Dr. Wirth, the German Chancellor, informed the Reparation Commission last
week that Germany could not pay the instal- ments, of £25,000,000 and £12,500,000 respectively, duo in January and February next. Germany had failed to raise a loan in London and could not provide more than £10,000,000 towards the amount due. Dr. Wirth therefore asked for an extension of time, and ,added that " similar difficulties will arise in connexion with subsequent payments." The Repara- tion Commission, which decided last month that Germany could well afford to pay if her taxes were not so disproportion- ately light, expressed its surprise at Dr. Wirth's statement and its regret that he had taken no notice of its proposal for an increase of German taxation. In France, Dr. Wirth's move was roundly denounced as a flagrantly dishonest manoeuvre.
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