Evening star., 1924-08-17
What Europe Is Saying
About America
FRANCE.--II.
BY FREDERIC WILLIAM VILE

France has a new national motto.
It is not emblazoned upon the walls OF
her ancient buildings. but 1t Is en-
kraved upon the hearts of all her
people. 1t runs: 'Liberte. Egalite.
Fraternite, Securite." Americans who
know Paris and are familiar with its
architecture will recognize at once
that the new motto is the old one
with the addition of the word
"securite" Security is the Alpha
and Omega of French policy today.
1t is the program of statesmen and
the determination of the plain people.
Every act of France since the armiS-
tice has had security against her ira
ditional foe. Germany. as It's motive.
France takes no Step-diplomatfc,
military, commercial, financial, eco
nomic or social-that is not inspired.
directly or indirectly, by her fierce
resolve to make herself secure against
a. new German aggression. She nShts
for reparations, inch by inch, as she
fought before Verdun, because repa-
rations were designed to weaken
Germany and keep her weak. She oc-
cupied the Ruhr because, Germany
having defaulted on reparationS. some
new stranglehold became necessary.
The Ruhr, Frenchmen frankly admit.
has not been a successful enterprise
measured in terms of coal and TIMBER
deliveries and other reparations IN
kind. But they look upon it as a COL
lossal moral triumph because the oc-
cupation has enabled them to clutch
Germany firmly by the throat and to
hold her industrial provinces as a
kaataSa Snr good behavior.
Wants Guarantees.
France could probably exist and
prosper indefinitely without a single
,,f TQtlnnS-tS
doing so, in fact. today. But she is not
willing to forego both reparations and
the guarantee Of security against an
other German war. That guarantee
will have to be furnished to France
in some form before she finally and COM
pletely removes the tri-color from Ger
7aan soil. There can be London and Spa
and Genoa and Cannes conferences py
che score, dragging their futile courses
through the wears There can be Dawes
plans by the dozen. But until there
emerres from conferences and plans
and reparatioEs commissions, or Wnat
not some cast-iron, copper-rlveteo. ao-
solutely alright and enduring scneme
OF security for France against 1resn
German assault, the French soul Will
not be at peace, or French natlonal
asnirations satisfied France will fight
It out on that line if it takes all. OF
this century. Statesmen, American and
European, must model their relations
and negotiations with France accord
insly.
To the average American who comes
TO Paris it is utterly dlsconcertlns 10
find France thinking seriously aho con-
stantly in terms of war with Germany.
The conception We in the United States
have had of the Germans Is that they
are on their knees, in military sense
and hardly any more capable OF nent-
ing France than Haiti is OF nsntins
ourselves We know, OF course, tnAl
the Ludendorffs and the Hindenourgs
and the other militarist and 1nonarcnisl
die-hards long for and dream Oh
yenge, but it has appeared lahIdstieAi
to us that Germany, during the present
generation at least, could contemplate
naLinr war on France except In
state of complete mental alteration.
what the French say is that Ameri-
cans who imagine that Germany 10
down and out, from a war STANDPOINT
are grotesquely mistaken. france Keeps
TOO 600 or 100000 men under arms aiio
4 great air fleet in training ana
robi,ization plan ready for instant eA-
a.,,tson and willingly bears the I'M
mense financial burden that sdcn
state of preparedness calls for because
"a her marrow France is convinced war
with Germany might come at any
moment!
Fear Attacks by Air.
NJ. Anerican asks for a bill OF
n.rticulars, when this startling e2-
nlanation is offered, and the ren.n
ran supplies it eagerly and persua-
siyely. He points out, nfSt OF All, .h~
"the next German attack VII! not oe
hv land, as the onslaught OF 1874 NA
Iaunched, but mainly by air ano
Al; q
declaration of war. You cannot build
. navy in stealth, or even train an
army under cover, but it is easy the
French assert, to construct q gleantlc
air fleet and the bombs ana gases
with which it will attack. without
anybody being the wiser. Ihat Is
exactly what the French are CERTAIN
the Germans are doing.
There has been during the past
wear or two no very thorouEhgoIng
control" of German military prepara.
tions Gen. Nollet, now minister OF
war in the Herriot cabinet, who was
the head of the interallied commls-
sion charged with the duty of dis
arming Germany, is persuaded that
while the allies were looking the other
way and quarreling among them
selves over reparations, the Germans
speeded up their military machine in
every direction. Factories have been
reorganized and expanded, the French
declare, with one eye to business and
one eye to their immediate CONVEX
sion into munition works when the
day of revenge dawnS. The writer
has heard the statement made in
Paris that not a single lathe Is now
working anywhere In Germany that
cannot be instantly turned into a
machine for making ammunition. The
chemical industry, according to the
same allegations, is now on basis
that will make the unlimited produc.
tion of war gases for Germany the
simplest thing imaginable.
Big Potential Army.
Germany quit the war with 10000
or 10000 900 veteran soldiers and 5000
or 1000 war-trained non commission
ed officers. The French calculate that
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