The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1922-01-29

SMALL sLIGHTB
DEEPLY RESENTED
Delegates Felt France
Was ignored On Large
Issues.

marked a. . second-rats power, Tar
inferior to Japan. and being re-
sutrsd TO live within that quaiihca-
ton Tor ten years to come.
II was especially this formal ear
markiny Of France ~ q second-rate
naval power that hurt her feelings.
Neyertheiess, the. oficial action
which the French delegates took
on this matter OF capitai-ship ratio
was very unfortunate and appears
70 be OF . nature not 70 be con-
doned.
FreseA Saal 70 Ne Dargsa.ias.
No one can say positively what
was the motive Of the French In In
ststinB on the right TO build ter
capital ships. an insistence which
u was apparent. would be . death
blow to the whole Hughes plan and
would case the conferences %
motive may have been one Of
reasonable pride. No one can say
exactly what Il was, because the
motive ts wholly q matter within
the minds of the French delegates
and from the outside can only be
GUESSED at But some newspaper
men who are understood 70 be more
Or less familiar with. the French
point Of view said at the time that
the motive was q bartering one. II
was said that France did not really
intend TO build these ships, and die
not even mean to take a final stane
on her right to build thems II sai
said that the motiye was one oil
bartering withe the British; that the
French wanted to use this threat an
order TO compel the British TO cen.
sent to- making a treaty with
France Of the sort. that France
wanted w. .
II rhis motive was the true one, &,
was thoroughly reprehensible, and
showed q complete failure ON the
part OF the French to grasp the
spirit OF the conference. This con-
Terence. as one of the American
DELEGATES once expressed 1t, is .
meeting In which nations are ex-
pected to give up things, not TO &c,
things.
Threatened Farley Success.
IL was further said by some who
are supposed to be familiar with the
French point of view, and sympa-
theuc TO IL. that the French insis-
ence on q larger allotment of SUBJ
marines was of the same nature
that she did not really want them
nor even the intention to build them,
nor even the intention to build them
but that she desired to use this
opportunity to hold the conference
up as trading point with which 10
compel the British to make a sep-
arate treaty that FRANCE wanted. IL
must be remembered, Of course, thai
these Inscriptions of motives to the
French are necessarily IN the field
Of surmise. 1t 10 a field in which n
10 easy TO do injustice.
what the American people wan,
10 know now Is how we should feel
about France. Her behavior un-
douotedly threatened a conference
on the success of which American.
have set their hearts. As a conse-
quence OF this and many other
things, American feeling mas turned
strongly against France. In QUAR-
ters where this feeling is strong
France Is spoken Of as the spoiled
child among nations. It is said thai
after being the recipient of many
and great benefactions from Amerf-
ca France has taken on the familiar
psychology of a more or less sup
plicant dependent, that the more
you do for her the more she de-
mands.
Fear Fandanental Factor.
There still remain, however
many Americans who point to wha,
they say Is the one Fundamentals
FACTOR about France. That factor
10 her fear that Germany ma,
again grow powerful in an econom-
&c, poitocai and military sense. and
may again attack France. These
friends OF France say that fear will
cause nations as well as individuals
to do unreasonable things. They
say that we will give France
the one thing that will cure her OF
fear. namely, a treaty guaranteeing
that we, as well as Great Britain
shall come to her rescue 10 she is
ever again attacked, then France
will. again achieve a normal and
reasonable state OF mind. II thi.
Is the only cure for the state OF
mind that causes France today &c
be the one impeachment to the re.
storation OF the world, then, so far
as America is concerned, there {.
nothing to do about II. Americz
will never make the sort OF treaty
that France wants. The only mean,
that will assure to France the kind
OF future help from America tina,
she has had in the past is SO to act
now that when and II the occasion
arises we will have the sort OF
friendly and sympathetic feeiins
about her that will lead US to heir
her.
Politicians IN seaash Role.
Probably one good way for Amer.
lea to reach d conviction about
France is to try to make a clear
distinction between the French peo-
pie. on the one hand, and, on the
other hand, the French politicians
That some of those politicians are
willing 70 play wIckedly selfish
role would not be an unreasou.
able inference from yecent events
In that country. II would seear
that they are not unwilling to slim
ulate the fears Of their own PEG.
Pile, and to play upon those fears
h order to elevate themselves &c
positions Of personal power. In the
newspapers and In all sorts OF pub
he and private discussions we use
the terms France" and "ths
1srSnoh" &c ~ we meant th> entlr.