Evening star., 1927-03-06


addressed to the bolshevists
L marks one more stage in the
most remarkable of post war
international struggles. For 10 wears
the Soviets have been carrying on a
war with the British nation. Since
1920, the British governments. Coali.
ton, Labor and Tory. have been try.
ing to make peace with Red Russia.
In the first days of the Russian
revolution. after the arrival of Lenin
and Trotsky brought about a separate
peace between Russia and Germany.
the British, like the French and
American governments. undertook TO
support the various anti-Red leaders.
kolchak, Denikine and Wrangel.
When the Reds were successful
against the Poles and nearly took
warsaw, the British policy changed
abruptly. After the defeat of the Rus.
SLAMS before Warsaw in 1920, Britain
began long series of proposals for
peace.
Always, however, Red Russia has
continued to regard the British as the
real enemy of the Revolution. LLOYD
georges effort to bring Russia back
into the circle of European nations
| failed at Genoa and the Russian sep.
arate treaty with Germany wrecked
disaster of Chanak, which fatally
shook British prestige in all of Asia,
was III part the result of Russian sup
port of the Turks. who received mum.
tlons and other aid from Moscow.
Labor Party i'm Power.
A year later Labor came to power
In Great Britain at the election of
1923. Labor had always been sym
pathetic with the Russian Revolution
When Ramsay Macdonald became
prime minister it was accepted as in
eyitable that Russia would be recog.
nized. But although this took place
in the Spring, in the early Fall Mac
Donald was defeated and forced to
resign because of Soviet intrigues in
Great Britain.
During the general strike last May
and the coal strike which followed
bolsheytst money was freely sent to
London to support the strikers. Even
before that time the Daily Herald, the
newspaper of the Labor Party, was
subsidized from Moscow.
1t is not. however, the bolshevist
activity within the United Kingdom
which has been dangerous. British
labor has, on the whole, very steadily
resisted the influence of the bolshevist
sympathizers, although the extremists
have been steadily affected by it.
Actually it is in the empire that
Moscow has been carrying on its real
war. India and China are the true
fields of Soviet activity. Each year
there is graduated from one of the old
Russian universities not less than 500
students who have been trained as
propagandists for the precise purpose
Of carrying the war into the Asiatic
territories and spheres of influence of
the British Empire.
Influence on Cantonese.
The whole Cantonese movement,
which played such a part in the
Chinese revolution in recent days, is
profoundly influenced, If not directed,
from Moscow. The later policy of the
bolshevists, defeated in their direct
attack upon European capitalistic
nations, is expressed in this attempt
to cripple and destroy the trade and
the influence of the British in the Far
East.
Actually the bolshevist campaign
against Great Britain is being pre-
pared against India. In Beluchistan,
in Afghanistan, in Persia, Soviet in
trigue is proceeding. Troops and air.
planes have been concentrated facing
the frontiers of British India. Agents
of the Reds are at work among all
the tribes and races. not only of the
border but in India itself.
But while this propaganda is going
forward, the Chinese field is the most
promising for immediate activity. The
boycott against British goods strikes
British trade. The loss of the Chinese
market brings unemployment in Great
Britain. Unemployment not only
cripples the government, but increases
domestic unrest and dissatisfaction.
The unemployed add to the burdens
of the British treasury, their dissatis-
faction makes a domestic political and
social problem.
Broad Aim of Reds.
The old idea of the bolshevists was,
of course. to seek power by direct ac-
tion-to rouse the working men in all
European countries, to overthrow the
governments, to set up Communist
states modelled upon the Russian. In
fact, their idea has always been
world federation of all Communist
states. They have carefully sup
pressed the idea of Russian national
ist control in any such union.
Western peoples, however, resisted
the Russian efforts. Communism
within the various western countries
has made little or no progress. Boil
shevist defeat has become unmistak-
able.
AS consequence Moscow has
turned to the effort Of exploiting the
weakness of the European capitalistic
states in Asia and in Africa. Red
money appeared in the French war
against the Riffs. And there, as else
where, Red tactics were the same.
While the Riffs were supplied with
money and arms to kill French sol
diers, the French workingmen were
deluged with propaganda rousing them
against the war their country was
carrying on. The same process was
repeated in Syria.
1t is only against the British, how
ever, that the bolshevists have been
able to achieve very material results
The whole Chinese affair has been
from the English point Of view a dis
aster without limit.
Meantime no one knows even ap-
proximately what is going on in the
interior of Asia. Mongolia has prac-
tically passed under Russian influence.
In a curious fashion Revolutionary
Russia has resumed the policy and
purpose of the old Romanoff regime |
and the anti-British purposes which |
were the outstanding circumstances |
of the last decades of the nineteenth |
century have been completely accepted. |
All British Now Aroused.
In this situation the British public /
has become tardiiy but generally |
aroused. The spectacle of a Russian |
in London, acting not
as a diplomat but also as the
political agent of a nation which is
seeking to disrupt the British Empire.
has become intolerable. Thus Cham
latest note of warning Is, in
fact, threat to break off commercial
relations.
But even this reprisal can really
have little menace for the Reds. Most