Evening star., 1924-10-05
j. s. AID HELD VITAL
TO WORLD PEACE.
Has Proved Only Power Ca
pabIe of Uniting Britain
and France.
BY PAUL SCOTT MoWRER.
= Cable to The Star and Chicago Daily News


Ey Cable to The Star and Chicago Daily News
GENEVA, Switzerland, October 3
The outstanding fact of the last
Few months is that the experts repa-
rations plan and its adoption by
France. Great Britain and Germany,
IN formal agreement, promise to
ring for the first time something like
real peace to Europe. How has this
pleasantly astonishing consummation
been arrived at. and what. in the
larger sense, does it mean?
1t was after the United States made
"A separate peace with Germany and
withdrew its cooperation from Euro
pean affairs in 1921 that Germany
definitely began its policy of resist
auce to the treaty OF Versailles, and
France and Great Britain began to
quarrel most bitterly. During more
than three years every effort to unite
France and Great Britain on com?
mon program and 70 bring Germany
TO terms failed. Germany. seeing the
victorious war coalition i'll full diSso-
luton. naturally hoped, by gaining
time, TO bring about a revision of the
treaty. France and Great Britain.
having opposing interests and labor
ing under traditional temperamental
differences, finally reached point
where, whether from pride or cal
culation or sheer despair. neither was
willing to make any concessions to
the other.
American Aid Again.
Yet the execution of the treaty and
the peace of Europe depend obviously
upon agreement between France and
Great Britain. How was this agree
fnent to be brought about? There
was only one way-by some friendly
IL, -. tor
rnediary he?' There was only one
possibility-the United States-for.
leaving out of account that the finan
cial participat tion of the United States
would be necessary in any final set
tlement, it was clear that there was
no other power to which both France
and Great Britain could listen with
sufficient respect.
From the time, therefore, in the
last days of 1923, when the French
government invited Americans TO a
meeting of experts in Paris--thereby
at last renewing Americas long in
terrupted cooperation in European
afairS-the success of the experts
was practically assured. The media
tion of the Americans could and did
bring about agreement. for the first
time in many months, between the
British and the French. for whereas
felt that they could give in to the
other alone on anything, either could
gracefully give in on almost anything
70 a combination Of the other and the
United States
Unites Allies.
The American experts had no illu-
sfonS as to their duties. They knew
that the real problem was not so
much to devise fair and adequate
plans of payment as to get the allies
and Germany to agree to their plans
that their task was therefore not so
much economic Is political. They did
not attach themselves to any particu-
lar school of reparations doctrine.
They had. in reality. only one funda-
mental principle. namely, that the
end to be sought was the Cancellation
of France and Great Britain. for any
agreement would be better than no
agreement, and Germany would
scarcely dare to oppose settlement
favored by both Great Britain and
France and supported by the United
States.
The negotiations were not easy.
They were at times WY with the Dit
terness of years OF useless Franco
British wranglings The advantage
of the Americans lay in the fact that
they could see the strength and the
weakness of both the French and
the British points of view and could
throw their weight accordingly.
1.-The trouble in Paris" one of them
ehrewdly remarked upon one occasion,
''is to keep the politicians out Of eco
noInics. and the trouble in London is to
keep the bankers out of politics"
In avoiding this double danger the
American perts were wholly success
full Ana a; for Germany, il any one
doubts that American mediation was
the chief factor in perSuading the
Reichstag TO accept the experts plan,
he has only to refer TO the debates on
the subject.
German Opinions Stated,