Evening star., 1922-06-29
BY PAUL SCOTT MowRER.


By Cable to The Star and Chicago Daily News.
Copyright, 1922.
THE HAGUE, June ,29.-The second
phase of the conference is beginning
under good auspices. Contact with
the Russians has been taken and
there Is every evidence that they
mean business. So do the western
powers. The United States, however.
Is still .uhrepresented.' even by an OBJ
server. Having washed its hands OF
Genoa, 1t is now repeating even more
completely what a, Polish delegate
bitterly characterized to me as the
gesture of Pontius PLATE" The
American minister at The Hague is
on vacation. The commercial at
tache. has been absent since before
the conference began. The charge
d'affaires. Louis A. Sussdorff. jr., and
the military attache, Maj. James b.
Ord, are, showing great energy ana !a
legation Is entirely unequipped for
the emergency. What is required Is
an experienced diplomat or Official to
watch developments and safeguard
American interests.
Russian Problem Complex.
So far as the Russian problem is
concerned. The Hague is more impor-
tant than Genoa was and stands a
much greater chance of success. This
Russian problem is not nearly as
simple as some people in the United
States seem to imagine. On the one
hand is its immense human misery
on the other is its menace, almost
equally immense to the peace of the
world. All the powers represented
these considerations Despite Maxim
Litvinov's optimistic remarks about
the famine being ended, the best sta
tistics l can obtain indicate that mil.
lions more of helpless sufferers will
face death within the next year.
had already fallen in 1920 to 125.0o0.-
900. What 1t Is now nobody knows.
From the Volga center famines radi-
ate, more or less. in every direction.
Last spring Fridtjof Nansen esti-
mated that 2O.00O.000 persons were
actually without food. The American dca
Relief Commission is feeding 1000
900, other agencies 100000. but the
remaining 100000 are unproyided
for True, the new crops are bring
ing a slight alienation. but they are
utterly inadequate. OF the 47.900.OOO
acres of grain land which should have
been sown last spring and winter In
the Volga region to meet the needs
of the population. the merest fraction
has been cultivated.
Relief Work Inadequate.
People lack not only seed. but horses
and cattle and physical energy for
tilling the soil. Consequently what
the autumn will bring one hardly
dares to contemplate. In any case
it is evident that the magnificent
work of the American Relief Commis-
sion is entirely inadequate.
What is needed is general co-opera-
ton in the whole Russian problem.
The soyiets are ready to compromise,
and SO are the western powers. Only
the United States now stands aside.
1t is felt in inside circles here that
unless some form of cooperation is
reached a grave political situation In
eastern Europe Is certain to ensue.
Emile Vandervelde. the Belgian So
cialist. just from Moscow, declares:
There is a kind of xenophobia and
redoubtable nationalism developing in
blockade and Intervention. Even
nom -bolshevist Russia reproaches US
with the death of thousands and
thousands by reason of the lack OF
medicines"
The rest of the story is told by the
sensational revelations I cabled yes
terday concerning the reorganization
and new efficiency of the red army.
To the United States. separated
from danger by the half of Europe
and the whole of the Atlantic ocean.
this potential menace may be mat
ter Of indifference, but to the nations
Of eastern and even western Europe
it is vital. The first point that the
people of the United States must
realize is that all observers agree
that the fall of the soviet govern
ment in the immediate future is out
Of the question The cheka, or Sc.
cret tribunal. is moro efficient than
ever and can crush any incip.ent
plots.
More important still. with the in