The Washington times., 1922-01-10
ARTHUR BRISBANE
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ll-By ARTHUR BRISBANR-l
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The allies, with the United
States observing" are deciding
what to do with Germany and
Russia. Germany is q beaten
enemy and must take what she can
get. Russia was an ally, sacrificed
more men against Germany than
any other two nations. But Rus
ala had the impertinenee, sur
rounded by kings and plutocracies,
TO set mp her own form Of gov
ernment. she also must take
what she can get.
Russians and Germans must be
doing hard thinking. II they had
gone together they could have con-
quered the whole of Europe with
ease, and we should now have one
cxar and one kaiser ruling all Eu-
rope, instead Of having one kaiser
In Holland, one czar in his grave.
It's . dangerous world even for
kaisers and czars.
England wants to keep Ger
many alive, for buying and selling
Is the life Of an island nation.
France doesn't care WHAT hap
pens to Germany, quite naturally.
She would prefer to see her dead
forever, but then Germany couldn't
pay any money, and dead carcass
living next to you is a nuisance.
The idea is to find about how
much money can possibly be
squeezed out Of Germany, then get
IL; at the same time keeping her
from getting in a position where
she might suddenly change and
send over poison gas instead, Of
gold marks.
Five hundred million gold
marks yearly and a thousand
million gold marks in goods
mineral, agricultural, or manu-
factured-is said to be the
amount that Germany will be
told to pay for an indefinite
number Of years. That would
be enough to build a Panama
Canal about three times every
year. You remember what
financial fuss we made about
building it once.
When Prussia beat France un-
der Bismarck he took Alsace-
Lorraine, which Louis the XIV
had previously. taksn from Gers.
many, and took one thousand
millions in cash from France.
He took WHAT HE WANTED.
France had to pay. Under the
rules of war France has a right
to take what she wants, and Ger
many has got to pay, or fight, or
60 bankrupt.
The struggle is not really be-
tween France and Germany, but
between France and England.
England wants peace and pros
perity in Europe, that she may
turn her attention to her vast
empire all over the world.
France wants only peace within
her own borders and all the
money she can get, and de-
nounces England for interfering.
England, 1t is said, has made
inducement to France and may
agree to guarantee France from
attack by Germany. The origi-
nal plan as outlined at Ver-
sailles was to have the United
States join in that guarantee.
The people decided against that
IN the last election. Since then
we have made an agreement to
guarantee Japan, as a "Pacific
tsland, against all attack, while
she proceeds on her Siberian and
Chinese career of piracy. There
IL no knowing what our states
men may do about guarantees.
For Russia you might shed
tear or two. She went in with the
allies, did all she could, saw her
men shot down in hundreds of
thousand, with no weapons in their
hands, or with weapons that
would not work, and then decided
to govern herself in a different
way.
She owes France now about
thirty billion francs, sir billion
dollars in our money, and France
wants the allies to say to Russia,
"Pay France her thirty billion
francs, and we will all be nice to
you"
At this moment you might as
well point to a blind beggar and
say, HE owes me six billions;
make him pay"
The total debt of Russia, includ-
L. r r.,