Evening star., 1935-08-04
BY FRANK II. SIMONDS.

interesting as it marks the final stage
in the liquidation of the postwar
experiments in internationahsm. The
Covenant OF the League, the Pact of
Paris, the various agreements Of the
Washington and London Naval Con-
ferences-all of these have been re-
duced to dead letter parchments. They
have not worked in the various crises
in Asia. Africa and Europe and now
governments are faced with the fact
they are not going to work.
What the events of the past four
years have Shown-eventS whose high
points have been japanese action in
Manchuria. Italian preparations in
Africa. German operations in Europe
is that there is no basis upon which
any system OF organized peace in the
world can be constructed. Countries
will not resign their aspirations to
expand, they will not agree to set
| limits to their armaments. save as
these satisfy their own views; they Will
not observe any of the patterns of ma
tional policy which were so confidently
| assigned to them in the postwar pc
riod.
Three Prepare for War.
Today four of the seven great pow
erS are eager for peace and three are
preparing for war or actually engaged
upon campaigns of conquest The four
countries eager for peace, namely,
Great Britain, France, the Soviet
Union and the United States, are un-
ready TO diSarm in the presence of
the growing armaments of the others
The three nations preparing for war
will not abandon their present policies
as long as their material circumstances
are such as to foreshadow a declining
standard Of life nationally and con-
sequent rising tide of domestic un-
rest. No basis for partnership between
these two groups Of powers exists and
all effort to establish such a partner
ship must end-in the future as in
the past-in utter failure as a con-
/ sequence.
| In recent weeks the world has seen
/ the British government make three
| significant decisions. The naval agree
ment with Germany constituted a
/ final recognition of the fact that Ger
many could no longer be kept within
/ the limits of the Treaty of Versailles
in the matter of armaments. Later
announcements made in the House
of Commons disclosed that the at.
/ tempts of Anthony Eden in Rome Il
/ preserve the authority of the League
of Nations, already shaken by the
Manchurian episode, had failed. Now
in the matter of navies, we have g
third equally significant admission.
Pacts No Longer Hold.
The British government today knows
which it has long suspected, namely
that the happenings of the past four
years, beginning with the Manchuriar
affair. have produced complete liqui-
dation Of the Geneva experiment ir
so far as it related to contemporary
questions of peace and war between
great powers. These incidents have
| too. reduced the kellogg pact to the
| status of the Pragmatic Sanction. They
| have also abolished all the solemn
agreements of the Washington and
London Naval Conference, which un-
dertook TO set limits to naval forces
| OF all this elaborate and intricate
system of treaties and pacts nothing
remains effective.
| Because they are essentially a prac-
tical people the British are undertak-
ing to make the best of what they
attempting to fashion out of the
wreckage some separate agreements
with other countries to replace the
vanished contracts of the old ano
dead collective system. On the one
hand, you have the British public
voting by millions in favor of the
League of Nations, on the other you
discover the British government act
ing upon the assumption that the
League no longer constitutes safe
basis upon which to found nationa
policy.
Britain Awaits Election.
Pending a general election in Brit
ain this Fall not much is likely to bt
done by way of clarifying internationa
policy. At Geneva British representa-.
tiveS will doubtless pay lip service Il
the League. Possibly this course may
lead to the withdrawal of Italy, ol
possibly the French will be able t
soften League cenSure of Rome Suf.
ficiently to let MuSSolini remain. Bu
once their election is over, then the
British are likely to set about reor-
ganizing their foreign policy to fit the
present situation in the world.
The recent Anglo-Germany nava
agreement foreshadows the line which
will be followed. Great Britain viii
insist upon decisive naval superiority
will doubtless seek to strengthen hel
situation in the Mediterranean now
that Mussolini has called the English
bluff in the matter of Ethiopia. Fol
what was actually disclosed in the re-
cent affair was that the Italians could
If they chose, close the Mediterranean
to British shipping. At the same time
the British will undoubtedly make
clear the fact that they will stand
with France in maintaining the status
quo in the West and in thus upholdine
the Locarno contract. Finally, they
will continue to seek an adjustment
of air strength with the Germans.
These European details have rela-
lively little Importance for the United
States but back of them loom nava,
and political questions which are vital
What the British mean to do is to ex-
pand their navy to the limits fore
shadowed in the Coolidge Conference
of 1927. That insures a large increase
in the number of cruisers. They will
also seek to have the size of cruiser:
and capital ships reduced and at thi:
point they will come into direct col.
lision with American views. At tht
same time, however, what is far more
significant is that they are likely t.
make far-reaching proposals of policy
to washington.
In effect, the situation in Europe
has become so grave and complicated
that it is no longer possible for tn,
pr;tish sinplehanded tn assure tn,