The sun., 1907-08-29

Franco-Spanish agreement with refer
ence to Morocco, and she made il clear
mt Algeciras that but for her connection
with the Triple Alliance she would have
dona 40.
let Frenchmen generally discover that
they have less to gain from cherishing a
hunger for revenge than from cordial
understanding with Germany and they
will gradually resign themselves TO seek
ing in some other quarter an equivalent
for their dismemberod provinces. Long
ago ut the Congress Of Berlin BISMARCK
strove to begin the process Of propitia-
tion by making known to M. WADDING-
TON, the representative of France in that
body, that Germany would not oppose
the acquisition OF Tunisia by the French
Republic. The intimation was quickly
turned to account, and there is reason to
believe that both GAMBETrA and JULES
FERRY would have been willing to go
further in the path of Cancellation indi-
Gated by the German Chancellor had they
believed the time to be ripe. It was not
ripe then, but it is now fast ripening, for
the one thing that Frenchmen at the
present hour passionately crave is to
shake of the trammels imposed upon
them by the Algeciras convention and to
have free hand in Morocco. They know
that il they are left at liberty to effect
complete conquest Of that country they,
as already the possessors Of Algeria and
Tunisia, may fairly claim to have revived
the Roman Empire in north Africa. The
justification of such claim would be q
splendid rehabilitation Of their nations
dignity and prestige.
II is taken for granted in Paris that this
is the specific price which Germany could
easily pay and which she is prepared to
offer for the friendship OF France. What
Quid pro quo would be expected? Aside
| from the substantial benefits accruing
from a treaty of commerce, which nat
urally would be a product Of reciprocal
good will, Germany would no doubt look
for some definite assurance that France
would not oppose the furtheranoe OF
German interests in the Near East-or in
the Adriatic, should the death Of FRANCIS
JOSEPH be followed by a movement on
the part Of the latter's German speaking
subjects toward annexation to the Ger
man Empire. So far as the Near East is
concerned, there is reason TO believe that
both Russia and Great Britain would
indorse n promise made by France not
TO interfere with Germany's control Of
the Euphrates railway. In still another
way the substitution Of sympathy for
! antipathy between France and Germany
might be of immense advantage TO the
latter country. Germany could have
made good use of the billion of dollars
which France has placed in Russian Sc
cunties, public or private. during the last
! fifteen years, and the transaction would
have been much safer for the lender.
As things are now, capital Is urgently
needed for the expansion Of German
industries; France, on the other hand,
has more than she can use.
Surely the reconciliation of Germany
and France would be an event OF
tremendous moment to mankind. 1t
would accomplish more for the reduction
of armaments than could be achieved by
many a garrulous conference at The
Hague. The hope OF effecting much
though the latter instrumentality is fast
ebbing away, for. as Count NELIDoFF is
credited with saying, experience teaches
that it is easier to make up with single
enemy than to get forty-seven neutrals
to agree. If France and Germany would
come together, the dark cloud that has
lowered for decades over the European
sky would be dispeled by sunshine.