Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-06-13

Says De Coulanges, the author above
quoted:
When war did not end by the ex-
termination or subsection of one of the
Two parties, q treaty OF peace might
terminate 1t. But for this a convention
was not sufficient, religious act was
necessary. Every treaty was marked by
the tmmolation of victim.
These religious ceremonies alone gave
sacred and inviolable character to in
ternational conventions. The history of
the Caudine Forks is well known. An
entire army, through it's consuls, uues-
tors, tribuneS and centurions, had made
convention with the Samnites, but no
victim had been offered The Senate
therefore believed itself justified in de-
clarlng that the treaty was not valid
In annull1ng it no pontih or patrician
believed that he was committing an act
Of bad faith
Compare that act of the Senate of
rome with the act of the United States
senate In merely refusing to ratify the
treaty OF Versailles involving its League
OF nations pact so woven into its fiber
That 1t could never be unraveled, as
was the boast of President Wilson.
X X ~
Furthermore, compare the whole teflor
OF the ancient settlements of wars, al
ways ending In determination or slavery
OF the conquered and utter destruction
OF the enemy's fields and cities, with the
generosity of the Versailles treaty, and
especially OF the cooperation of the VIC
tortous allies toward the vanquished.
Not a single decade had passed after
the enemy had sunk merchant ships of
the allies bearing women and children,
mad destroyed orchards and laid waste
thousands Of. miles of farms and pull
verified the stones of villages and cities
and raked hospitals with airplanes, be-
fore the bitterness of hostilities was
smothered in the humaneness of efforts
70 give back prosperity even to the de-
feated.
A decade2 Not a month after the
armistice before Humanity took note
that the people of Austria were starv-
ing and millions of dollars were ad-
vanced by their conquerors to feed
them.
Although the new Young plan, sue
ceeding the Dawes plan of financing the
debt Of Germany to the allies, has not
yet been ratified by the Parliaments
of the eight nations interested, there
appears to be an assumption that it Is
the most satisfactory arrangement pos
sible and that it will be legalized by the
ParliamentS in due time.
1t does not fully reimburse the world
for the damage done by the invaders of
France and Belgium, but it binds the
German Republic for the next two gen.
erations to pay all that it is possible for
them to pay-and live-about $500, 000,-
600 year every year for the next two
generations.
The payments for the first 10 years
are to be about $474,000,000 O year,
then for the next 81 years the annual
amounts will increase to final $576.-
$408, 600 900 a year. The total present
value" of the arrangement without future
interest. Is less than $4,000 200, 900,
which is less than the actual cash
loaned by the United States to the al
lies to carry on the defense of civiliZa-
ton. Most of the payments by Ger
many will be applied by the allies to
payment of their indebtedness to the
United States, yet we have already for
given and Cancelled billions of dollars
loaned for carrying on the war.
X * X
A grievous burden on Germany?
Yes-but not the equivalent Of her in
jury to civilization. Grievous burden?
Ask history what would have been her
fate In ancient days-Slavery OF all her
people, carried away from home; ami
hilation of her property, destruction Of
fertility of her lands for thousands Of
years following the war. Half Of the
populations of Greece and Rome were
enslaved war captives.
The penalty assessed against defeated
Germany is not the sum of damages
she caused by the WARRIOR there is not
in all the earth gold and treasure
enough to measure that. The value OF
the eight million lives and the setback
Of civilization far outweigh the mate
rial destruction. No, she is not to re-
imburSe the actual damages she caused,
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