Evening star., 1935-11-17

the dominions went a wave of stern
indignation: The British were again
willing, if necessary. to fight.
With an armed and determined
Britain again active on the European
continent, the entire postwar set-up
changed. melted and flowed. France,
caught in an internal crisis, was the
last nation to understand the event
The French. disillusioned and on the
defense anyway, driven apart by the
rising tide of economic discomfort and
Fascist mirnicry. did no: want to see
anything change, anything reform
anything.
Suddenly they were asked to choose
between an old ally, whom they had
come to distrust. and the new Italian
ally, which they had not yet tested.
The choice has not yet been made.
But the French know we'll that it
may have to be made tomorrow. for
Britain. rearmed and tired of the die
tator and dynamic nonsense, can have
a choice of partners in Europe or Asia.
If the French want to play, they may
have to act in the manner of tradi-
tional France, not of a disgruntled,
irritated, inert France sunk in self
pity.
French in Quandary.
Therefore today the French do not
know what to do-whether to back the
British and make the League of Ma
tions effective, or back the Italians
and make one French alliance sure.
The Germans have really made up
their minds. Always on their knees
before British prestige, they are
squealing with delight over the pros
pect of a partnership with British
strength. There are voices in Britain,
annoyed by the French hesitancy and
churlishness, that would have Britain
Join the Germans.
Meanwhile. of course, the German
Machiavellis cannot quite refrain
from whispering to the Italians soft
words about common future for die
tators. Realistic Heimwehr officers
are insisting ever more loudly that
after ALL" Bolshevik or not, the Red
army is the biggest and, for Germany,
Is a far more useful ally than the
Poles or the japanese.
Properly so. The British comeback
has not escaped Polish politicians,
who do not share the personal hatred
of France that drove Foreign Minister
Joseph Beck into a partial under
standing with Germany. Poland voted
for sanctions against Italy at Geneva
simply because the British wanted
them voted.
Poland today hesitates between Ger
many and France, but with an eye
fixed on Britain. As Poland, so the
Little Entente. The Czechs say that
If the British will uphold the League
and the French will not, then the
Little Entente had better stick to
Britain, and take the Balkan bloc
with it.
Russia Does Not Need France.
The Yugoslavs are saying that II
the French prefer the Italians, then
the Yugoslavs had better come to
terms with Germany. The Soviets are
saying that after all, by assisting
the British in the Far East. and
offsetting the overweaning German
power in Europe, Russia, too, de-
serves well of the naval kings. Rus
STA does not perhaps need France.
The isolated Italians are looking
to Germany only to find that the
British had been first at Berlin.
French. Premier Pierre Laval found
the same thing. Therefore every
body on this strange European chess
board is looking around for posi-
bilities of new moves and new align
ments.
Everybody is watching London. II
the British block Italy, they will again
be the cock of Europe.
Meanwhile, forlornness prevails and
nothing is certain. The present time
reminds one of Alice in the garden,
when she had to play croquet with
fiamingoes for mallets, rolled hedge
hogs for balls and bent live soldiers
for arches, which always moved about.
"I don't think they play at all
fairly" said Alice in a rather COM
planning tone, land they all quarrel
SO dreadfully one cannot here ones
self speak-and they don't seem to
have any rules in particular; at least
If there are, nobody attends to them. I"
Which Is hard on bright foreign
newspaper men.
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