Evening star., 1925-10-16
The Security Pact.

The security pact adopted at Lo-
carno yesterday touches tho Eery
yitals of peace in Europe. Under II
France and Germany agree never 10
war with each other again. Great
Britain and Italy promise to take up
arms against the nation which Nlo-
lates the pact. IN order the more
completely TO establish permanent
peace between France and Germany
agreement is made for demilitarized
Rhine zone to be forever inviolable.
Disputes which arise between France
: and Germany or between Germany
and Belgium are to be settled by ar
bitration under treaties whose terms
have now been agreed upon. Treaties
of arbitration also between Germany
and Poland and between Germany
and Czechoslovakia await only the
finishing touches.
The success of the negotiations at
Locarno will be hailed in this coun-
try. President Coolidge in his Fourth
of July address stated emphatically
the hope of the administration that
Western Europe would settle its diff
culties and arrange through some
such Ract as that now adopted to
live in peace. With this agreement
among the dominant nations of West
ern Europe and the four-power Pa
cific treaty negotiated at the Wash
ington conference. in which the
United States, Great Britain, France
and Japan agreed to handle peace
fully problems arising in the Pacific
area. the will to peace" seems to
have stretched over a great part of
fhe worlds surface and to have in
cluded many peoples. The prospect
for prolonged peace among the great
nations of the world grows brighter.
1t has been the contention of the
United States that the nations of Eu-
rope should set their house in order,
and arrange their terms of peace
without entangling the United States
within their own particular political
field. This does not mean that the
United States has not been keenly in
terested in the efforts of the nations
across the Atlantic to find a solution
Of their security problem. The United
States took the lead four years ago
in a movement for the limita ton
of srmaments, believing that in such
a course lay the greater possibility
OF peace and relief for the peoples of
he inr lan
of huge military preparations. The
hope of further steps toward limita-
tion of armaments is frightened by
The new pacts. now adopted. France
has demanded some measure of Sc
curity, some pledges that would give
her confidence that her borders would
not again be overrun by Germany,
as they We're in 1870 and in 1914. I'm
til such pledges were given it was
clear that France would not listen to
pleas or plans for further limitation
Of armaments. Immediately after
the World War France sought
pledges from Great Britain and the
United States To come to her aid in
United States. however. would not
ratify such military alliance be
lieving that European affairs should
be handled by Europe and that the
United States should remain in the
Western Hemisphere.
Following the ratification Of the
security pact. which is confidently
expected Germany will become a
member of the League of Nations.
As matter of fact. the security pact
Is intimately linked with the league.
France gains her pledge of security
against aggression. Germany, on the
other hand takes a more independent
place among the family of European
nations than she has held since the
armistice was signed in 1918. The
membership of Germany in the
League of Nations strengthens great
iy the position of the league. Russia
alone of the European nations re-
mains outside Of the league. Ger
many's adherence lessons the threat
OF possible alignment of that ma
tion with the Russian millions in tho
future. again to disturb Europe and
the peace of the world.