Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1922-08-19
PERFIDIOUS ALBION

"Perfidious Albion" was wha,
the French used to call England
For a thousand years there wal
enmity between France and Eng.
land and many wars. Only once
were they allies prior to the break
ing our of the great world war
That was in the Crimean war, when
they Joined Great Britain in fight
ing the Russians. In the Franco
Prussian war of 1870 the sympathy
of Great Britain, in the early days
of the wal at least, was toward
Germany. When Bismarck and the
victorious Germans tore Alsace-
Lorraine from France and imposed
an indemnity unheard of up to that
time on France. the sympathy OF
the British changed and went out
to France. They loaned France
considerable of the gold that went
to rid her soil Of the hated Ger
mans. At that time Russia was con
sidered the hereditary enemy of
Great Britain and was suspected
of designs on India. Therefore, 1t
did not add to the friendliness be-
tween France and England when
the former contracted a close alli-
ance with imperial Russia. Great
Britain naturally turned toward
Berlin with friendly advances.
They were not very we'll received,
and when Germany reached out
for colonial empire and began
building a great navy with the
avowed purpose of matching the
British navy, the British states
men began to wonder if their
policy Of splendid isolation" was
quite a safe one in the face of Rus
sian hostility and German ambi-
ton. That caused them to seek
an understanding with France and
Russia which later resulted in the
entente alliance as opposed to the
alliance of Germany, Austria and
Italy. All these alliances were
supposed to be purely defensive.
The entente was hardly an alliance,
but a sort of understanding that aid
and sympathy would 60 to any
member invaded. So far as Russia
and France were concerned, they
had a full military alliance between
them. each nation being pledged to
go to the assistance of the other
with it's full military force in case
of invasion by any foreign army.
Great Britain's part in the entente
agreement was less decisive. 1t did
not go beyond the promise of naval
help in case of ar unprovoked in
vasion of its allies by a foreign
foe. How Great Britain kept her
obligations under the entente agree
ment to France and Russia is now
a matter of history. She spent more
money than any of her allies in the
great war and furnished more
troops than ony n expected she
would be able to do-millions of
them, volunteers and. finally. con-
scripts. For a time, "perfidious
Albion was our noble friend and
brother in France, and nothing was
too good for him.
But after the war a chill came
over the French love for Great
Britain. Lloyd George was not
willing to back up the French pro-
gram toward Germany. To the
disgust of the French, they found
their late allies were using soft
words toward Germany. The Brit
ish policy was not to crush Ger
many, but to e her get on her
feet financially, so Great Britain
could sell her goods as she did be-
fore the war. France has been
steadily drifting away from Great
Britain since the peace was made. |!
The last straw that broke the back
Of French regard for England came
when that country said to France
that, inasmuch as she had to pay
back to the United States a war
loan of five billions of dollars, she
would have to ask France to pay
her wal loan of three billions due
Great Britain. About that time,
England became once more per-
fidious Albion to the French.
Just now the conference at Lon
don is ended. As Lloyd-George an
nounced, France and England have
agreed to disagree about how Ger
many should be treated. The signs
abound that the entente is busted
higher than a kite. Of course, that
is pleasing to Germany. Just now
the French newspapers r saying
AlHa aknraA l