New-York tribune., 1919-03-20
The Peace Show
By Chester M. Wright

on Rural Route No. 9, Somewhere in Amer
lea, never suspects him. If it's not in the
communicate, ask Colonel House. He may
tell you who can tell you.
Stephen Pichon can mostly be relied upon
to speak up for the French when there is
need. 1t is generally the opinion that the
French talk more freely than the other dip
lomats This is probably true, yet the Brit
ish, their reputation for silence to the con-
trary Notwithstanding, are communicative.
There are several men in the British entou-
rage who make it business to address the
American correspondents at regular inter
walls. The Americans have the reputation of
being the hardest of all to pry loose from
information. There seems to be no Ameri-
can In Paris who can or will talk with the
authority and freedom of Lord Robert Cecil,
for instance, speaking for the British. or
M. Pichon, speaking for the French, or any
one of a dozen other men who speak for
them.
There has been organized in Paris press
club, where the visiting newspaper men
may go and take their ease. And every so
often there dinners for the foreign
writer's at certain club, where the food is
good and the setting is restful. The French
are hosts here always. There are little
talks by those who have come to Paris
from other lands. They give their views
They unburden. They get it off their
chests. There may be no design, but how
more adroitly could the general trend of
foreign newspaper thought be watched?
An argument that may never be settled is
that concerning the Presidents attitude
toward the Socialist conference at Berne.
For some days the report was spread by men
understood to be close to the President
that he favored the conference. On the
other hand, men equally in a position to
know whatever the President had said de-
clared that he had not indicated any senti-
ment favorable to The conference. There is
some reason to believe that the President
did not at first fully understand the nature
of the Berne conference. If he did ever
have any feeling of friendliness for the
venture it may have been in the early days
of its history. A delegation appointed at
Berne to report to the President did not
report. The reason for this is not known
Arthur Henderson held at least two con-
ferences with Premier Lloyd George prior
to the Berne meeting and the British dele
cation had an audience with him after its
return from 3erne.
You can hear any kind Of story you want
in Paris, because men and women of all
kinds and from every corner of the world
are gathered here. In the fringe of the
official show are those who have come to
offer their advice, those who hayc come
because they want to see the performance,
those who have come "free 1ancing" 1t as
writers, those who have come just because
they can't keep away from what's doing as
long as they can rake up the price of
steamer fare. The Americans in this fringe
are mostly radicals-of all kinds. There are
straight, clean cut radicals; there arc pro-
Boisheviks there are those whose record is
strongly tinged with pacifism. The strong
est of the New York radical publications
arc represented by writer's who delight in
telling everybody in Paris how shamefullv
wrong everything is in America.