vi REPARATION, INTER-ALLY DEBT, ETC. 159

industries of the United States would suffer, not somuch from the competition of cheap goods from theAllies in their endeavours to pay their debts, as fromthe inability of the Allies to purchase from America their usual proportion of her exports. The Allies would have to find the money to pay America , notso much by selling more as by buying less. Thefarmers of the United States would suffer more thanthe manufacturers ; if only because increased importscan be kept out by a tariff, whilst there is no sucheasy way of stimulating diminished exports. It is,however, a curious fact that whilst Wall Street andthe manufacturing East are prepared to consider amodification of the debts, the Middle West and Southis reported (I write ignorantly) to be dead against it.For two years Germany was not required to pay cashto the Allies , and during that period the manufacturersof Great Britain were quite blind to what the con-sequences would be to themselves when the paymentsactually began. The Allies have not yet beenrequired to begin to pay cash to the United States ,and the farmers of the latter are still as blind as werethe British manufacturers to the injuries they willsuffer if the Allies ever try seriously to pay in full.I recommend Senators and Congressmen from theagricultural districts of the United States , lest theysoon suffer the same moral and intellectual ignominyas our own high-Reparation men, to invest at once ina little caution in their opposition to the efforts of