Evening star., 1925-01-19

tonsidersOfe sSeptlcISm has preNAheu
regarding the good faith Of France in the
matter Of war debts. Robert Underwood
Johnson presents an Interpretation OF the
French pronouneement on the question that
quickened the suspicion here she did not
intend to pay-she recent financial balance
sheet and memorandum from NJ Ciemen-
tel, French minister of finance.
The swift developments of the
Allied Financial Conference in Paris
are one more indication OF the punctili-
BUSINESS of France in regard to the
nnancial arrangements in which she is
involved. The participation of the
United States in German reparatioRs
payments for the American army of
occupation costs and for war damages
has had the support of France ever
since the preliminary conversations on
the subject two months ago. The re-
sult-a settlement in Paris that came
with speed expected by no one
makes it easier to examine impartiaily
the unwilling indiscretion of the
French minister of finance, NJ. Glenn
entel, in his presentation of the budget
for the new year and to see what was
really said. The indiscretion had two
counts: First, in onitting from his
statement the debts o. France TO Great
Britain and to the United States, and,
on the other hand, the debts OF Bel
gium, Jugoslavia, Rumania and others
of the allies to France herself: and,
secondly, in discussing in the market
place certain French points of view
concerning the propriety Of mitigating
her own debts. Yet he admitted that
the debts We're sacred obligations. and
what he said was not less downright
than Millerand's proud declaration at
the San Reno conference, France
always keeps her word" Unfortunately.
he buried the admission in the context.
He should have accentuated il at the
outset OF his pronouncement; while the
discussion bf details should have been
reserved for international negotiation.
The position of France is both honor
able and natural She virtually says:
We recognize the obligation to the ut
most and we shall pay it when we can.
But in view Of the unique conditions
under which the debt was contracted
and OF the terrible situation in which,
five years after the war, We still find
ourselves through the contumacy Of
Germany in defaulting on the larger
part of her obligations. we feel that
we may properly ask for a generous re-
consideration Of the whole subject. She
might go even further and say in the
words of the poet Keats. We
. Cry your mercy. pity, love, all. love
Is there anything monstrous dishouorsble
in thisf
Certainly there are many Americans
who would be glad to see our fine his
toric record of sltruistic actions sup
plemented by liberal concessions to
people who stood between us and the
sordid ambition Of Germany for the
conquest Of the world. Perhaps they
would not go so far as DIR. Hibben, who
would have US forgive France every
debt but that OF the spirit. But they
remember that owe to her our very
existence as a nation; that, after the
war Of 1870, she paid without a whimper
every franc of her indemnity, anticipat-
ing the date of each payment so that
Bismarck regretted that he had not ex-
acted a greater sum: again, they re-
member that Great Britain and Amer
ica, either by what they did or what
they failed to do, are not without large
moral responsibility for Germanys
failure to pay the reparations, in de-
fault of which France. courageously and
with great sacrifices, has had to bear
this burden herself: and. finally. that
the brunt Of the colossal conflict fell
upon her-that her dead outnumbered
those of Great Britain, Italy and the
/ United States all together; that her
soil. chiefly, was the battlefield, and
! that her scars VIII he the last to heal.
Those facts may not constitute grounds
for q waiver of the debt. but they do
put US under bonds to treat her with
the utmost consideration-with patience.
sympathy and understanding. Thus
we may show that we have not forgot
ten our comradeship of idealism with
her, which will live in history as our
most glorious chapter
Copyright, 1921