Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-01-31

conceived that 0e1erse OF lheH p"A
inads against bolshevfsm entaileo
some measure of an offensive against
Russia have seen their mistakes and
have abandoned them. The fear or
| the mass of Russian peasants who
had obtained possession Of the land
through the revolution, that any
restoration OF the old regime would
take 1t from them, the fear which
rallied such support as the Soviet
could muster against the several al.
, tacks of kolchak, Denilkine and Wran-
gel. Is no longer fed by any external
operations directed against the Soviet
regime
Today the situation in relation to
Russia, so far as the western nations
are concerned, IS the perception that
what has been assessed as danger
may from time to time be reckoned az
& nuisance. Russian intrigue in the
middle OF Asia, in China, in Turkey,
| in Syria and in Mesopotamia-vher
ever, IN fact. there is trouble-nay
! produce additional difficulties, but in
/ every case the extent of the difficulty
| Is rather rigidly limited. II IS damage
! by indirection, for nowhere in Asia or
/ IN Europe is there n menace OF the
/ arrival Of bolshevist armies.
I Great Future Ahead.
| Coincident with the decline Of the
\ lIlttldCep lcO- has 6Ollc INC NC
| cline In the expectations from Russia
economically There was a time when
| the radicals of many countries We're
insisting upon the resumption Of rela-
! lions with Russia because of the need
| to have access to the food supplies or
! Russia. On one occasion Lloyd George
made a rather unfortunate reference
| to the bursting grain bins OF Russia
| only little In advance of the time
when a Russian famine made it nee
| essary 20 send food to starving people
! within the bolSheviSt state.
Now it Is clear 10 all that, while the
| vast ultimate resources Of Russia re
main, the immediate possibility OF ex-
| ploitation Is small The British. the
J Germans, the French, even the Amer
| leans. have explored the land. Bur
! the testimony Of all agrees. Russia
Will one day he Il great country again.
| the possibilities on all sides are meal
| culable, but there is no easy way TO
| realize on these possibilities ana no
present reward commensurate Win
i the immediate costs.
/ In Germany, where the Eastern
! orientation had many champions anG
! the notion that German economic ana
! commercial prosperity could lie best
: regained in Russia, there has teen
/ great establishments, which In part
at elast explains the relative ease with
! which the German public accepted
! the I1ocarno DaCtS. Germany, which
| should know best. patiently has con
! cluded that an understanding with
! the West is necessary, for Russian ex~
ploitadon cannot supply. the markets
| Germany needs in any useful time.
Russia No Longer Feared.
| Ceasing to fear Russia, Europe. the
! western nations, has also ceased To
| base eXtravagant hopes upon Russian
markets. There is appreciation of the
] fact that until Russia is restored eco
! noInically the European economic con
dition will not be normal or perhaps
wholly easy. There is agreement that
| In the ultimate development of Russia
economically and industrially Europe
may easily find the necessary field for
| its resources. But people are not
talking about Russia, not thinking
| about Russia, not calculating upon
Russia now. Statesmen are not wait
| ing for a sign from Russia and delay.
ing their adjustments with other coun-
| tries, as was the case in the still
| recent past.
| Now if one look within Russia there
| still remains the familiar lack of def
Mite and satisfying Information. There
is & rather clear perception that the
| existing regime stands i'll no immedl
! X.
machinery OF government ii controls
the army. It IS faced by no active
| and dangerous minority and chal
| lenged by no leaders having influence
or following. The restoration of the
Czarist regime seems not only une
likely in any proximate time, but the
| cause itself seems lacking in present
vitality.
| On the other hand. signs continue
| to multiply that, while the bolshevic
regime maintains It's position, its
principles are gradually giving way
It Is compromising all the time more
and more with the doctrines which IN
| sum are the negation of all its de-
clared purpose. What Is more and
more unmistakable Is that the peasant
| millions are more and more making
themselves felt. not SO much political
~ and thus directly. but economically
and indirectly.
| They are becoming more and more
of a power because they have increas-
ing needs which must be met, needs
which governments exist TO meet,
Governments fall when they fail "a
meet them.
Army Is Not Feared.
on the military side it has become
q truism in Warsaw and Bucharest.
quite as much as in Paris or Lon
don, that, while the Bolshevist army
is still formidable in numbers and
not lacking in a certain amount of
material, II lacks all the resources
for any sustained campaign and has
no means of obtaining either the ma
terial or the numbers. 1t is not a.
national army in any sense, least Of
all comparable with the armies which
France threw up during the reyolu-
ton.
The Red army remains effective
for dealing with internal threat. It
might under certain circumstances
prove effective again against an in
vader. But 1t is not and can hardly
be made an instrument for agrees
sion. 1t certainly would have less
chance against the now strong and
well equipped Polish armies than It
had few years ago, when 1t was
overwhelmed after a triumphant adj
vance, which just missed supreme
success because there was lacking
both leadership and organization.
A foreign war now, a war OF con-
quest. would inevitably involve losses
which could not be replaced, and 1t
is totally unlikely that there could
be any replacement OF the human
losses. That the peasants would sub
init to the old CONSUMPTION to support
the Soviet state in any advance TO
WARSAW or Bucharest, to recover
! Volhynia or Bessarabia, is unthink-
able. The army is the basis OF do.
nestle power for the Bolshevist lead
ers, but only on the condition that
it is maintained and not exposed to
the losses and disorganization Incl"
dent to war.
Sought Frontier Guarantee.
Tchitcherin's exploits in Warsaw
| while the Iocarno discussions were