second instalment was promptly paid ten days later. On September 4th,the restrictions placed upon the movement of persons, goods and vehicles between occupied and unoccupied Germany were removed, and four days later the eastern customs line between the same territories was abolished. On September 10th, the first of the Ruhr political prisoners were set at liberty.
- Type
- Research Article
- Information
- Copyright
- Copyright © American Society of International Law 1924
Footnotes
1
The official proceedings of the conference are not available at the time of writing this article. For the facts and information contained herein, use has been made of the London Times for July and August and the first half of September, especially the daily accounts of the conference published during its sessions.
References
2 For a summary of the Dawes plan, see the article in our last issue, July, 1924, pp. 419-435.
3 Printed in British parliamentary paper, Misc. No. 12 (1924). For the correspondence concerning a previous program which met with vigorous opposition in France, see MiBC. No. 10 (1924).
4 The text of the reports of the First and Third Committees is printed in the London Times, Aug. 4, 1924, p. 13. A summary of the report of the Second Committee is printed in the Times, July 29, p. 12. The text of two reports by the Committee of Jurists is printed in the Times, July 29, p. 14, and Aug. 4, p. 13.
5 London Times, August 18, 1924, p. 16.
6 The text of the protocol and agreements is printed in the London Times, Aug. 18, 1924, pp. 15-16 . As soon as an official text is available, it will be printed in the Supplement to the Journal.
7 The other three agreements were initialed Aug. 16th and signed Aug. 30 th .
8 Annex 6 to the Dawes Report, British parliamentary paper, Cmd. 2105, pp. 110-112.
9 Cmd. 2105, pp. 33 et seq.
10 For the text of this decision, see the London Times, July 17, 1924, p. 14.
11 As the conference lasted beyond the time originally contemplated in the draft agreement, the dates specified were extended seventeen days by the protocol.
12 Cmd. 2105, pp. 13-14.
13 London Times, Aug. 9, p.10.
14 This wording, which appears in the London Times of Aug. 9, p. 10, is slightly different from the report of Mr. MacDonald's statement in the House of Commons published in the Times of Aug. 6, p. 6, column 4.
15 London Times , Aug. 5, 1924, p. 4.Google Scholar
16 The alleged interference in the negotiations of the so-called “ international bankers,” was greatly resented in France, and Mr. MacDonald in this connection made the following statement on the occasion above referred to: “ I may take this opportunity of expressing my regret that it has been so often stated that the difficulties we encountered in this part of our work were created by bankers and financiers. They confined themselves to advising as to the state of mind of the investing public, and guided us against coming to agreements that would fail to produce the loan required. We are all much indebted to them for the information and help they gave us.”
17 The notes exchanged are printed in the London Times, Aug. 18, 1924, p. 16, and Mr.MacDonald's letter is in the Times of Aug. 19, p. 10.