Evening star., 1925-03-01
RHINELAND, SEPARATION
CLUB AGAINST ENGLAND
France by New Threats Influences Nego-
tiations for Security Pact
With Britain.

apparently raises old but effective
banshees and fiaunts them at 10
Downing street. Whether France
will succeed depends, of course, on
whether the present British govern
ment Will have courage to resist
French desires. Austen Chamberlain,
foreign minister, is declared to have
promised France a security pact.
Other members of the British cab
met, it lately has been revealed, are
inclined to believe that any security
pact should be all inclusive, and to
head off eventual alliance of Ger
many with Russia, should include the
Germans. The French, questioning the
good faith of the Germans refuse
to permit them to be a part of any
conference. The British have sug-
gested that the allies meet in Brus-
sells in the imm ediate future and
after it has lbeen decided what the
allies shall do toward the forcing
of Germany to meet all of the treaty
of Versailles provisions in regard to
disarma ment, call the Germans in and
not only present the demands, but
tell them that after compliance Ger
many Will be permitted to join
| security agreement which shall en-
brace all of the western European
| nations once at odds Naturally,
German tenure of the Rhinelands for
| ever would be corrollary to the pact.
Resist British Demands.
! The French are waging a tremen-
! dous campaign against the British
/ demands and cite the report of the
| interallied control commission, but
now being revealed piecemeal, as
| jus stification for their beIligerent atti-
/ tude toward Germany. This report, it
/ is declared, summarizes the control
| commission investiga tions in Ger
many and is said to declare that
through Germany's i'll faith she has
so Unanswered her resources, eco
nomic, financial and military, to such
point as to be able to wage immediate
| war.
| The report is disconcerting from
the standpoint of those who have been
| arguing for a chance for Germany to
| show her good faith, and it directly
contradicts the announcements of
| the Marx and Luther governments
| that Germany actually has sought to
meet treaty stipulations. But the
British believe that the report but
| again emphasizes facts which have
been revealed in the past from time to
| time, and it cannot be made the basis
| for any revival of nationalistic pres
sure in France in favor of pressing
| Germany further TO the wall. The
| British believe that any further ef-
fort of France in antagoniZing Ger
many, on whatsoever pretext, but en-
| dangers the life of the Dawes plan
| and sows the seeds for future con-
flict, and as a consequence are much
| upset by the Rhineland separation
doctrine so recently revived by Her
riot. who, as Socialist, was ex-
pected to steer clear of nationalistic
nostrums at all junctures. In some
quarters ii is believed that Herriots
80
leader is heightened by the restora
tion of conservative and nationalistic
governments both in Berlin and in
London.
Negotiations Affected.
That Frances renewed agitation in
regard to the Rhineland will have
far-reaching effect on any negotia-
tions that now may be under way
looking toward a general spirit of
economic, financial and social rec
oncilia ton on the continent is GER
tain. French and British statesmen
continue their negotiations, but London
advices indicate that the gulf between
the two nations is constantly grow
ing wider-in fact, it is intimated that
there is some danger of France once
more asserting her privilege and right
of proceeding in settlements affect
/ ing france 1R n6T OWN way Jush 40
France acted in regard to the Ruhr
invasion England wants no recur-
renee of any such nationalistic effort,
for it is admitted generally that this
action deferred the day of peaceful
adjustment and but added to the po-
litfcal sores that now beset the body
polite of the continent.
One KEY to eventual solution lies
with Germany. Chancellor Luther
already has taken Gen. Won Seeckt to
task for infractions of the treaty OF
Versailles in the organization OF the
Reichswehr and has let it be known
to old Nationalist military leaders
that Germany cannot and Will not
tolerate infractions of the treaty, in
so far as it's military eXactions are
concerned. How much weight this
insistence will have and how far Ger
many will go Immediately to disabuse
the allied mind of any attempts at
: immediate military conflict is not
known, of course, but, inasmuch as
Luther speaks for the Nationalfsts
of Germany at the present 1uncture
and has their hearty backing, some
thing may be done by Germany i'm
mediately to ease the allied situation.
Germany realizes full well that if
she persists in treaty violations she
will suffer materially in her western
provinces, and as the return of Co
Iogne and other occupied regions at
| the earliest possible date is the
thesis of practically all German po-
litica1 parties, the British argue, and
, not without some semblance of logic,
Germany cannot be considered as an
obstacle to continental adjustments.
| The chief thing is to prove to Francs
that Germany is sincere. 1t may be
expected that only when France Is
convinced will the Nationalists tof
France cease to rattle the saber along
pathways leading to certain war.