Evening star., 1934-07-29


the wreck. After a decade and
half they are at last convinced that s
the United States is not prepared to
do anything to help enforce the law. e
which is the existing system of
treaties. They are also satisfied that
Great Britain viii do nothing out
side Of the Rhine area where Il sees
its own security at stake.
Therefore the French have pro-
posed system Of regional pacts
whereby all the nations in various
regions agree to respect the terri
tories Of their neighb6rs and join
hands against any aggressor. That
means. in simple terms, that IL the
Germans attack the Czechs, for exr
ample, the Russians and the Poles
must join in defending Czechoslovakia
ard. In addition. France, which is an
ally Of the small Slav state, viii also
come to her aid.
This French proposal Is an at
tempt to face realistically the obvi-
GUS fact that nations will not risk
their citizens or their resources to
maintain peace in regions where they
have no direct interest. The United
States will uphold the Monroe Doc
trine. which protects the territorial
integrity of American states because
1t has direct interest. The British
will do the same for countries on the
Rhine. but neither country viii lift
q finger for Czechoslovakia.
BY contrast. the Poles, the Rus
slams and the French are directly
concerned with the Central Euro
pean region. After al. however, even
II this proposal Is realistic 1t is q
long way from the collective system
which MFR. Wilson proposed in hts
League. Instead Of a universal asso-
citation. a number of local partner
ships are to be set up, but in the end
they will be no more than military
alliances. II an Eastern Locarno Is
established, within its ranks France,
Soviet Russia. Poland and Czecho-
slovakia will all be united to preserve
the existing situation against the
Germans who alone want to change 1t.
Old-Fashioned Alliance.
As for the Germans. they viii try
to detach the Poles by promising to
respect the existing Germano-P Polish
frontiers. while agreeing with the
Poles to share in The profits incident
to modifying those Of Czechoslovakia
or Soviet Russia. If the thing
works at all, which is doubtful. II viii
work because 1t is an old-fashioned
alliance, not a new-fangled derivative
Of Geneva. And 1t will work, too,
only because of the force OF the
armies Of the nations subscribing to
it because they are satisfied with the
status quo.
Thus waat the French are propos-
ing as the last hope of saving the
League is no more than an attempt
to revert to the pre-war system Of ALI
ances, tns fact, while preserving the
fiction of the postwar League. And
even the French do not hide the fact
that the alternative to this Is to re-
turn outright to the Franco-Russian
alliance. Moreover, II Is the percep-
ton that such a reversion Is tnev-
table If the regional pacts fall
through which has enlisted British
support.
For all practical purposes. however
and that is what counts on the
present anniversary--if the Germans
should walk into Belgium tomorrow
as they did 20 years ago the League
could do nothing about 1t except to
pass resolutions. And the reason
the Germany OF Adolf Hitler does not
undertake a new war today Is solely
because it desires first TO restore the
German Army to the condition IN
which It was two decades ego. For
no one will pretend that Hitlerian
Germany is more peaceful than the
Hohenzollern empire OF 1914.
The price of international peace Is
international police The World
Court and the League are similarly
without real importance II in case
of aggression their decision Is merely
to be spread on the record and, as in
the Manchurian episode, can exer-
else no influence upon the progress
of events. But neither the United
State. nor Great Britain is going TO
submit its vital interests to an in
ternational tribunal in which the
deciding vote may be cast by Guate-
mala or Greece. Nor is either going
to start mobilizing its armies and
fleets for action the hour IL is in
formed from Geneva that Red troops
have crossed the Dniester or the
Brown Shirts are in the Polish Cor
ridor.
All the law and courts In the world
are worthless If. on the one hand,
people will not obey the law volun-
tarily and, on the other. there is no
way of enforcing 1t. That is the
situation today internationally, and it
{c the awxaia ~ tiny. ~ tha hpoakdrx,,,,
of the League Of Nations. Finally
that is why the French are trying to
patch up a system of regional pacts
to insure that there viii be force
behind the law in the regions in
which they are interested.
But the trouble is that while force
may temporarily be available IL will
be based purely on selfish interest,
can be shifted when interest changes
and cannot even remotely be regarded
as fulfilling the Wilsonian concep-
ton of a world association to preserve
world order by collective counsel and
action. And meantime, even such a
makeshift seems likely to be rejected
by Germany and even by Poland. II
such rejection takes place. moreover,
the world viii then be back where
1t started from in August. 1914.
Meantime every nation In the
world has deliberately and manifestiy
turned its back upon Geneva and
set itself to the task of building up
Its national defenses to the extremes
limit of its financial resources. ThGSf
after all. is the most significant OF
all circumstances on the present ans
and it constitutes the best
evidence Of the present
value people attach to the League Of
Nations as a means to prevent war
Copyright. 1934J