Evening star., 1927-04-27
WAR WAVE
.|NvADES COUNTRIES
Move of Preparedness Is
Sweeping Through
Nervous Europe.
BY JOSEPH e. sHARKEY.

GENEVA, April 27 CP.--For many
years the world has been hearing
about the psychic--psychic this and
psychic that--without perhaps really
knowing what it means. But at all
events it seems clear that psychic
wave of war preparedness has hit
Europe
Europe is nervous, 1t has been
borne back and forth on a wave of
preparedness without anybody really
knowing why. It is just psychic.
Nobody wants war; nobody can stand
war, economically or financially, yet
in many countries the nerve centers
are taut with apprehension.
Explanation Given.
Yet n glance across the European
horizon explains why the wave is
here. Relations between Great Britain
and Russia are frankly admitted here
to be bad. There is an almost daily
allegation that the Soviet is the real
force behind the existing civil war
in China and especially behind the
anti-fOreign movement there.
Travellers from the French Riviera
tell Of rumors picked up there that
Italy has not abandoned hope of some
day regaining the French Province
of Savoie and that little misunder-
standings between France and Italy
Though the French deny this) have
actually led the French to reinforce
garrisons near the Italian frontier
and induced them to hold maneuyers
of the Mediterranean Fleet not far
from the coast of Italy.
Sea Strength Grows.
Great Britain's cruiser strength has
mounted rapidly to a point where
many Americans. who swear by
British friendship, ask why American
naval strength is allowed to drop so
low comparatively.
Even little Switzerland, whose neu-
trality is guaranteed by the great
powers, is passing through a kind
of feverish epoch of preparedness.
Russia's western neighbors. especial.
ly the small states, are fighting and
wondering whether their real interests
should make them turn to the West
and stick faithfully by the League of
Nations or whether they should make
arrangements with Russia to assure
their own security.
And Italy's recent complaints that
Jugoslovavia seems to have designs
over Albania, together with the violent
press polemics which ensued. con
trlbuted their bit to the formation of
the psychic war clouds lowering over
Europe and more particularly in the
Balkans.
Conference Unhappy.
Despite the unfavorable political
situation, representatives of govern
ments have been meeting at the
League of Nations to take the pre-
liminary steps for the drawing up of
treaties for the limitation or reduction
of world ornaments. Never, it is said
here, has n preliminary conference
opened under such unhappy circum-
stances.
But the psycl wave has not yet
developed into typhoon. Some say
it may. and pr yably will, break into
foam upon the troubled shores Of Eu-
rope, to prove to the world that, after
all, nervous preparedness does not
necessarily mean sanguinary war.
Europe is divided up into many
countries, all with their ambitions.
their present economic and financial
difficll3tisss their hopes and their fears
for the uncertain future. If a man
were to stand on the banks of the
Mississippi River and imagine for
moment that the United States is
divided into 4S separate sovereign
States, each with conflicting problems
and ambitions, speaking different Ian
guages, he would have soma concep-
ton Of the political situation in
Europe.