Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1925-12-19
BACKGROUND OF EVENTS
BY PAUL j. COLLINS.

! ITO the victor belong the spoils,'
! But when there is nothing left for the
victor except spoiled" territory, ruined
| cities and devastated homes, such as
| We're typical of France after the World
War, and the victor must advance her
| own funds for repairing the havoc
! while the defeated enemy need only
| to rekindle the fires in its own fac
| tories and mills, unchanged by bat
| tie, there arises a question as to the
reality of triumph.
| Germany is boaSting today of re-
newed energy and unhampered pros
| perity Her mills and mercantile es-
| adjustments are working to the limit
and she is paying her agreed INSTALL
ments on the reparations, under the
| Dawes plan. There is no unemploy
ment reported in Germany, in spite
! Of the fact that she had no special
/ building enterprises to repair wars
! destruction. All her energy is put to
| construction of new Wealth-not to re-
placement of chaos.
! Germany is prosperous and bids fair
| to increase her prosperity as the years
/ go by. She is at peace with the world.
| because the allies in their treaty of
! peace bound her to keep the peace
| Thus the penalty" of defeat becomes
! her greatest blessing, as reported from
| Berlin. Furthermore. the experience
rather a novel one for militaristic Ger
| many-that industry brings greater
comfort than war, cannot fail to have
a psychological effect upon the masses
and tend to persuade the rising gener-
alton.
"Clang, clang. the massive anvils ring;
Clang. clang, a hundred hammers
swing;
Like the thunder rattle of a tropic sky,
| The mighty blows still multiply
| Clang, clang!
| Say, brothers Of the dusky brow,
What are your strong arms forging
now?"
"Clang, clang." There Is no war
coming to Germany while that "clang,
clang" continues to echo and the mark
continues to jingle.
Westward the Star of Empire takes
| it's course" and so across the Rhine
| rises imperialism-and panic. France
| is struggling with war in Syria and
| war in Algiers-and with increa sing
| talk of utter collapse of her business.
France, the victor in the greatest war
| of history! One political party is de-
| manding that a dictator should take
| over the reins of government and dis
band Parliament. Another party pa
| rades the streets of Paris with banners
calling lOE duueTeIlCe " SoOFl0l COIIl-
| munism. This week both parties plan
ned to march under the Arc de Tri-
omphe, but the police forbade both
parades. lest they lead to revolution
| and violence. II Peace hath her vic
tories" she also has her defeats.
The opposition in the Chamber of
Deputies has asked the government
for the number of French killed in the
! Syrian War. The official report was
$3.50. Since last July /, the death
loss Of France in Syria numbers SCI.
How many have been sacrificed in the
African War, still being waged with
out the dawn of peace, has not lately
been reported.
In both wars, France is fighting
Islam. and today there are openly ex-
pressed fears that Islam, world wide,
may take up the fight.
| Frances war minister, Painleve
confessed in the Chamber of Deputies,
There were painful incidents in Syria,
in 1920, but out of patriotism we
yelled them"
| The Socialists mock the word 'pa.
triotism" and declare that, not pa
| triotism, but greed Of empire, led to
the hiding Of the painful incidents"
which. like the recent bombardment
and massacre of Damascus, have been
masked.
! The maintenance in the fields Of
| her strong armies consumes more
| than the interest on her billions due
| the United States and England for
World War loans. The attempts of
her ministry to balance the budget by
increasing taxes overthrow the minis