The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1921-01-24
FRANCE OPTOM|ST|C
AS COUNCIL. BEGINS
TONE OF CONFIDENCE PRE-
Walls AS REPRESENTATIVES
OF FIVE POWERS GATHER IN
PARIS TO CONSIDER DISARM-
AMENT AND PREPARATIONS
TO DETERMINE FATE OF
NEW CABINET

NE "
Paris, Jan. 23.-The meeting of
the supreme council, which will be-
gin tomorrow morning at II o'clock
in the famous clock room of the for
eign office where the plenary ses-
sions of the peace conference
were held, is regarded in France as
second in Importance only to the de-
liberations from which came the
treaty of Versailles. The duration
of the new ministry of Aristide
BRAND, it is generally understood,
will depend upon this meeting and
the results the premier will be able
to- bring from the council to the
chamber of deputies. The general
feeling over the situation is opti-
mistic.
The French people have been
greatly treasured during the past
few days by the tones of the British
press and seem confident that the
allies will beable to agree fully, not
only upon the measures to secure
the disarmament of Germany, but
upon the, general lines of repara-
ton.
There was a cordial conference
of half an hour tonight in private
room at the North station immedi-
ately upon the arrival of the British
delegation between David Lloyd
George, the British prime minister,
and Earl Curzon of Kedleston, the
British foreign secretary, and Aris-
tide BRAND, the new French pre-
mier. The conference strengthened
the impression that the work of the
council would begin under the most
favorable of conditions.
Two Major Questions
Disarmament will be the first
subject to occupy the conferees.
Then, it is expected, reparations
will follow and that the Turkish,
Greek, Russian, Austrian and other
questions will be discussed. The
questions between the allies and the
United States will likewise be gone
over. 1t is expected that the con-
ference will last about week.
The representatives of the five
powers at the council will be: Great
Britain, Premier Lloyd George,
Earl Curzon of Kedleston, Field
Marshal Sir Henry Hughes Wilson
of the imperial staff; Baron Edgar
Vincent d'Abernon, ambassador to
Germany; General Bingham, presi-
dent of the inter-allied subcommis-
sion on armament; Admiral Sin
clair and Major Groves.
France: Premier BRAND, M. Ber-
thelot, M. Toucheur, M. Doumer, M.
Seydoux and Colonel de st. Aulare,
ambassador to Great Britain.
Italy: Count Sforza, foreign min
lister, and Marquis Della Porella.
Belgium: Jasper Theunyus, minis
ter Of finance, and M. Van de w.
we're, former minister of finance.
Japan: Viscount Ishii, ambassa-
dor to France.
To Meet in Secrecy
Meetings will be held in the FAM
Gus cloak room in the foreign office
in the strictest secrecy.
The reparations question will
come up on the report of the allied
experts who met the Germans at
Brussels IN which they recommend
that, pending final determination
of the total of Germany's debt, Ger
many shall pay five annual install
ments of 100000, frncs in gold of
which the minimum in cash is to be
fixed, by the allies. The council also
probably will consider the answer
which it will make to the declara-
tion of the German ambassador,
Wilhelm Mayer Won Kaufbeuren, to
M. BRAND that Germany will not be
able to pay any cash for some time
to come.
The experts will recommend that
Germany be allowed to retain 300,-
600 tons of shipping which remains
to be turned over to the allies and