Evening star., 1925-06-07
BRITAIN PUT In AWKWARD
PLACE BY SECURITY PACT
Cannot Give France Direct Guarantee
of Aid in Case of War and Offend
German People.

avoid. In 1914 they We're bound -
fight on the side of France if Ger
many attacked France. but they re-
fused up 10 the last minute TO accept
legal obligation to do what was a
self-evident necessity.
Today the British believe that A
raight-out guarantee TO France
would be a provocation to Germany
And they do not desire to challenge
Germany or provoke her. 1t is not
because of any sentimental feeling for
France that Britain must stand with
her against Germany in case Of war;
II il for the most material of all res-
SonS-that of self defense. What the
British desire TO do there is TO guaran-
tee. not France against Germany. but
a state of fact in the west of Europe
which is essential to their own Sc
curity. What they desire to esca Pc
is the creation in the German mind
the belief that Britain will tight Ger
many for French reasons or sYmpa-
thies. That is why the direct guaran-
tee hangs fire
Want the Status Quo.
! In reality. what the British are after
is 10 get a state of facts which Ger
many will accept: or. Ia put it more
exactly. they are anxious to get Ger
many To concede as permanent that
3 SidtN III Id'tS winch lnS bTlllSn FN-
/ gard as necessary namely. the status
quo as il affects France. Belgium and
/ Holland on the one hand and Ger
many on the other II Germany
guarantees French and Belgian Sc
! curity. then Britain can do likewise
without affrontins German pride or
awakening German suspicion.
! If Germany, however. is To he
/ brought To guarantee the western
] frontiers nf her nairhhnTS which
means to resign all claim TO Alsace
/ Lorraine and Eupen and Malmedy-
! that is, if Germany is TO do what the
! British want. naturally the Germans
I Will seek compensation. assuming that
( they think that there is a bargain
| TO be had. And il is a fact that the
Germans are willing 10 trade. because.
! Fundamentally they. TOO. see that IN
/ last analysis 10 Try 10 change these
frontiers Is To bring a new War
with Britain.
! SO the German SAYS, in effect: 4
( will guarantee the western frontiers,
| will resign Aisace Lorraine, Eupen
and Malmedy, bur | ask in return the
/ evacuation of all the other la nds in
I the west occupied by allied troops,
! that the Ruhr. the Rhineland and the
Sarr shall be returned 10 me at least
within the DELAYS foreSeen by the
treaty of Versailles and perhaps lit
+ tie sooner. for il we get the security
question settled that Of repa ~ tions
being already attended 10 by the
Dawes plan-whst use is longer occu-
pation?'
So far there is no line uf objection,
even the French are willing 10 agree
that if and when the question Of
curitv is settled, then the question of
occupation is less important. although
. the French are by no means al the
point of concedng that the program
which | have sketched satisfies the
conditions of security.
Germans May Balk.
! The breaking point however. comes
when the German says. But I will not
guarantee my eastern frontiers, l will
accept the loss of Alsace- Lorraine as
| final. but the separation of Danzig,
the Polish Corridor. Upper Silesia.
| never. Moreover, ! demand also that
the denial of the right to unite Aus
| tria with the German Republic be re-
scinded. l will agree not to change
! these eastern frontiers by war. but /
! shall never accept them"
! Ii Is then incumbent upon the
Briton TO go back 10 his French ally.
He has led the German TO make an
I offer, in substance to agree to accept
| western frontiers in return for per-
mission to modify eastern and south
ern. But at this point he finds
the Frenchman becomes suspicious.
! Franc is the ally of Poa nd and
! CzechoSlovakid. of the little entente
I but the frontiers and security OF Po-
land and the nations Of the little en-
tente are precisely those which Ger
many advertises her purpose to
! change. indeed seeks 10 purchase per-
mission to change.
Ig,.iY
penny hap penny who has the Polish
corridor or Upper Silesia. or whether
Austria Joins the Reich or stavs out
side, merely as an abstract question.
More than that. if granting German
! wishes in this direction would insure
permanence and peace in the regions
in which Britain is concerned, then
Britain is for the grant. The Eng
Hshman does not put the things so
cynically. of course What he says
in effect is that Germany is going 70
take the corridor anyway. that what
ever any one may say about self de
| termination. a nation of 65,000,0 600
people is not going TO submit per
manently to the state of affairs Gre
ated by the corridor.
Indeed if you read certain British
writers you will see that they are
not a little indignant with Poland,
with CZechoslovakia, with France
for insisting upon maintaining a state
of affairs which viii perpetuate Ger
man discomfort, provoke future dis
cord and, not impossibly, lead TO new
war, in which Britain will again be
involved as she was in the last. not
because of the issue involved but be
cause she cannot have a conquering
nation come to the Channel
France Thinks Of Self
But the FrenChman is in rather a
different position. BY and large do
not think he cares more for the skin
of the Pole or the Czech tina The
| Englishman. He is thinking of his
own security just as the Briton is.
But he reasons that If Germany rnu-
tilates Poland, annexes Austria, en-
circles CZechoslovakia, which has a
large German minority anyway. Ger
many will become the dominant ma
tion on the continent, and what then
would hinder her from again trying
to get to the Channel.
! / think you see the thing fairly
succinctly if you say that the Briton
sees in the eastern frontiers of Ger
many provocation to Germany,
| which will lead to war, while the
| Frenchman sees in the maintenance
of strong and independent states such
as Poland and CZechoslovakia and In
the prohibition Of Austrian inDrpo-
ration in Germany, guarantees of his
own security more real than any
German promise, which he still COM
pares to that which did not protect
Belgium in 1914 and became the i'm
mortal piece of paper"
The Englishman believes that IL
you attempt to restrain Germany on
ali sides it will presently explode and