Evening star., 1921-07-17
BY PAUL SCOTT MOWRER.

, by Cable to The Star and Chicago Daily news.
Copyright. 1921.
PARIS, France, July 16.-After long
, conversations with three important
French personages the writer is in a
p, position to announce the attitude OF
( the French government toward the
forthcoming Washington conference.
Z The general impre ssion is that this
conference will really be new peace
z conference which will be of decisive
Importance. leaving all minor ques-
. tiorS aside and treating only vital
: matters. Nothing less than new
! world equilibrium will be settled in
E Washington and President Harding >
. initiative, marks a new turning point
: in contemporary political history. So
!. far as France is concerned three prin-
cipaI questions will arise:
l. Land disarmament.
: .. Equilibrium of the Pacific.
; 3. Relations of France with the
- United States and Britain.
France is declared to be more anx-
4 iouS than any other country to dimin-
iSh the weight OF present armaments
The army budget exceeds 5.00O,O0O.O00
8 francs (normally $1,000, ,000,000). which
is as much as the total budget in
1913. Economy being inescapable
both parliament and the ministry are
): greed that reduction of the mill
Public opinion. moreover. feels that
such i reduction naturally should fol-
low victory.
Fear DisnrminS Now.
. Nobody here believes in militarism
FOR it's own. sake. Nobody looks on
the barracks as the natural prolonga-
,rion of school or on military training
as training for citizenship. However
a reduction OF military strength can
not be regarded in the abstract, but
obviously must depend on che general
. European situation and in particular
on the FranCo-German relations.
4: While the French government consid-
"rs that Germany for the present is
really disarmed, not indeed for the
lack of effectives, but for the lack Of
sufficient modern arms, neither the
government nor the general staff is
without anxiety for the future.
In the first place. all information
received from Germany indicates a
violent revival of hatred against
France and the persistence Of reac-
nonafy, and military tendencies. Sc
cret societies. societies of former SOL
sdiers and groups of old regimental
comfades under innumerable and
Changing forms are keeping up in
Germany both the military spirit and
the elements of mobilization.
= In the second place. the improve
,mentS which Germany is constantly
making in her industrial equipment
are such that in the more or less dis
.tant future il may be feared that Ger
many. freed from the surveillance Of
allied commissions. will be able Sc
cretly TO reconstitute sufficient
armament to attack France.
{ Vengeance Instiiled In Youth.
A French specialist on German af-
ralrS after several months in Ger
many. where he talked with persons
OF all SeS-manufacturers, school
{ teachers. priests, pastors, workmen
and laborerS-reports his impression
that a conviction of the necessity Of
"A war of revenge has become general
among the German people. The uni
iversities are said to he poisoning the
German youth with this belief and
the PruSSitication of Germany is con-
atinuing the mainStays of the old
regime. namely. militarisrR and
bureaucracy. which have lost none of
their prestige. as the results of the
Leipzig trials clearly show.
In these circumstances the French
government will be obliged to view
with particular circumspection any
disarmament program which might
lead to some new German aggreS-