Evening star., 1924-08-03
GERMANY IS HELD
SOLE BENEFACTOR
Tardieu Says Britain and
France Lose by Accepting
Dawes Plan.
BY ANDRE TARDIEU.
BY Radio TO The Star.

sBy Radio TO The Star.
I PARIS, August 2.-The second act OF
sthe London conference begins. Ac-
sceptance of the French compromise pro-
.posal, made after two weeks of dis
sagreement rendered possible an invita-
stion to Germany, and the play will con-
stinue with an extra character on the
sstage.
The past week has been particularly
tdifficult. On returning from the Spit
Shead review, and in face of the de-
smands of the bankers. Prime Minister
macdonald suddenly raised the question
sof military evacuation of the Ruhr, al
though it had been agreed beforehand
:that this question was outside the scope
iof the conference.
Britain Takes Action.
! At the same time Mr.. Macdonald an
snounced the intention to withdraw Brit
ish troops from Cologne. just as if Ger
erfaithfully executed" all her engage
anentS. Meanwhile, in technical discus
SionS. Philip Snowden showed an ag-
EresSive intranSigence. The press was
nervous. Every days session was an
bounced beforehand as decisive" In
such an atmosphere Premier Herriot
and his colleagues elaborated their arbi-
grafton plan. NJ. Herrot also proposed
snformally. in concert with the Belgians.
10 evacuate the Ruhr by successive
stages during the next two years.
T. The situation thus created is singu-
aarly paradoxical II will be argued
that the French government has OBJ
1alned acceptance OF its viewpoint.
But surely it must be confessed that
this new viewpoint means abandon
IN n of nrfp sol lSi al n a
it deprives the reparations commits
sion of it's sovereign power and also
relinquishes Frances right to sepa-
rate action in the future. In other
fereeS to accept Frances viewpoint.
France begins by borrowing theirs
and Offering it as her own. The con-
cessionS which France obtains in ex-
change, whether in the matter Of
transfers or deliveries in kind, have
only secondary importance by COM
parison.
Three Distinct Phases.
Looking deeper into the policies
behind these surface manifestations.
there are three distinct tendencies.
Germany, which lacks working capital
and foreSeeS a grave economic crisis,
wants money-the $500, 100000 loan.
England wants prompt liquidation of
the Ruhr affair, and certainly II will
not be repeated. France is led to
yield to British demands and satisfy
Germany's wants in hope OF getting
part of what is due her.
5 But as the conference, even with
the newly enlarged program, does
not take into account either security
pr war debts, it is to be feared that
France, will get nothing of positive
value while abandoning Part VIII of the
treaty of Versailles, one of her princi-
pal rights and most valuable means Of
action.
! The Poincare government conduct
ed the Ruhr occupation SO badly that
tt seized the Dawes report as an easy
way out. The Macdonald cabinet
welcomed it because it offered an in
strument for revising the Versailles
treaty. Later London as well as
Paris, perceived that acceptance of
the Dawes plan perhaps had been
hasty. Paris discovered that the ex-
perts' plan, besides striking blow at
the treaty, was subordinated, like the
treaty itself, to Germany's rather
doubtful good faith, and that even if
executed, it would yield France less
than the amount of her foreign debts.
Premiers Forced to Yield.
Great Britain soon began to realize
that the rehabilitation of Germany
you'd mean a serious menace to Brit
fish trade. The Rothmere press, as
well as various manufacturing groups,
have been shouting this warning for
X.
ternal politics and especially their
tenure in office, both Herriot and
Macdonald are Obliged to turn a deaf
ear to such warnings.
{ If the Dawes loan succeeds, every
body except the Germans will be
sorry; Herriot. who inherited Poin-
dare's mistakes, will have succeeded
no better than his predecessor in
flling Frances treasury, and his sue
Sessor will find things in this respect
lust as he took them.
1T is hard to see what this London
conference will have accomplished
except in Germany's interest. De-
spite compromises, the French ana
British viewpoints remain diametri-
daily opposed And German Deputy
Schwartz, who came and made a
speech at Versailles the other day,
said
we will never pay you"
In such circumstances can anybody
Believe we are making progress?
Copyright, 1924