Lend-Lease in Reverse
The British Government's "Report on Mutual Aid" presented by the Chancellor of the Exchequer has naturally received almost as much attention in America as in this country, setting out as it does the facts about supplies and services from this country to the United States in reverse of Lend-Lease, and the payments or free deliveries which we have made to other Allied countries. The American public has not generally beer aware of the fact that we have provided mutual aid to the United States on a very large scale, though naturally it falls short of what she has sent to us under Lend-Lease. The aid that we have given to other Allied 'nations is greater still ; the payments made to all members of the United Nations in excess of sums received from them amounted last summer to over, L2,250,000,000. It appears that America's Lend-Lease expenditure up to May 25th was 52 per cent, of her total war expenditure ; the proportion of Britain's mutual aid ex- penditure was ro per cent., which is relatively not much less. But how would the balance stand if we attempted td assess all war sacrifices in terms of cash—if we included lives lost, property damaged and the other imponderables of war? These we so far take into account against most of our European Allies that we make no assessment of claim against them for equipment given or payments made on
• their behalf. President Roosevelt is fully aware that other things must be put in the balance besides cash. But all Americans do not take his generous view.
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