Show 4 NEW V GER GERMAN AN WRITER SENDS HIS CIS DISPATCH A Discusses Increased Ex Expenses Expenses Expenses of Fatherlands Fatherland's Municipalities BY DR GUSTAV v Noted German Editor and ond Eco Eco- Copyright 1927 1977 Consolidated Press Association BERLIN Nov 26 Echoes Echoes of the recent memorandum of S. S Parker Par Par- Parker Parker ker Gilbert general agent of reparations rep rep- reparations reparations will long lone reverberate in Germany His arguments have been taken up in the Inner political political cal warfare but It Is not a battle along party lines It cuts through all 1111 parties Dr Hjalmar Schacht president of the heads the de- de defenders de de- defenders defenders fenders of Mr Ir Gilberts Gilbert's arguments and behind him stands the greatest part of Industry which for years has regarded the Intrusion of states and municipalities into the eco eco- economic economic economic sphere as masked socialism All those who ho know the difficulties and the dangers of the reparations problem also are on Dr Schacht's side aide On the other side stand the big cities clUes and organizations that favor the development of ot municipal pal pU ownership STADIUM STAI IU I AS LUXURY In a 0 speech at Bochum Dr Schacht Sch cht declared that If tho the cities had not paid out funds for lux luxuries luxuries uries Germany probably would not havo needed to raise r r. single foreign municipal loan He re regards re- re regards regards gards as luxuries stadiums swimming swim swim- swimming swimming ming pools parks build build- buildings buildings ings hotels hoteL planetariums air all harbors har har- harbors harbors bors theatres Investments In rca real estate and credits to private con con- cerns president of the Ger Ger- German German man the the official organ organ- organization organIzation organization of German cities titles replies s replies that not a 0 penny has been expend expend- expended ed for fot unproductive purposes But matters are arc much moro com com- complicated complicated than these two theses in in- in The development of public ownership In Germany rests on his his- historical historIcal historical political economic and technical grounds Even in Bis Bis- Bismarck's Bismarck's marcks marck's Prussia It was a 0 matter of ot course that tho the railroads street railways gas gaswater water and electrical plants pl telephones and telegraph h should be bo operated not by private persons but by the tho state and com com- In addition Prussia then owned o mines forests and various industrial undertakings The revolution and currency In Inflation in- in inflation inflation Imposed tremendous new nel tasks on tho the state and tho the municipalities The revolution democratized democratized German self government j and classes of ot the population who there there- theretofore theretofore theretofore had been beon excluded gained Influence and made new and great great- greater er demands on state and titles cities than tho the formerly dominant bourgeois class claes These demands Increased In pro pro- proportion proportion proportion portion as the sufferings of the war wor and of ot inflation oppressed the broad masses of the tho people Care of the mental and physical J wel wel- welfare welfare fare faro of ot the tho people became an im im- important important important duty of the municipalities The Tho inflation and the crippling of ot the tho German money market forced state and cities Into a new big territory which theretofore had been reserved for or private Industry the tho building of ot dwelling houses For Forwith with 8 S to 10 per cent interest for mortgages and with building costs 70 per cent above those of 1913 1919 private building was possible only at rentals utterly out of reach of the tho broad masses muses Thus practically the only dwell dwell- dwellings dwellings ings being built in kph Germany today are arc built hullt with public nubile funds I I I HE ION And finally there Is the technical technical cal revolution re It is known that no European land is so zealously striving strivIng striving ing to introduce American methods of production as Germany And nd technical progress is greatest pre- pre precisely in that branch of industrial life which long belonged to the sphere of ot public ownership In Ger Ger- Germany many the many the generation of power and traffic That inventions of late years have havo made It possible to gen gen- generate generate erate erato electricity with half halt tho the for for- former former former mer coal consumption that n new w methods of employing gas from coke ovens have been found that the tho automobile is steadily becom becom- becoming becomIng becoming ing a more important competitor of the railroads and ana has given road building an importance formerly undreamed of such of-such such developments le cannot be bo characterized as pro productive pro pro- or unproductive Expenditures for lor athletic fields can be bo productive since sinco they make mako the tho population strong and able to work and the most modern mo lern dec dec- electrical or gas G S plant earl can bo be unproductive I e if current and gas can be bo bought hought more cheaply elsewhere Insofar Dr Schacht and an l Dr Mu- Mu lent lert ert aro are both right and both wrong Tho The real problem Is the problem of democratic control and hence a constitutional problem |