Evening star., 1926-03-21
HOPE OF LOCARNO TREATY
FAR FROM REALIZATION
Conflicting Ideas, Interests and Ambi-
tions of France and Germany
! Prohibit Harmony at Present.

slider the possibility of the formation
of some new bloc. obviously Italy,
the Little Entente and Poland are
quite as much concerned as France
with the prospects of German eXpan-
sion. Indeed, these states are all more
immediately concerned than France.
But the difficulties in the way of the
formal ton of such bloc are many,
and the chief is the dominating dis
trust of Italy and Mussolini in France.
For much of what Mussolini says and
does there Is loud French applause.
notably in the recent Upper Adige af-
fair: but the French recall that Mus
solini was until recently profoundly
anti French. and they are still fearful
of recurrence of anti-French Senti-
ment and even of some German
Italian understanding. This last fear
seems absurd. for Italian and German
interests clash almost everywhere, but
it is a factor.
New Invasion Seen.
What many Frenchmen are asking
at the moment is whether the pact of
LOcarno has not tied their hands,
robbed them of all independence, made
them silent partners in British for
eign policy which they increasingly
feel is bound in the long run to lead
straight to supreme disa aster and to
new invasion of France. And wei
come is the British promise to stand
with France In case OF new aggres-
sion, there remains the profound real
ization that British aid before did not
prevent the invasion of France and
four years of fighting on French soil.
Is Locarno, after all, another illu-
sion? That is the burden of French
inquiry at the. moment. OF course,
as | have tried 10 make clear. the ma.
iority of FrenChmen are absorbed in
far more immediate problems which
are entirely domestic. But if YOU fol-
low the French press. YOU cannot fail
to see on all sides signs of disquiet
and growing uneasiness And at the
bottom of this is the increasing fear
that in return for more or less negli-
gible benefits France has lost her free
dom in foreign affairs and been made
no more than the follower Of Britain.
No Bitter Resentment.
1t is not quite as it was in the old
Poincare-Lloyd George days. senti-
ment of bitter resentment and feel
ing of having been betrayed and
aba ndoned Rather the French feel
that the British are not sufficiently ac-
quainted with the intricate questions
of the center of Europe to appreciate
realities. They regard Sir Austen
Cha mherlain as an honest and we'll
intentioned man. who is certainly in
intent friendly to France. What they
diStrust is not his good faith but his
exact appreciation of present-d day
European conditions.
The British conception that Ger
many must be allowed to expand and
that it is the part of wisdom to per
nit that expa nsion. always as far as
possible away from regions interesting
France or Britain-the conception
which has been general in Britain for
some years-fnds no echo in France.
because the French believe that. how.
ever much Germany may expand in
the east and south, she will ultimate
ly come back to the west to destroy
British and French resistance to her
European hegemony.
Have Opposing Beliefs.
France believes that the real hope Of
peace is attainable only by persuad-
ing Germany to accept the Europe
which exists and to abandon all pla ms
which can only be realized by dimin-
ishing other nations and oversetting
existing frontiers. France believes
that the wise policy now and hereafter
is to consolidate Europe on existing
\
vakia, Jugoslavia and Ruma mia to
achieve national construction and be-
come in due course of time self
sustaining units in a generally con-
solidated Europe made up Of peoples
which recognize the mutual integrity
of eacn others frontiers.
Great Britain. by contrast. does not
believe the existing order can he main
tained. 1t conceives the suppression
Of the DanZig corridor and the return
Of Upper Silesia to Germany. as well
as the union of Austria with Germany,
as Inevitable. Therefore. the British
Idea is that instead of opposing what
ls inevitable. the effort must be made
to bring about the changes peacefully.
while always preventing any recur-
renee of Franco-German hostility.
Both Oppose War.
Now. manifestly. what we have here
is a fundamental cleavage in opinion.
There is no difference in moral values.
The objective of British statesman.
ship and of French is identical: name
ly. to prevent war in general. and in
particular to prevent war which might
involve themselves. But the two peo-
plies and the two governments see the
methods which must be employed
from two utterly divergent stand
points. The British believe that
France, having British guarantee
against German attack. should be will
ing to accept British advice as to the
way to avoid any German hostility
and as to the manner in which to ar,
rive at permanent Franco-German
peace.
Guarantee Believed Futile.
The French say and believe that not
even the British guarantee will pro-
tect them if Germany is permitted to
expand until she becomes so strong
that she will again feel able to chal-
lenge the whole European order and
to realize her dreams of hegemony.
which the French believe may easily
return with restored power. More
over. for precisely this reason the
French do not believe that the British
guarantee Is good and sufficient
warrant for them to abandon all ef
forts to preserve existing conditions
and therefore to restrain German ex-
pa nsion.
Obviously, then, as | have said,
there is a fundamental cleavage he
tween the two countries over the
mea ming of Locarno. France cannot
take the British view that it means
permanent French security and re-
sign herself to seeing Germany grow
stronger in all directions. But the
British, committed to the defense of
France If she is attacked, cannot pa
tiently see France pursuing toward
Germany policies which seem to the
British likely to produce a new con-
fict. And particularly the British
are irritated because the French in
sist upon supporting Poland instead
of Joining in an effort TO force Poland
to make concessions which might
placate Germany.