Evening star., 1935-09-27
The League i'm Action.

Faced by the virtual certainty IIldC
failure to move deciSively in the present
emergency would be equivalent to sign
ing its own death warrant, the League
of Nations has at length reSorted to
positive action in the Italo-Ethioplan
imbroglio. Invoking articles IL and 10
of the covenant, the Council has paved
the way for eventual punitive measures
against Italy in case she goes to war in
violation of League pledges. Both Italy
and Ethiopia are now prohibited from
resort to arms until three months after
submission of formal report on their
conflict. This imposes upon them an
obligation, effective about october l, to
engage in no hostilities before January
!. If, regardless of her League RESPONSE
bilities Italy attacks Ethiopia in the
interval, she becomes automatically
branded as an outlaw and subject forth
with to the League sanctions provided
bv article 16 to be enforced against an
aggressor nation.
The condign punishment now con-
fronting Italy was voted unanimously
by the Council. 1t is symbol OF tne
solidarity with which the world opposes
Mussolini's alarming threat to peace. No
shred of doubt can any longer remain
in MS mind that civilized mankind is
irrevocably determined to thWart, by
every means at it's command, his attempt
to restore the use of force as an lnstru-
ment of national policy and to demollsh
the peace preserving machinery set up
bv the League covenant and the Kellogg
BRAND pact.
II Duce is granted in effect three
months cooling of period. He must
choose within that respite whether to
proceed to defy modified world opinion
or to yield as gracefully as possible to
its dictate that war shall not be. The
decision will not be easy for the Fascist
dictator to make. He has famed the
Italian people into fanatical state OF
great expectations from his projected
imperial adventure. It's abandonment
under international pressure may well
have gravely ignominious consequences
for Mussolini, costing him perhaps
nothing less than his place and power.
But he has sown the wind and must
be prepared to reap the whirlWlnd. The
outcome of any desperate attempt by
Italv to hurl itself against the allied
strength of the League states would not
be in doubt. The result would be the
end not only of Mussolini and FaScism,
but of Italy itself.
While the world waits hopefully Tor
II Duce to elect to follow the path OF
reason, it will not withhold its gratitude
to the League for having, after long
record of fumbling and futllity, risen
at last to the full possibilities OF its
authority. Following its puSillanimous
performance in the Manchurian affair
and its subsequent failure in the Chaco
war, confidence had almost vanished
that the League would ever grid its loins
effectively enough to cope with the su-
preme crisis in Geneva's career. That
it has at last found the will and the
courage to do so is mainly due to the
sturdy stand for the covenant taken
by Great Britain, with France in loyal
support The final result is victory
for peace, for which the American people,
abstainers from the League though they
are, give ungrudging credit to all those
to whom credit is due for so historical
and beneficent an achievement.