The Washington herald., 1919-05-04

American youngster marries without
reference to the money at stake in
the contract. The French marriage
is the outward and visible sign of the
French ideal, just as the American
marriage is the sign of our nationai
aspiration. We like to create: the
French to contemplate. We both love
money; America loves to make II and
spend it; the French love To save and
retire on 1t. Nothing irritates the
American SO much as the thought OF
retirement, nor the Frenchman so
much as a busy old age. So he has to
have a wife who will make the family
safe. as military tactics which will
make the soldier safe. and a diplo-
macy which erects barriers and main
tains international military stats
and creates a super-state to make
France safe. On the other hand. the
American likes to make his owl.
money. to waste his blood. and as for
the super-state-he puts lin God we
trust on the dollar. and lets it go at
that. He has faith in the ultimate
goodness OF God. The Frenchman
through long. sad centuries of experl-
ence has faith also: he knows God rs
good: ah. yes! all of that. but, alas.
sometimes careless, So one INDUCES
oneself in the felicitous little vice Of
thrift,
buy Best Seats.
And with the national vice ennobled
into national virtue. how annoying
must it be to have these everlasting
Americans come breezing into ones
life with their Grass prodigality. They
crowd into the theaters. buying the
best seats.
If one has a favorite restaurant the
American spoils it by doubling the
tip TO get quick service or the best
food. Indeed. IL one has an old ally,
as. for instance. the Poles. or a new
one, like the Rumanians. along comes
this everlasting American with his
shiploads of food and wagon-loads of
gold and feeds these allies-feeds them.
OF course. in order to get their trade
away from France. What other mo-
tive can he have? Or If one is bor-
rowing money TO pay interest on his
war loans, instead of publicly con-
Tossing to the world that ones taxes
will not reach the amount required to
pay ones interest. along comes this
same brash American and says-sure
you're hard up; everyone is hard up
once in while: why when ] came
out of my war | was so poor I'D
skin flea for his tallow, but that's
all right: you must take your coat
of. sell the gold braid. put your fam
lily lace in the pawnshop and junk
your hereditary nobility and you'll
come out all right; also let the girl
20 to work in the office. and forget
your family pride, Come. now. let's
know the worst. 1t would be hard.
Indeed. it is hard.
The French regard this childish can
dor as low breeding. They like to re-
fer to the treaty OF 1915. and not to
their low industrial estate, as a justi-
fcation for taking what is justly and
decently theirs. They don't like this
American way of going about Eu-
rope conspiCuousIy feeding people:
they don't like this American way
OF taking charge of food distribu-
tion. and so France. wherever food
is being distributed in Europe.
whether in Poland or the Slavic
countries or in Germany or Russia,
stands around very much in evil
dence. Which. considering that the
food itself. and the money to buy
the food all has come from America,
makes the American in Europe
weary. ne European american
likes to have his poor relations hold
their proper place as poor relations.
and not try to appear to have rights
at the table. And it grinds France
to the soul to be regarded as a poor
relation. Yet here are these mil
lion Americans. and France greets
them pleasantly. France gives up
her place in the theater and in the
trains. in the parks and on the
bouIevards and lastly in the Peace
Conference to her rich uncle. She
knows he is after the main chance.
And perhaps he is: but he likes to
think he is not. He never lets his
right hand know what puddings his
left hand has discovered when it
is doing out the bitter bread of
charity to others. But latterly his
left hand will function.
France Might Learn.
Yet there is something in the Ameri-
can view point that France should
take the future on faith. Americans
here feel that France has one safe
guard and only one against German
intrigue and aggression; one safeguard
better than sterilized states. better
than industrial acquisitions in the Saar
basin, better than treaties Of disarma-
ment, better than superstates under
the league of nations. better even than
treaties and understandings, with the
actual governments of her allies, and
that one thing is the confidence and
good will of the people of the Eng
lish speaking races. That confidence
when once it is established is perman-
ent; when once it is deserved will
carry through any government, across
any treaty. and be a protective force
mightier than forts and armaments.
it is a simple thing; easily held. but
once lost is hard to regain. Yet that
point of view France feels is tremen-
dously Impractical. 1t has no material
basis. It is moonshine. 1t won't work.
France demands the substance. She
enjoys only the real. Sentiment-ah
yes and fine talk-certainly; but after
all the moon is not made of green
cheese and these everlasting .Ameri-
cans-they are children; they believe
in visions and these are no times to
talk Of pots of gold at the foot of the
rainbow. But it is always these fine
spun nothings that you talk. toujors
world peace. toujours the brotherhood
of men, toujours the rule Of kindness
to the Boche. toujours the French must
give up revenge. toujours must give
up big cash preparations, toujours nom
sense. toujours les Americaines.
And yet after ali we are friends and
we need each other more than any
other two peoples in all the world. not
because we are alike for we are so
much unlike that in our hearts we
have made vices of one another's
virtues. But we need each other for