Evening star., 1926-05-30
EUROPE, DONE WITH WAR,
STRIVES ONLY TO EXIST
Old Nationalistic Policy Of Spoliation
Found Dead-Crowing Hostility
to United States. e
BY FRANK III. SIMONDS.

the first time the dominant interest
Is not in possible or probable war;
it is not in continuation OF the
conflicts begun centuries ago. Fol
the first time since the World War
the absorbing consideration is not
how to regain what has been lost OF
how to retain what has been gained
In a word. cotemporary Europe dis
closes for the first time the clear evil
dence of the fact that the war, tech
nfcally ended on November II. 1918
is actually ended.
AS recently as a year ago, when
was In Berlin. the memory Of the
then recent occupation of the Ruhr
the fact of the continuing occupa-
tion of the Cologne zone. the sense
of helplessness and hopelessness in
the presence Of a vindictive and de-
termined France, all combined to
create a profound postwar bitter
ness. Germany was convinced that
she was not to be permitted to live.
to recover, to exist as a great ma
ton. Hence, German attention was
fixed upon the larger objective Of
national salvation from foreign
menace.
France Now Trusted.
In Britain distrust Of France, of
so-called French militarism. of
French Imperialism, constituted a
factor. and potent factor. in public
opinion and in national calculations.
But today there are few Britons who
do not admit frankly enough that
there is no more pacific country in
Europe than France.
AS for France. despite outward
evidences at moments. there Is no
nistaking the fact that the all-pow-
Fv1y % ~f a
relatively early German attack. Is
passing away. You have-or had
until a few days ago. when the
Luther cabinet fell-French and
German prime ministers and foreign
ministers who could talk together
who could negotiate together. and
who, beyond any question, were sat
isfied Of the good faith and per-
sonally straightforward purposes of
each other. In a word, carefully
avoiding exaggeration, one could yet
say that the international relations
of France and Germany, and indeed
Of Britain. France and Germany, had
at last reached a state where busi-
ness could be conducted on an ordi-
nary peace basis.
But back of all this there was and
10 something which is In a sense and
to q degree explanatory. France,
Britain, Germany are not thinking
primarily or greatly in terms of for
eign affairs and international rela-
ttons. France is thinking of a falling
franc, Britain of an economic and
political crisis. which has just ex-
ploded in the great general strike,
and Germany is thinking of an in
dustrial crisis which discloses itself
in two millions of unemployed. The
people of these three countries are
not facing outward or thinking i'm
perially, nor even talking Euro
pean," as NJ. BRAND put it; they are
facing inward and thinking and talk
ing In terms of domestic problems.
Europe's Present Position.
Is Britain finished or can the ap-
palling problems of the people be sur
mounted by new draft upon the so.
far unfailing resource Of national gen.
ius? Is France bankrupt and sink
ing slowly into anarchy and disorder,
with a Fascist solution behind the
horizon, or will France once more sur
vive a period of national financial
prostration, which cannot be worse
than others which have failed to de-
stroy her? Is German recovery, eco
nomic and industrial recovery. to the
old pre-war altitude a vain illusion or
the present check?
In recent months I have travelled
from London to Budapest, via Paris
and Geneva, and from Budapest to
Rome, via Vienna. At Geneva I saw
and talked with the representatives Of
a half dozen nations, whose countries
I did not visit, notably Germany,
Cgeohoslovakia and Poland. With the
single execution Of Italy. there was
not one Of these countries. nor repre-
sentatives Of any Of them, who talked
in terms of war. Moreover, the Ital-
ian references to war were not in
terms Of pre.war or even war-created
resentments. shall speak Of Italy
again presently, but at the moment
merely note the exception.
AS far as France, Britain, Ger
many, Austria, Belgium-that Is, the
western belligerents-are concerned,
the similarity in states of mind is i'm
pressive. You will not find in any of
those countries really solid evidences
of militant nationalism, of dynamic
imperialism, however much you may
hear academic mention of such things
in party press and political utterance.
All these countries are weary, weary
nigh unto death, Of war and war talk
They have inherited from the war a
frtghtful legacy Of problems, problems
Of life and death, problems which so
far have defied all solution. But in
none Of these countries will you en-
counter any considerable or RESPONSE.
bic opinion which believes a new war
can solve the problems Of the old.
People Working Desperately.
Broadly speaking the people Of these
western nations. as of the smaller
neutrals of the war, living nearby,
are all working, working desperately
hard, when work is available, as it is
for all in France, saving where saving
is possible. And for all the consum-
ing and absorbing problem is not in
ternational but domestic. To come
from any one of these countries to
the United States is, after all, not so
different from making the same jour.
ney during the World War. The diff
ference in conditions is almost as
great as during the period when we
were still neutral, the mentality is al
most as unlike.
- Then the belligerent nations were
facing the possibilities of defeat and
ruin, the neutrals those of invasion
and destruction. Today for all these
countries the problem Of national sur.
vfval is almost as acute, but there Is
no foreign foe, no enemy, no war, and
LOE Ck1CA cOuutIy liic pEOUlClIl Is III tIlc
main CONSTRUCTED within national from
tiers.
Moreover, and this is really the out
standing circumstance, along with the
other acute problems of national ex-
istence goes the question of whether
the existing form of political exist
enco-democraoy in our sense, repre-
sentative democracy-can live, can in
the last analysis meet the test. II, for
example, the British general strike
had lasted long and ended In a real
Knockout" whatever the effect in
Britain itself, the repercussions on the