Evening star., 1935-03-17

distance IN sound, optical instruments
of all kinds, harness for horses. equip
ment for narrow gauge railways.
printeries, field kitchens, workshops,
cut and thrust weapons. steel helmets,
material for transporting munitions,
normal and special machines belong
ing to war industry, mounting frames,
drawings for the latter. and hangers
for airplanes and airshipS, etc.
Right to Expect Redemption.
After this historically uneXampled
fulflment of a treaty, the German
people had the right to expect the
redemption also by the other side OF
obligations undertaken. For, firstly.
Germany had disarmed secondly, in
the peace Treaty the demand had been
expressly made that Germany must
be disarmed in order thereby to create
the precondition for general diSarma-
ment-that is, it was contended that
Germany's ornaments alone fur
nished the reason tor the armamentS
of the other countries, thirdly, the
German people at that time were filled
both as regards their government and
their parties with spirit that corre-
sponded exactly with the paciflstic-
democratic ideals of the League of
Nations and its founders.
But while Germany as one party to
the treaty had fulfilled its obligations,
the redemption of the obligation on
the part of the second partner to the
treaty failed to become a fact. That
means the high contracting parties
of the former victor states have one
sidedly divorced themselves from the
obligations of the Versailles treaty.
Not alone did they refrain from dis
arming in manner that could by any
stretch be comparable with the de-
struction of German arms. No, not
even was there a malt in the arma-
ments race; on the contrary, the in
crease of aImamentS on the part OF
a whole group of states became eVl-
dent. Whatever had during the war
been invented in the way of new en-
gines of destruction was now in peace
time brought to final perfection by
methodically scientific labor.
New Cannon Constructed.
In the realm of creating mighty
armored cars, as we'll as in that Of
new fighting and bombing planes, con-
tinuous and terrible improvements re-
suited. New gigantic cannon were
constructed, new explosive fire and
gas bombs we're developed.
The world, however, since then has
again resumed its cries of war just as
though there never had been a World
War nor the Versailles treaty. In the
midst of these highly armed, warlike
states which were more and more
making use of the most modern motor
lied equipment, Germany was, mllltar-
ily speaking, in a vacuum, defense-
lessly at the mercy of every threaten
ing danger.
The German people recall the mis-
fortunes and suffering of Is years OF
economic misery and political and
moral humiliation. 1t was therefore
understandable that Germany began
to loudly demand the fulfillment OF the
promises made by other states to dis
arm. for this is clear: The world would
not only stand for 100 years of peace.
but such a period would be an un-
measured boon. 1t cannot. however,
stand for 100 years of division into
victor and vanquished.
The conviction that international
disarmament was morally justified and
necessary gained ground, not only IN
Germany, but also among many other
peoples. From the inSistence OF these
forces there resulted attempts through
conferences to give direction to the
reduction of ornaments and thereby
to a general international equalization
on a low level. Thus there developed
the first proposals for an interna-
tional agreement on armamentS OF
which we remember the Macdonald
plan as significant.
Ready to Accept Plan.
Germany was ready to accept this
plan and adopt it as the foundation
for arrangements to be arrived at. 1t
failed because the other states de-
clined to accept it and was finally
abandoned.
Inasmuch as under these circum-
stances the equality which was SOL
emnly promised to the German people
and Reich in the declaration Of De-
cember. 1882, failed of realization, the
new Reich's government, as guardian
of the honor and right to live OF the
German people. ives unable to con-