Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1916-07-10
RIVAL GROUPS MAY JOIN
IN HOSTILE ALLIANCES
Newest and Most Remarkable De.
Vclopment Seriously Proposed
In Europe.
MEANS "WAR AFTER THE WAR;
Realization of Such Visions Must
vitality Affect Interests OF All
Neutral Trading Nations, and Of
None Moro Than United States.

LONDON, July 9.-Thc newest and
most remarkable development In Euro
pean politics is the policy seriously
proposed by the extremists In both
camps that tho two groups of warning
powers BIO consolidated into permanent
and hostile commercial alliances. Tho
! realization of such visions must vitality
affect the interests of all neutral trad
Ing nations, and of mono more than
the United States.
So many complications in tho path
way OF this war after the war arc
discovered by business men and eco
nomic writer's that the dream Of a
lasting blood fcud Of trade may suffer
brief and unmourned career. But
statesmen in both European groups are
discussing how each may use tho
| treaties and tariffs. after tho yet dis
tant peace conference, to get tho upper
hand in commerce, when the soldiers
have beaten their swords into plow-
| shares and yardsticks
Export duties. import duties, prefer
! entail tariffs and most favored ma
ton" clauses, are being woven into
! new combinations. on paper. and these
| torn to pieces and arranged in newer
patterns as the probable defects of
| each scheme become exposed Inciden-
! tally, the British system of free trade,
because Of which, or in spite of which,
| as the case may bc-Great Britain has
| become the richest of European ma
| tons. and able TO finance much moro
| than her share of the great war, is
! being handled irrcvercntly even in the
| house Of It's strongest friends That
! a tat In lic
| which must be interesting to neutral
| states.
! Great enthusiasm is displayed by
! British protectionists over the results
| Of the economic conference of the
| entente powers-held in Paris The
| conference was projected first, accord
| ing TO general understanding, for the
purpose or devtsing plans to strengthen
the blockade against the central pow
ers Afterwards its program was eN-
! panded to include a practical reply to
the German movement Tor IL Zoiiverein
! of Middle Europe The platform issued
| 10 the public laid down the princi-
! pies OF Il program for commercial
/ alliance OF the allies. for the period
! OF reconstruction following the war.
/ and also for permanent preferential
! trade scheme.
This campaign for what the West
/ minister Gazette terms n mutual boy
I cott by the two families Of Euro
pei,n nations first came before the pub
J lie when the German Minister of FL
| nance with certain colleagues visited
| the Austrian capital. according to re-
| ports. to breach the subject of a com
rnercial union. The conception of the
"Mittel-Europa" bund was launched
| In book of that title by Professor
| Naumann, which has attained remark
ably wide circulation throughout Ger
| many. and also Austria. IT proposes
Lollverein of all the states of the
central group, gathered into a self
sustaining commercial empire. stretch
| ing from the North Sea TO the Persian
Gulf. The professor demonstrates
that such combination might be
nearly self-supporting in the matter
of the supply of foodstuTs and raw
materials for manufacturing, and be
enriched by the trade among It's own
members in these combinations, as
we'll as in manufactures.
IMPORTANCE OF COMBINATIONS
IS TOPIC OF ARGUMENT
The Importance of these combinations
to distant neutral nations like the
United States Is topic Of argument
Their erection would depend upon free
trade, or preferential tariffs. between
their members. That necessarily would
abolish the most favored nation clause
in existing treaties. For the small
neutral nations OF Europe the diff
Guilty Of remaining outside one or the
other of tho great groups would be
created. The Scandinavian Countries
Holland. Spain and Switzcrland-would
be under the pressure of varying geo
graphical forces. and, perhaps. of such
trading regulations as are being ex-
ercised by the belligcrent powers to
prevent the smaller nations from helm
ing enemies.
Craftsmanship and diplomacy could
hardly be confronted with more COM
plications than these proposed trade
unions present From the standpoint
OF geography, the Middle Europe com
bination appears more logical and
workable than one consisting of Brit
ain, France, Italy, Russia, Japan, and
the great British colonies, and the de-
tendencies of Australia, Canada and In
dta Beside the geographical handi-
caps, which for the entente nations
would mean diverting much of their
commerce from the natural channels
there is the problem of reconcilinc
their divergent fiscal systems Great
Britain is free-trade country; most
of her allies are strongly protection
list, while the British self-soverninc
dominions OF Canada and Australia ex-
erclse the right of maintaining pro-
tective tariffs against the mother coun
try. Free trade among all it's mem
'bers seems a necessary condition of A
commercial partnership in which tho
principal partner enters the firm on
the basis Of the open door. On the
other hand. the open door OF free
trade necessarily must be closed
against the members of the opposition
house.
The status Of monetary exchange af
ter tho war presents another possible
embarrassment. The well-known yyri-
ter. DR.. Dillon, offers an interesting
prediction. The financial plight of
Germany and Austria" he says, will
he such that the International ex-
change in Berlin or Vienna will an
y,rn oh, ri,