Evening star., 1924-05-25
CHANCE OF REAL PEACE
in EUROPE ENHANCED
Liberal Allied Governments Have Retter
Prospect of Co-ordinated Effort.
Says Writer


chamber in particular. felt that LLOYD
George was steadily depriving France
or the fruits of her gigantic sacrf-
hces and playing a German game
against her. 1t became the settled
conviction of the French chamber
that only Poincare could cone with
Lloyd George. So finally Poincare
was called, and his rule endured as
long as the life of the sitting cham
Der itself
Poincare proved able to cope with
Lloyd George, and less than a year
atter he came to power Lloyd George
fell, largely because of the skillful
maneuvering of Poincare The fall
was good thing for the world, be-
cause as long as Lloyd George re-
mained in Downing street all chance
of Franco-British friendship was at
an end. But when Poincare came the
Germans, encouraged by British and
French quarrelings, had refused to
continue reparations payments, and
occupation of the Ruhr had become
inevitable.
The occupation of the Ruhr. how
ever, permanently alienated Britain
from France while Poincare re-
mained prime minister. British hos
tility to Poincare promptly took on
the national character that French
hostility to Lloyd George had long
had. But it was impossible that
France should dismiss Poincare while
the Ruhr conflict was going on or
while French conviction continued
that British craftsmanship was en-
gagged IN depriving France of her
legitimate rights under the treaty of
Versailles. All France speaking gen
orally, backed the occupation of the
Ruhr, and was thus committed t.
Poncare.
New Conditions Arise
When, however, British power
passed to Ramsay Macdonald a new
situation arose. Britain had definitely
gone" liberal, radical, what you may
please to call it. In that way it had
broken with the war and the war
policy; it had chosen a pacifist as pre-
mier, and this pacifist was in turn
committed to a policy of pacification
fact that he was animated by no hos
tiity to France; that he was honest.
straightforward and simple. Before
he had been in office many weeks he
had good press in Paris and was
popular in France, as Lloyd George
had not been since the end of the
war.
Meantime all France was suffering
Enthusiastically from the fact that the
world, speaking generally, had come
to regard Poincare as a militarist.
and France as Il reactionary country,
given over to a policy of revenge and
determined to destroy Germany, using
the treaty of Versailles as a weapon
and the occupation of the Ruhr as
an opportunity. Poincare became as
a world figure more sinister than
Bismarck himself.
France suffered for it and felt it.
Moreover, Poincare showed himself
increasingly rigid and obstinate and
made grave blunders on domestic
policy which were only atoned for by
the fact that in the field of foreign
affairs he still expressed the will Of
France, albeit with a degree of provo
cation which gave seeming confirma-
tion to the foreign estimate of him
Moreover-and the fact is of utmost
significance-France was steadily be
coming more and more anxious for
peace-that is, for settlement.
Wrecked BY Dawes Body.
1t was the Dawes commissioner
which Poincare was mainly respon-
sible-which in the end wrecked the
Lorrainer. AS long as the case
seemed to Frenchmen to be one of
supporting the French claim against
a world which sought to deprive
France of her rights, of security and
reparation, which appeared TO be
willing to let Germany go scott-free
and France fall into defenseless bank
ruptcy, F'rance-aH parties. or enough
of the members of each party-stood
by Poincare.
But the Dawes report for the first
time gave the French financial claims
and French reparation rights a sat
isfactory International foundation on
the economic side. 1t declared that
vide ways and means for the payment
The debate over the ability of Ger
many was ended. French claims were
vindicated, not in a political court, but
in conference of economic experts.
Poincare had said Germany could
pay; he had held his ground in the
face of all the arguments that Ger
many was bankrupt and reparations
a fignent of the imagination. But
when the Dawes committee had vim
dicated the Poincare claim. then the
real usefulness of Poincare had ter
minated.
At last the moment had arrived
when the French could dispense with
the strong man, necessary to defend
their rights; strength, unfortunately,
aroused British and even American
criticism and reused German reaction
to the war pitch. Poincare could not
get along with Britain, or more ex-
actly, Britain could not get on with
Poincare; but here in the Dawes re-
port was a basis of cooperation be-
tween the two countries, with sat
isfactory promise of the substantial
payment by Germany of the neces-
sary reparations. What simpler.
then, than to drop Poincare as Glenn
enceau had, in fact, been dropped.
Alarmed by Prejudice.
Bear in mind that the mass OF
the Frenchmen during the period of
break between Great Britain and
France had made up their minds that
France must in the end work with
Britain or get nothing. Bear in mind,