Evening star., 1924-09-28

or 125,OOO,O00 people and controlling
more than two-thirds of the armed
strength of the continent. All of these
countries are united in a common de-
termination and necessity to defend,
so far as they are concerned, the map
of Europe as it stands and they are
all menaced by any attempt coming
from the enemy states of 1914, that is
from Germany, Hungary or Bulgaria,
to achieve a forcible revision of the
present frontiers, while Poland and
Rumania have common interest to
defend their frontiers against a re-
surgent Russia.
sharing its main desire, namely, that
there shall be peace. are another
great group of smaller states none of
which has any national ambitions
which foment a desire to upset exist
ing territorial conditions. These
countries are Holland Denmark, Swe-
den, Switzerland Portugal, Spain and
Norway, containing $4,000, 900 of peo-
pie. In conflict between France and
Germany these states might have
varying sympathies. but such a strug-
gle would once more, as in 1914-1S,
carry great hardship and even deadly
peril to themselves. They are then
satisfied with the status quo and
committed TO a constant effort to pre-
serve peace.
Peace Essential to Britain.
This group, not without a measure
of influence itself. is enormously
strengthened by the fact that the
same underlying policy and even ne
cesssity dominates Great Britain. A
quarrel between Poland and Ger
many over Upper Silesia or Pome-
rania leaves the British cold. They
have not the smallest inclination to
defend the frontiers of any of the
new or newly expanded states. But
on the other hand, since a struggle
between Poland and Germany would
involve France, Czechoslovakia, Bel
gium and would doubtless set all of
Central and Eastern Europe afiame
and a general war would be ruinous
to British economic life, all British
efforts must be directed to prevent
this catastrophe.
The distinction between British poll
icy and French lies in the fact that
France, fearing the consequences of
the restoration of a strong military
Germany, which would first regain
lost provinces from Poland and then
expand by reclaiming Germans in
Czechoslovakia and Austria, is COM
mitted alike to a policy of peace and
to policy of preservation, by war if
necessary, of the territorial decisions
of Paris. Britain. like France, desires
peace, but would be ready to pla-
cate Germany by giving her Polish
or other lands.
Made Uneasy BY Alliances.
The British, moreover, view with
apprehension system of alliances
such as France has evolved, as calcu-
lated to bring about the gradual erec-
tion of a counterbalancing system and
thus to lead to rivalries and in the
end to war And this British view is.
on the whole, shared by the group of
neutrals of the war. just as the
French view is shared by the Bel
gians, Poles and the three central
European states of the Little Entente.
Moreover, there are several other
states, namely, Finland, Esthonia and
Latvia, which were liberated by the
war have no ambition contrary to
peace, but feel themselves menaced
by a return to Russian aggression,
but unaffected by German policy.
Thus they would tend to unite with
Poland in a common policy Of de-
fense toward Russia, while Greece
would share the apprehensions of the
Serbs and Rumanians on the side Of
Bulgaria.
Hitherto British policy has failed
completely on the Continent because
it omitted to take into account the
dual concern of all the states border
ing upon Germany, Russia, Hungary
and Bulgaria, states which feel them
selves menaced by the still unmis-
taxable determination of these four
nations to recover lost provinces. In
all discussions of peace, disarmament
and the like, France has. in the final
test, found these states supporting
Ter and insisting that the basis of
any peace system must be the guar
antee of the existing order, must be
security.
Outside the Two Groups.
Outside the two groups Of nations,
the one of which desires both secur-
ity and peace, and the other which,
having nothing to fear on the side of
security, seeks peace pure and simple,
are five nations: Russia, Germany,
Italy, Hungaria and Bulgaria. AS to
Russia. no one can at the moment
make any calculation. 1t constitutes
an obvious peril to European order
and to all the border states from Fin
land to Rumania, but for the present
it must be excluded from all caIcula-
tions.
AS to Italy. here position is pecu-
liar. Having obtained as a result of
the World War the best strategic
frontiers of the Continent and having
at the same time seen the extinction
Of the Hapsburg Empire, Italy has
ted to the defense of the existing
frontiers, in so far as her gains are
concerned. So far she stands with
France and the French group. But
Italy is not Satiated or satisfied. She
desires to, extend her frontiers in
Europe at the expense of the .Jugo-
slavs, the Albanians and the Greeks.
She has also ambitious in the Med
iterranean, which can only be realized
at the expense of the French, the
British and the Turks.
Italy is then, as all her conduct has
shown, both at Corfu last year and
at Geneva this year, opposed to any
League of Nations which might be-
come the champion of existing from
tiers. On the other hand, the union of
Austria with Germany, the restora-
tion of anything like the Mittel Eu-
rope of German conceptions, would
be a deadly peril to her, therefore
there are plain limits to her associa-
tion with Germany or to her desire to
see Germany restored. Since France
is a natural rival in the Mediterra-
mean and also partner of the little
entente and of Jugoslavia. {. Italy's
potential rival on the Adriatic, Italy
would be glad to see French influence
balanced by German, but her mani
fest game is to play in both camps.
Italy of Mussolini, however, is not in
any sense desirous of peace in the
same sense as either France and her
associates or Britain and the neu-
trails.
Not RecOnciIed to Losses.
There remains Germany and the
two states which followed her in the
war Bulgaria and Hungary. All
three have lost large areas, none of