The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1919-03-03
Only, Way to Protect Small
Countries With No SeapOrts
From Being Strangled by More
Powerful.
International Railways May BE
Included and All Operated by
Commission Under League of
Nations.
BY HAROLD f. BECHTOL.
EurOnean Manager of y. T.. \.

Paris, Mar. 3--"Internati0nal .rcsi-
me of ports, waterways and railways.
! 1t sounds deadly-unintercsting
But that phrase holds one Of tho
most important Of all the steps; which
the peace conference is taking toward
.sthc new era Of closer. freer relations
between nations. sr;% b. la1
r. | Unjust local control of llternationa
(, rivers and railroads and ''scwcd up
ports have to be wiped out before there
will he the free sintcrcommunicatio ion
the free access to the seas for every
body. so necessary to the success ,ot
the league Of nations and 70 world
peace. .>',"% ~ ~..r. t.-o.
For years the great Danube was un-
, der control OF the international Dan
ube commission. free from local infiu.
ence. which simply ran" the river. 1t
fixed and collected tolls from which it
paid its expenses and it operated patrol
ships. lighthouses. rugs and even hos
pitals., The Rhine had similar inter
national arrangement.
RIVERS TO BE CONTROLLED
1t il probable that the Rhine and
Danube arrangements will be con-
served and extended to other rivers
such as the Vistula. Pruth. Elbe and
Scheldt The Scheldt illustrates the
! need for such control. 1t is the outlet
for Antwerp. one of the greatest ports
in Europe. but the mouth of the river
is in Dutch territory. This Scheldt
question is second in Importance only
{ to reparation in Belgium's eyes.
Wholly national railways mean con-
stantly changing fares and rates and
control. It's wasteful nuisance to he
changing train crews at every bound
ary especially when trains are run
ming through small countries-and the
chances are that there will he lot
more small countries before the peace
is finally made.
International control Of certain rail
ways, Mt least, is going to he vital in
the new era. peacerS say.
What is to he done about ports is
perhaps the most difficult Of all the
| questions connected with international
| transportation control. The whole port
question received it's greatest recogni-
tion from President Wilson'S principle
of free access to the seas. z.
PROBLEM OF SMALL STATES
Here again the new states to be
formed will add to the problem as we'll
as to the need for an application to the
principle. Some of the little nations
| seem likely to have no coast or no port.
To leave them in such Il position
would be to threaten their economic
life at birth. Ports now most com
monty mentioned for early information
alizatiOn are COnstantinople. Danzig.
Trieste. Fiume, Antwerp and Durazzo
in addition to the DardanelleS and such
international straits.
That the Ragdad railway will he
placed under international control goes
without saying.
On the broad question the powers
are in complete accord and the princi-
pie is almost certain to he incorporat-
cd in the peace treaty. But the com
mission which is to work out the de-
tails has n long job ahead.
Peace commissioners incline to the
view that the ultimate solution will be
the actual operation Of the necessary
rivers. ports and railroads by commits
sion. accountable to the league of na-
tons