Evening star., 1924-07-11
IN TODAY'S SPOTLIGHT
BY PAUL Y. COLLINS

be the least possible delay in putting
the Dawes report into effect"
Whether the correspondents car
verify with official authority theii
! statement that a full agreement has
| been arrived at between France, Bel
| gium and England regarding their
collaboration and mutual enforce
| ment Of the penalties provided in the
Dawes plan, in case Germany de-
faults. cannot be positively proved
| but, optimistically, they declare from
! carry out her obligations under the
experts plan, France and Belgium
| would find Great Britain at their side
| as she was during the war"
Belgium states frankly that "ir
her view the Ruhr can only be eyac-
uated when Germany, Loyalty carry
ing out the plan of the experts. has
substituted for the present pledges
the alternative pledges mentioned In
the Dawes report-that is to say, the
railways, the factories. etc.
1t will be recalled that the Dawes
plan is for the railroads of Germany
which are now owned by the govern
ment and are valued at 100000
gold marks, to be turned over to a
private corporation, which is to is
sue IL ,000, 600, 900 marks of gold bonds
to the reparations account The rail-
road corporation is to be controlled
by nonGerman directors. Also the
government is to allot to all indus
tries the burden of 5,000.000,000 gold
marks total, to be issued in bonds
which also will go to the allies
other provisions supplement these
for binding all interests in Germany
to an ultimate settlement of the OBJ
legations of the Versailles treaty
Just what Mr.. Macdonald means in
saying that 1.-The Dawes plan i'm
poses additional obligations outside
of the Versailles treaty upon Ger
many" has never been explained.
Germany has not voiced any such a
claim.
France has accepted the Dawes
plan without any reservations or
am endments. In France there appears
upon the question of German repara-
tions and defense an era akin to
what was known in America in Mon
roe's- time as IAN era of good feeling
All parties unite upon the one policy
Of making France safe and of en-
forcing the Versailles treaty. Before
Premier Herriot came into power he
promised evacuation of the Ruhr, but
since he took the responsibility he
has announced a change of policy
and that the Ruhr will never be evac-
uated until Germany substitutes 9TH
er guarantees equally safe. In the
Chamber of Deputies recently reso-
lutions sustaining the government
were passed, in part as follows:
France expressly repudiates any
thought of annexation or of conquest.
What she desires is security in dig
nifty and independence. What she de-
sires is peace, for herself first, and
for the other people also.
1T is necessary to speak without
ambiguity. Our democratic govern
ment will defend the rights Of our
country as inscribed in the treaties.
We have the right to reparations.
We want them in the name of jus
tice. The new international order
which we hope for could not be
founded on injustice. We
are opposed to the policy of isolation
and force which leads to occupations
In face of the present state of Ger
many, and in view of the necessity
of forearming, not only France, but
all peoples. against an aggres essive re-
turn of national pan-Germanism, we
do not consider it possible to evac-
uate the Ruhr before the pledges con-
templated by the experts, whose re-
port we accept without arriere pen
see (mental reservation) have been
constituted, with just and effective
guarantees of execution, and handed
over to the international organfza-
tionS designed to work them"
1t will be remembered that in 1871,
when Germany occupied France, she
withdrew from each section only as
fast as she collected specified in
stallmentS upon the French in
demnity.
D., "