Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1923-08-14
CLAIMS FRANCE
SEEKS Permanent
OCCUPATION RUHR

Williamstown, Mass, Aug. 10
France not only does not primarily
want to be paid the German repara-
tons, but the French so engineered
the treaty through the Preparations
problems that the Is year occupation
clause can be evaded and way
found to make French occupation of
the Rhine frontier permanent, Count
Harry kessler of Berlin said tonight
in q lecture on Preparations and
Security" before the Institute of
Politics at Williams college.
Moreover, the lecturer said. the
bedrock of the range of problems
connected with his subject - the
question of security rising out of
French fear of Germany-has turned
regularly, whenever opportunity
arose. into active attempts by France
to dominate and dismember Germany.
every great French ruler since
the 18th century has reached out to
grasp the imperial German crown"
he said.
THE PREPARATIONS loophole which
was devised to make permanent oc-
which the total PREPARATIONS amount
was not fixed. but was left to the
Preparations commission to determine.
thus opening the way to fixing
repara tions so high that Germany
could never pay them Count kcss-
Ter said. This makes the inference
seem unavoidable that France does
not primarily want to be paid, but is
pursuing some other aim"
The lecturer traced the historic
F., movement of the force of French fear
and what he termed Its resultant
attempts to dominate and diSmem-
Der Germany" AS early as 1914, he
said, recognition of the French policy
was sought from Russia and more
substantial recognition from Russia
/ was had in the secret treaty OF 1917,
| the same year in which NJ. BRAND
| instructed his amba ssador in London
! to claim the Rhine frontier. He then
reviewed the claims of France IN
Washington along the same lines aft
err the armistice and recalled the sup
port of the policy by Marshal Foch.
| "One would have been inclined to
take this for the irresponsible out
burst of an old and rather simple
soldier, but for similar expressions
from that venerable radical and paci-
| fist, NJ. Leon Bourgeois, and even
| from NJ. Loucheur, French business
! man of the most modern mental con-
struction," Count Kessler said.
by a tradition that has become
as powerful as an instinct French
! policy is really seeking Cd the Rhlne
frontier: co the utmost weakening
and ACKNOWLEDGMENT, and If possible.
| the disintegration of Germany; CD
| a system of military alliances with
states either carved out of Germany
or round about and threatening Ger
| many: and (4) as the necessary
| backbone and support of the whole
! policy. powerful French ornaments.
This policy has been consistently
unsuccessful but being grounded IN
fear, every rebuff and disaster mas
] only helped to ingram it deeper in the
| French mind.
Count Kessler reviewed what he
said were the methods by "nlcl
! France sought to realize its policy,
} including taking the backbone out
of the German people prior to swal-
| lowing it" by wholesale banishments.
The results he summarized as eco
nomic uncertainty, dissolving conf
dencc. the holding up of trade and the
| aiding of imitation and depreciation OF
currency in their deadly work OF de-
struction. He quoted two American
| economists, Moulton and Mcguire as
estimating that The tangible values
surrendered by Germany to the rep
arations commission aggregated be-
! tween % and 90 billion gold marks,
, or an amount more than six times as
great as the indemnity paid by
France to Germany after the war OF
1870.
shell shocked by the indefinite
ness and afterward by the hugeness
! of the sum demanded Count kess-
| Ter said. the German policy became
! paralyzed and this was interpreted
as a symptom of bad will. Mean
while Europe drifts nearer and near
or 10 economic and political ruin
1t was announced that General
Taskcr H. Bliss will address the in.
stitute aSturday morning on practlcal
stems in bctterment of state relations
in the interest of world peace.