The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1919-02-10
TOPEKA STATE JOURNAL
INFORM ALTON
BURE AU
FREDERIC J. HASKIN. Director.
WASHINGTON. d. C.
THE NEW POLAND.
Washington. D. C

with the organization OF its govern
| ment confident that it will meet with
the approval of the peace conference.
] Already, the allies have shown their
| friendliness in various ways. Polish
| delegates. have been welcomed to
Paris which practically amounts to
| international recognition of the new
| government; transports of food, CLOTH
| ing and hides have been sent to the
aid of it's destitute population. and
now an American Red Cross mission
| is on its way with supplies.
Americans are rejoiced to learn this.
| They do not forget kosciusko. that
| great knight OF liberty, who left half
| of his estate to Thomas Jefferson in
| order that he might buy as many ne
gro slaves as possible and then set
I them free. The fact that our own
| Paderewski is at the head of the new
| Polish government is also enough to
| bring at least all musical Americans
| to its support.
| But the fate of the new Poland de-
| bends not upon the sentiment of other
| nations, but upon its safety. The ter
| ritory which has been restored to Po-
| land consists of Russian Poland, for
| merly controlled by the Russian gov
| eminent; the province of Galicia, for
| merly belonging to Austria. and the
| Polish provinces of Posen. West Prus
\ STA and Silesia, formerly under the
| control of Germany. If you will
| glance at a map of Europe. you will
see that this combined territory has a
large area. The new Poland is by no
means a small nation, but ranks fifth
in size among the nations of Europe.
If your map shows the general topog-
| raphy of the country, you will also
| observe that most of this land is
| flat, Poland meaning plain land"
| This stretch of plain land is like the
| neck of a bottle to the rest of Europe.
| Its strategic value to the allies is OBJ
| vious. For an independent Poland,
backed up by allied capital. will act
| as a. barrier to two elements which
western Europe hates and fears-the
| spread of BolsheVism from the north
| and Germanic aggression in the east.
| The Poles did not see this fortunate
! fact at first. They were SO overjoyed
at the prospect of freedom from the
| rule of despised nations that they for
| got all about the other victorious ma
| tons. Poland as an international fac
| tor was lost in the immediate glory of
Poland as a nation. Thus the Poles
| heedlessly appointed a Socialistic cab.
| met, with General. Pilsutski at its
! head, and We're deep in the organiZa-
ton of Il Socialfstic regime when they
suddenly met with an abrupt check
They could not float a loan in any of
the allied nations.
Then Paderewski arrived in War
saw, and challenged the new govern
ment. What message the great pian-
list brought from Paris is not known
l..
General Bi1sutski Immediately changed
his opposition to Cooperation. 1t was
agreed that the existing ca binet did
not represent all the Polish people,
kniJstkbk appoint ed With: Pa fetewstti..a as
president. In q word, the Poles agreed
| to forget their political differences
and to form government which could
command the support OF the allies.
1t is this new coalition cabinet, made
conservatives a n
which has won the favor of the allied
governments, and which is therefore
almost certain to survive. Moreover,
in addition to having the allies with
him, Paderewski has the warm en-
dorsement of his people. 1t is esti-
| mated that 95 per cent of the popu-
| lace is with him. There has been a
great deal of comment in other ma
tions, some of it humorous. on the
election of a musician as the first Pol
ish president. but, as one Pole politely
pointed out, most Americans have been
surprised to find that schoolma sterS
make good presidents. And music, ac-
cording to this same Pole, is only one
of Mr.. Paderewskfs achievements.
He is a great student of peoples and
their radical characteristics, and is
well versed in the philosophy as we'll
as the politics of Europe.
Under his guidance, the Poles have
already contributed a new precedent
for the choosing of cabinets, which
Americans might well adopt to their
profit. Before picking their candi-
dates they decided what offices should
be efficiency offices and which should
be political. Then they selected a
well-known Polish banker for Secre-
tary of the treasury; the ablest edu-
Gator they could find for the secretary
: of education, and for the secretary of
/, | agriculture. man who had done re-
markable work in intensive farming.
The premier and other secretaries
were appointed solely for their polit-
ical ability.
i, An elective system corresponding to
the American system has been
adopted, with the exception that wo-
: men are permitted the same suffrage
. but they admit that it would be
, | dangerous to thwart the Polish wo-
, men, who have contributed valuable
! aid in the FREEDOM of Poland. and who
| regard politics q duty rather than
, a right. A week before the recent
, elections took place, sample ballots
were placed on sale at very low price
! thruout Poland so that the people
might fan1iliariZe themselves with the
voting requirements. Candidates for
provinces except those in which there
was fighting, and in these proxy dele
gates were chosen until others could
be elected. The Poles are still fight
ing IN the province OF SlleSla, formerly
controlled by Germany, and now
claimed by another branch of the Slay
= race = the Czecho-Slovaks. Polish
| troops are also occupying West Prus-
| STA, surrounding the port of Dantzig
| The claim of the CZecho-Slovaks fol
| German as well as Austrian Silesia is
one of the first political problems that
has arisen to mar the joy of the new
7 Poland. The first objection of the
l Germans to losing their Polish prov
I inceS is also disturbing tn the natioua1
serenity, for President Wilson. who
t declared himself so emphatically fol-
: IAN independent Polish state, with q
[ free and secure access to the sea-" has
d also declared that I'VE must be just to
t those to whom we do not wish to be
{ inst - While the Poles are sure thai