We in Great Britain had not based our financial arrangements on any expectations of an indemnity.

Receipts from such a source would have been more or less in the nature of a windfall; and, in spite of subsequent developments, there was an expectation at that time of balancing our budget by normal methods.

But this was not the case with France or Italy.

Their peace budgets made no pretense of balancing and had no prospects of doing so, without some far-reaching revision of the existing policy.

Indeed, the position was and remains nearly hopeless.