Evening star., 1935-03-18
German Militarism Revived.

German Mllltarlsm Revived.
Civilization Is startled and shocked
by Nazi Germany's defiant reversion
to conscript militarism. With Fuehrer
Hitler's pronouncement on Saturday
that the army clauses Of the Versailles
treaty have ceased to exist as far as
the Reich is concerned, the world is
suddenly brought face to face with
the grim realization that the blood
and iron Germany of 1914-the goose
stepped Fatherland of KaiseriSm-is
born again. Compulsory military
service is to be re-established on
scale which, it Is estimated, will give
the Reich an army of between 100000
and 100000 men and convert II at
blow into the strongest land power in
Europe, Soviet Russia, with twice
Gernany's population, alone excepted.
At the end of ten years, authorities
calculate, Germany will possess 3,O00,-
600 trained soldiers. elevating her to
the level of her pre-war might.
That Europe is confronted by a
grave menace to her tranquility and
security because of the Reich's pre-
cipitate action is beyond question.
Hitler's step is not divested of its
inherent threat by his affirmation of
it's peaceful intent or because he
justifies it with the contention that
Germany's World War conquerors
have failed to live up to their own
pledges to bring about progressive
disarmament. What the Nazis have
done Is to destroy, almost beyond the
possibility of salvage. the whole
laborious international effort to set up
peace machinery through collective
action among the nations. BY its
defiance of its Versailles obligations,
onerous and hurniliating as these no
doubt were, the Reich has swept Cnto
the scrap heap Kellogg anti-war pacts,
Locarno treaties and even League
covenants. War-sick mankind over
night has been thrust back to the
brink OF the abyss where it found it
self twenty-one years ago. The pos
sibinty that it will be engulfed in
another such catastrophe as then
ensued is brought dangerously near
by Germany's reckless decision.
What Europe is going to do about
it becomes a terribly pressing question,
That the Western powers will pattern
after Frances ill-starred example In
1928, when Poincare marched troops
into the Ruhr Valley in protest
against the Germans disregard Of
their reparation obligations. is hardly
debatable. But that Great Britain,
France, Italy and the states Of the
Little Entente can stand by, with
folded arms, and uncomplainingly see
Na1 Germany brazenly flout her
pledges at Versailles, as she proceeds
once again to make herself militarily
pre-eminent in the heart Of the
Continent, is equally unthinkable.
So far, Hitler has only indicated
that the Reich proposes to be arbiter
of It's own destinies with respect to
an army and air force. But it stands
to reason that CONSUMPTION will also
be applied to the end of reviving
German sea power on the grand scale.
That phase of developments at Ber-
lin gives special point to Sir John
Simon's scheduled visit to Germany
next week-if that now celebrated
trip is ever made. Britannia iatterly
has been mainly concerned over the
Reich's aviation plans. But her
anxiety with respect to a new Ger
man naval peril can be no less.
It has, of course not taken Eu-
rope by surprise to learn that Ger
many is in position to carry out large
scale military expansion on the con-
scription plan. That the Nazis we're
stealthily but steadily rearming has
long been a notoriously open secret.
Even Goering's recent official acknowl-
edgment of the existence of a mill
tary air force-specificall barred by
the Versailles treaty-lacked the quail
ity Of news. But Hitlers audacity in
abruptly, formally and completely re-
pudiating Part v of the peace pact,
containing the military embargoes,
brings allied Europe face to face with
situation of indubitable seriousness.
Reparations have gone. Now the mill
tary clauses follow them. Will the
next development be a demand for
revision Of the European frontiers
drawn at Versailles and for return of
Germany's lost colonies and islands?
These are questions, along with
the paramount issue of imperiled peace,
which Europe must confront, squarely
and sternly, in the light of the bold
challenge helmeted and spurred Hit
lerism has offered it.