Evening star., 1938-09-28

Cling the United States in any way,
can move forward the cause Of peace
by the simple method of speaking
to bring out clearly the points Of
difference in the present controversy.
Some neutral force in the world,
conceivably the United States Gov
ernment. today has the opportunity to
condemn as futile any resort to war
and to reconstruct at once a mechan-
ism for peace.
Believes in Plebiscites.
Chancellor Hitler's speech, for in
stance, makes 1t clear that Germany
believes in plebiscites and in self
determination" of peoples, but insists
that frontiers drawn by the Versailles
treaty were wrong. Those frontiers
were imposed by military force. Hitler.
proposes to get them back by military
force. Obviously any appeal to Czech
oslovakia to give up her territory
would have been futile without pres
sure from the outside. Once Britain
and France concluded last week the
wisdom Of granting the Sudeten terri
tory to Germany, the Czechs had to
agree also.
The point in dispute early this week
was no longer whether the Sudeten
area should go to Germany, but when
and how the transfer should be made.
Prime Minister Chamberlain came
forth with guarantees that the evacua-
ton plan would be carried out. 1t was
Q pointed step forward.
But 1t is argued on the Czech side
that Germany has increased her de-
mands If this Is so, then Chan
cellor Hitler's speech revealed an am
biguity which can readily be cleared
up by further definition Of the
evacuation plan and by an official
statement in detail Of just what the
differences are between the Anglo
French plan originally agreed upon
ana the plan subsequently said to
have been included in q map which
was not referred to In the Hitler
speech Of Monday.
Prerequisite Of Peace.
These discrepancies 60 to the heart
Of the immediate conflict of view,
but even If reconciled they do not
means . permanent peace. Some
means OF removing causes Of war,
and particularly some means Of adj
justing frontiers and giving peoples
. right to live under whatever form
Of government they choose becomes
IN essential prerequisite to peace.
The Hitler claim that he believes
In plebiscites is rather ironical when
the method Of voting used in Ger
many Is considered. The Versailles
treaty did contain injustices and in
equities, but Woodrow Wilson believed
. league of free peoples, inspirded by
. continuing sense of justice, would
provide q self-adjusting revision Of
the treaty with its temporary frontiers.
The Hitler attack on the Wilson
doctrine Of sef-determination" is a
slap at democracy itself, for no prin-
ciple is more sacred to the people of
republics everywhere than that gov
ernments shall derive their just power
to govern only from the consent Of
the governed.
When Hitler, on the other hand,
speaks Of the failures of the League
of Nations to rectify wrongs done in
the Versailles treaty he is right. When
he says in effect that moral force or
cession of territory by negotiation has
failed and that justice can be gotten
for Germany only by physical force,
he significantly proves the futility of
anti-war pacts like the Kellogg-Briand
treaties when they are unaccompanied
by universal machinery for removing
or settling causes and origins Of fric-
ton between sovereign states.
Force Settles Nothing.
America might have used her moral
force effectively as a member of the
League Of Nations If misrepresenta-