24

ESSAYS IN PERSUASION

PART

be paid by Germany in thirty annual instalmentsof £50 million, beginning in 1923.

(4) The Reparation Commission should bedissolved, or, if any duties remain for it to per-form, it should become an appanage of theLeague of Nations and should include repre-sentatives of Germany and of the neutral States.

(5) Germany would be left to meet the annualinstalments in such manner as she might see fit,any complaint against her for non-fulfilment ofher obligations being lodged with the Leagueof Nations. That is to say, there would be nofurther expropriation of German private pro-perty abroad, except so far as is required tomeet private German obligations out of theproceeds of such property already liquidatedor in the hands of Public Trustees and Enemy-Property Custodians in the Allied countries andin the United States; and, in particular, Article260 (which provides for the expropriation ofGerman interests in public utility enterprises)would be abrogated.

(6) No attempt should be made to extractReparation payments from Austria.

Coal and Iron. —(1) The Allies’ options oncoal under Annex V. should be abandoned, butGermany’s obligation to make good France’ sloss of coal through the destruction of her minesshould remain. This obligation should lapse,nevertheless, in the event of the coal districts ofUpper Silesia being taken from Germany in thefinal settlement consequent on the plebiscite.

(2) The arrangement as to the Saar should