Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1923-10-29
Editorial Comment
The Destruction of Germany
New York WORLDLY

New York WORLDLY
1t has always been hard to believe
that one civilized nation would delib-
erately set to work to destroy an
other. 1t was doubly hard to believe
that it would be France which en-
barked on a policy Of disemberment
the like of which has not been seen
i'll Europe since the partition of Po-
land.
The World, for it's part, has feared
that this was the policy of France
ever since the invasion of the Ruhr.
Month after month it has become in
creasingly difficult not to believe that
France was committed to the sinister
crime of breaking up a nation. In
the last few weeks since StreSe-
mann's surrender in the Ruhr it has
been almost impossible not to believe
it. Today it is an established fact.
NJ. Poincare has always believed in
extending the French frontier to the
Rhine. The records of the peace con-
ference show that clearly. And, al
though the conference turned him
down, the evidence is beyond dispute.
that from the time French troops
entered the Rhineland they began TO
substitute German conspirators like
DR.. Dorten and to intrigue with them
for the disruption of Germany. But
against British and American oppo-
sition in Cologne and Coblenz the
intrigue was a failure, especially as
the BRAND government never whole
heartedly supported the plot of the
Quai d'Orsay and the French general
staff.
But with the accession of NJ. Pom
care the scheme was revived and be-
came the main objective of French
policy. We know exactly what that
policy is because the plan for it was
contained in a secret report to the
French government made by NJ. OAR
lac, president of the finance commits
sion of the Chamber of Deputies.
This secret report was discovered
and was published in the World and
the Manchester Guardian in Novem-
Der. 1922. The Dariac report is the
outline of French policy which NJ.
Poincare has carried out. The object
OF that policy in the blunt and, as he
hoped, secret words of NJ. Dariac is
ito detach from Germany a free
Rhineland under the military guard
Of France and Belgium"
NJ. Dariac explained secretly to NJ.
Poincare how he should go about &C
complishing that aim. The whole of
French policy in the Rhineland is at
all times subordinate to one primary
condition, the prolonged maintenance
OF our army of the Rhine in the oc-
cupied territories" Tor without as
surance that the French army would
remain to protect them the subsid
lied traitors would not dare to act.
The way to stay on the Rhine a
long time was to make it impossible
for Germany to fulfil the treaty.
Therefore NJ. Poincare has always
demanded more of Germany than
Germany could pay. That is why he
has consistently refused all offers of
a business-like settlement. He did
not wish settlement. He wished to
avoid a settlement and to stay on the
Rhine.
The next step was to destroy the
central government of Germany and
it's hold on the Rhineland. For that
purpose the Ruhr was invaded. NJ
Poincare knew what NJ. Clemenceau
had said and what every other OBJ
server knew. that no government
could live at Berlin which submitted
tamely to the seizure of the Ruhr.
He knew also that no government
could survive the misery and strain
OF resistance in the Ruhr So NJ
Polncarc went ruthlessly ahead.
While the German government was
bankruptinS itself finally in the hope
less support of passive resistance,
he created a reign of terror in the
Rhineland and deported practically
all the leaders who might offer re-
slStance to separate republic.
In the meantime, he promised the
world that he would negotiate with
germany when passive resistance
ended. This was insincere, because
he expected the Rhineland to break
away before the resistance ended. 1t
Ga not. The German government
surrendered before the conspiracy
was perfected. Therefore, for severa
weeks NJ. Poincare has been lodging
and postponing the negotiations he
had promised.
He was playing for time, time for
the separatists to become fully Or
gGnized. He pretended to negotiate
with SHINES. He refused to meet
German officials. He made demands
Tor payments which he knew Ger
many could not pay. His real pur
pose always was to avoid negotia-
IONS with Berlin. and, therefore. with
London, until Germany had been
broken up. Then he would not have
TO negotiate with any one EXCEPT
separatists financed by France and
supported by French bayonets.