The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1928-10-05
UNIVERSAL PEACE CONGRESS IN
WARSAW

(Th0 FRIENDS Reace COmmlttoe
asked Emma Cadbury to represent
them at the Twenty sixth Universal
Peace Congress, held from the 25th
to the goth of June in Warsaw, Po-
land. Miss Cadbury has been the
Quaker representative in Vienna for
more than five years, engaged in re-
lief work and promoting better un-
derstanding among the nations of
eastern Europe. This work takes
her frequently into Czechoslovakia,
Bulgaria, Jugoslovakia and Italy, as
well as throughout Austria. The
following is a summary of her re-
port.)
1t was significant that the Twenty
sixth Universal Peace Congress was
held this year in Poland, a country
where the Peace Movement is neither
popular nor widespread. Yet, as
the Under-secretary for Foreign AT
fairs points out in his address of well
come to the Congress, the Polish pro-
ject for non-aggression submitted to
the League of Nations in 1927 was
one of the steps toward making war
impossible and differed hardly at all
from the Kellogg treaty renouncing
war.
Moreover, little peace groups have
been growing up in Poland, especial
ly among the young people, stimulat-
ed by the series of conferences on
reconciliation between Poland and
Germany that have been held during
the past three years. accounts OF
these have been sent out by the
Friends Peace Committee.) These
groups invited the Congress to War
saw, and were largely responsible for
the arrangements, although they
kept in the background.
Among the ITO delegates to the
Congress were men and women from
Australia, Austria, Belgium, Czecho-
slovakia, Danzig, Denmark, England,
France, Germany, Holland, Sweden,
Switzerland and the United States,
and of course the Polish hosts of the
Congress.
Meetings of Commissions on Dis
armament, Economic Problems and
Actual conditions prepared reports
and resolutions which were carefully
debated in the full sessions of the
Congress. Some of the resolutions
were passed without modification;
while others were practically re-
written. One in particular, present
ed by the Commission on Actual
Conditions, condemned three nations
by name for unfair treatment of
minority groups. The Congress felt
that many other nations were more
or less guilty of unfair treatment to
minorities and amended the resolu-
ton to call all equally to repentance.
Such exchanges of opinion are en-
tightening; they help to inform peo-
pie of what is wrong with their own
country and how others think OF 1t,
as we'll as to give them better un-
derstanding of the problems and diff
ficulties of other countries.
The Economic Conference held in
1926 under the auspices OF the
League of Nations, was an outgrowth
of a resolution adopted by the Twen-
ty-fifth Universal Peace Congress, in
1925. This year the Congress en-
couraged the League of Nations to
prepare quick means OF settling dis
putes about markets and raw mater
ial, through the setting up of an In
ternational Economic Council to deal
with these problems, which are
sometimes causes of war.
AS a step toward disarmament,
the Congress urged the nations t0
adopt without reservation the KEEL
logg treaty renouncing war. (This
treaty was signed on August I'D
1t also pointed out that powerful ma
tions must stop all illegal use OF
force against small nations, if dis
armament is to be possible.
One sometimes questions the use
fulness of such Congresses. But
that people are sufficiently interested
in peace to spend their vacation
time and money discussing ways Of
making peace, is an encouraging
symptom. 1t is still more encourag
ing to find that in other nations peo-
pie are as eagerly seeking peace as
in our country. There is more
chance of good understanding be-
tween nations when the people OF
every country know that people in
other countries are just as eager for
frindship as they are.