Evening star., 1926-06-05
THE SURRENDER OF ABD-EL-kRINl
BY FRANK H. SIMONDS.


| The surrender of Add el-Krim under
| circumstances which recall SURPRISING
| ly the capitulatiOn of Abd-ei-kadeF
more than three-quarters of century
ago comes at a fortunate moment Tor
| France. from the standpoint of both
| domestic and foreign politics. Al
home it gives a measure of prestige TO
the BRAND government, shaken by the
recent decline of the franc, ana at tne
same time removes one OF the chlel
causes for attack from the SOCIALISTS.
| incidentally, but not without obvious
| Importance, it ends a very severe
drain upon the French treasury,
which can hardly bear it.
| Abroad the success restores some
measure of French prestige. The two
wars in Syria and Morocco, together
| with the grave financial crisis in
France. have served to diminish tre-
| mendouslv French influence and
French power on the continent, With
| her army occupied and her treasury
| in no shane to lend any aid 20 hef
astern allies. France has not been
the factor which she was in the years
| Immediately following the ARRIVAL OF
peace.
| To a rather striking degree France
| has Zen replaced in the center ana
|
time for ali French interests TO have
done with the Riffian campaign. How
| grave is the danger to France OF an
| immediate or an eventual Italian chal-
| Ienge in the Mediterranean and in
north Africa is q matter OF conjecture,
although growing appreciation or the
danger is disclosed in French COM
ment and French opinion quite as
clearly as it is revealed in Italian pub
lie declarations and private conversa-
ton. But with her hands at last free
| in Morocco the French position is
patiently far less vulnerable.
x x = 4
The Moroccan war was not OF
French making. it was the direct con-
sequence of Abd-el-krim's complete
| success in dealing with the Spanish
| in the zone which fell to Spain in the
Moroccan partition. The war simply
spilled over into the French zone
| largely because the French were care
less of their own interests and watched
the Spanish struggle with too little
concern until the Riffians, having
practically disposed of Spain. turned
lagainst the French.
| The cause precipitating of the
| French phase was the precautionary
| occupation by the French, very tar
| div. of an area within their own
| zone but on the border of the Span
| ish territory and actually constituting
| territory of tribes which were allied
/ with Abd-el-krim. Finally perceiving
| that Abd-elKrim's ambition had been
| fired by his victories and that he was
| dreaming of the conquest of all Mo
rocco, the French pushed troops north
and established a line of blockhouses.
But it was too late and the home
government was too weak to take the
| other necessary steps. As result,
a little more than Il year ago the
| Riffians came crashing over the
| frontier, forced the border tribes to
| join them and made a thrust at Fee,
| which was we'll nigh successful. for
1.-the French were too weak in num-
bers to check the invaders in the
hills. At one moment Fee was prac-
tically uncovered and the Riffs were
| within some 20 miles of it.
| x & x 4
By luck the capital was saved,
large French reinforcementS were
hurried to Morocco and the line of
| blockhouses which had been sub
merged and isolated but not captured
were relieved and evacuated. But a
long campaign was now inevitable
self had to be called and Marshal
| Lyautey, who had been governor gen.
eral for so long and had accom-
plished such a great work, was re-
called. He suffered largely for the
faults of a timid civilian cabinet with
socialist fringes.
Last year the French army did not
cover itself with glory in the cam
paign, mainly because 1t was trained
in the European fashion and relied
largely upon the use of machinery,
which could not lie employed success
fully in the rough mountain country,
The fighting, too, was very severe.
A friend of mine, major in the
Foreign Legion who was wounded in
the July struggle, told me that he
had seen nothing as sharp in the
World War, although he lost an arm
at Vimy Ridge in the offensive of
1915.
In fact, the French army repeated
| its experience against Abd-elKader,
in Algeria, where the veterans of
the Napoleonic war, led by officers
who had had their training under the
great emperor, were long unable to
deal with the Algerians, and did not
triumph until they adopted the light
and mobile tactics of their great OPP
ponent. OF course, the end was
always inevitable as it was in the
later case, for, given the resources of
France, no collection of semi-savage
mountain tribes could hold out
permanently.
X \ 4
Abd-el- Krim was misled by his
early successes and unquestionably
relied upon the opposition to the
struggle in many French political
quarters He had chance to make
peace without more fighting in the
early Spring of this year, but he over
stayed his market and has now to
surrender at discretion. He will prob
ably live inAdignified but harmless
exile as did 3Sis greater predecessor,
Add -el Kader.I Thanks to the present