Evening star., 1922-01-22

must be accepted by the soviet
government, and that prior to
such discussions France must
have "precise guarantees" that the
conference will not "even indirect
ly debate" any stipulation of the
Versailles treaty ii. e., German
reparations must be excluded from
the agenda). Without such ac-
ceptance and guarantees the
French delegation will be with
drawn.
That soviet Russia must make
the great renunciation and prom
ise Of atonement before her ad-
mission to sit in council with
France, Britain and Italy as equal:
that German reparations should
not be discussed at conference
of forty-five nations (for that Is
the number to which invitations
have been sent); that the subject
of German reparations should not
be entangled with other subjects;
that reconstruction of France
should not be postponed to. but
struction elsewhere. These posi-
tions. held by NJ. Poincare. do not
discredit him nor make him prop
erly chargeable with chauvinism.
If this charge Is to be made good
it must be on other grounds, such
as the following: Referring to
clauses of the Versailles treaty re-
ishment of Germans guilty OF war
crimes, NJ. Poincare says:
$50 long as these clauses are
not executed we will not only
have the right to preserve integ-
rally the penalties which have
been provided. but to substitute
others if need be, and we will be
hot a
time for evacuation of the left
bank of the Rhine has not begun
to run. That is the point Of view
which the French government has
constantly maintained. More now
than ever is it necessary to MAIN
tain it,"
In view of the lessons taught by
Stein and Scharnhorst. NJ. Poin-
cares anxiety about disarmament
is excusable, but. though contin-
uance of the allied commissions OF
control might be so justified. con-
tinued occupat ton of the Rhine
would not be justified by mere ap-
prehension of secret eVasiohs OF
treaty clauses on disarmament. AS
to turning over to the allies for
trials Germans guilty of war
crimes, it should have been done,
but it is now too late; the propo-
sition has a certain absurdity.
incline to think that NJ. Poincare
will, on better judgment making"
abandon such position If he real
1y holding it and is not merely
throwing a sop to the extremists.
There are few things as important
Just now as the "orientation" of M.
Poincare and I think L am justified
IN devoting SO much space to a
sympathetic consideration of it.
X x X X
MiscellaneOus.-Ih had proposed a
resume this week of matters arisen
or developed within the past few
weeks of Importance. but not SUI
preme Importance, which have been
crowded out of my summary by
matters of supreme Importance,
such as the several conferences and
the cabinet change in France.
must, however, postpone the re-
sumo. Among such minor happen
ings or Developments of the past
week to be noticed in future
resume are:
The bill passed by the Senate in
creasing the membership of the
Federal Reserve Board and its sig
nificance, resumption of hostilities
in Anatolia, the report of the in
ternational joint commission con-
cerning the project of a water
way for ocean-going vessels from
Lake Erie, via the st. Lawrence, to
the sea. and the new testimony in
dicating neglect of the disabled
soldiers