Evening star., 1923-11-02

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France Accepts With ceTdiality.

Paris should put qHietuS on the pessa-
n1istic speculations regarding the ef-
Iect of Il speech delivered by NJ POM
care Yesterday at Viewers upon the
prospect OF the creation OF An internal
ttonal expert commission on reptira-
tions participated in. by the United
States 1t is stated distinctly that
france accepts with lcordiality the
collaboration Of the United States in a
conference OF experts to study Ger
many's capacity to pay reparatiOns."
1t is added that France demands,
however, that it should be clearly I'M
derstood that the proposed inquiry
should bear solely on the present
capacity of Germany. and should res
spect all the rights held by the repara-
tons commission under tse treaty OF
Versailles -.
In bis speech at Nevers yesterday
Premier Poincare. though in terms
different from those cnpsoyed before.
frankly stated the conditions upon
which France would agree to a re-
newed reparations inquiry. There was
really nothing new in his statement. 1t
emphasized the necessity Of making
Germany pay all she can in liQuida-
tior, of the debt she incurred in .devas
tating France and Belgium in the
course of the unprovoked war that she
started in 1914. This. he says. is not
the. time 10 change tactics and. he
added We shall not change them"
This is PoinCare's policy. which is
the policy of France. with respect to
PREPARATIONS: =. ---
Let All examinati ion be made of what
Germany can pav now or in q short
space Of time. That is all right. That
is the task OF the reparations. COM
mission, aided br the. experts it may
Name. That the reparations commits
sion fix nxW schedules OF ipaSment,
that is the rule given 20 it by the
treaty. That il. seek means TO restore
German finances and better none
tary situation of the reich that is
it's duty. But let no one ask it either
to disaVoW the decisions it has faken
on the total of our credit. nor tie up
the future indefinitely.
There IS no departure here from the
previous utierances of the French pre-
uier. ard there is no modification of
which the American proposal was a
fcW days ago tentatively approved. so
there is no reason TO feel apprehensiye
lest this new move, which is potential
of results mainly through the partici-
patton .of the United States, may fail
because ef French intraRsigeance.
Whether. wise or unwiso. the French
policy has been consistent. II has
been based upon two primary pToposi-
tions: To make France safe from a
reiuvenated Gert'any bent upon re-
vcnge. and to secure threngh rspara.
iitns the utmost possible sum for re-
hahiiiiatiop- from the. crushing dam
ages inflicted during the. war. In his
speech at Nevers Premier Poincare ex-
presses the French feeling that the
treaty cf Versailles did not fully guar
autee.- France in these two respects.
Refusal to consent to any mobilization
of the treaty cannot 1ow sbe-charsed
against France as a fault of illogical
.stf,bborEness, even, though a great
change has taken place in the situa-
ZION, a change for which France feels
herself 10 be in no *ise responsible
The problem today. as Premier Poin.
care points ont, lis, To make Germany
pay to put herself in a position to pay
by honest fiscal administra ton, by
honest discharge of her accepted and
acknowledged . obligation, by an
honest effort to meet the debt which
she incurred through The criminal
folly of her leaders OF nine years ago.