The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1919-03-04
PRESIDENT AND TAFT WILL
=. DEFEND LEAGUE UF NKfIC)NS1
France Is Sentinel in
Europe Who Stands
on Guard for Right
By RENE vIyIlANI,
Former Premier OF France.

j'TSINieF OK rance
Paris. March 3.--~To Use the phrase
the French frontiers" as the subject
of this article would be too slimited to
convey my idea. In speaking of the
frontiers OF France one speaks of the
frontiers of the free world France
is the sentine! who in Europe stands
on guard for right, and every blow
struck against her armor sounds
Throughout the world Leaving the
French frontier open, and her capital
a few days march from this frontier
would not be removing the danger.
but would facilitate attacks upon her
vital parts and would prepare for the
world as we'll as for France a terrible
future.
Ii some day a great tempest again
blows over Europe and France is Mt
tackled and invaded as she has been
I'VE times within the past, century,
what will the other nations do? Con-
senting to such an invasion by aban-
donfng her. they would prepare their
own suicide, and If. as we believe,
they took UP arms for us, could they.
facing such "a possibility, live tran
guilty, and ought they to aspire tn
nothing better in the meantime than
to continue TO stagger under arina-
ments in order to be ready to resist
another attack?
The world would be uninhabitable
under such conditions. II is. there
fore, imperative that 1.-THE nations
leagued against autocracy consider
the problem of the French frontiers
as world problem. and ii is TO the
entire world that their proper de-
narration would furnish the final
, guarantee.
Go Back into History.
Now, how are these frontiers to be
fixed? But the return of AIsace-
/ Lorraine a favor has been granted MS
allowing us to escape the necessity of
a demonstration to prove that the re-
turn OF these provinces to their home
land is not a conquest. However, to
I be Just. We must go back into history.
The robbery of Alsace-Iorraine
which occurred In 1870. was not the
! first that our moral and material
! patrimony suffered. This capture
WAS the logical and fatal consequence
of a policy of conquests begun In
1872 against France.
. When TIE French revolution arose
in the world, there was organized
against it coalition of all auto
craeies. On that day began the fig
ures against liberty. 1T Was on that
day that there were evolved the de-
signs OF Russia. Austria and Prussia
to crush the country whence had
sprung the lioerating Ideas which
threatened to topple Europe's
thrones.
When new empire followed the
revolution, the struggle continued.
Napoleon's ambition, aided by his
powerful genius might have been a
danger to the world, and there might
not have been an excuse for the
Spanish and Russian wars but from
the outset of his reign. Napoleon ap-
+. peared In the eyes of the old royal
houses as a usurper because he main
tanned the conauests of the revolu-
ton French free ideas flames on
and French hearts continued TO bea,
for liberty. There persisted through
| out all intrigues and oil diplomatic
trickeries the predoni'-ating plan IL
. strike France TO the ground.
This was clearly seen in 1914. After
the first defeat of Napoleon the foes
revenge was cooled by ''re-shaping
/ oer frontiers In slsl5 the resoaad
treaty, aggravated the burden i'm
posed by the FIRST Our frontiers were
opened so as to facilitate penetration
into France. In 1870 the process was
! continued. The same thing would
have been done in 1914 IL France and
her allies had not re-esta bltsifed the
situation.
There you have the Prussian plan
since 1792---an historic plan for politt-
cal hegemony and economic, potter
ing. International retrogression.