Evening star., 1943-03-23

In the details of
the postwar set David Lawrence.
Elements. Nevertheless, he tosses out
in general terms the implications of
formula which cannot but lead to
the same old mistakes that broke
down the League Of Nations and
brought on thereby the Second
World War.
All through the early part Of the
present century and continuing
through till President Wilson and
Gen. Smuts Of South Africa pre-
sented in 1919 the formula for a
League of Nations, the theory that
held within its grip the statesmen of
Britain, France, Russia and Ger
many was that the peace of the
world could be maintained by the
balance of power method. Mr.. Will
son warned against its return as a
possible insidious development with
In the League. When the United
States backed away from the League
In 1920, the balance Of power doc
trine returned to Europe and ulti-
mately broke the prestige and power
of the League.
Today Mr.. Churchill presents the
idea of regional grouping of states.
He speaks of council of Europe and
a council Of Asia. Presumably he
leaves a council of the Americas in
the background as third grouping,
with North and South American
nations forming its constituency.
This may be another way of saying
that in Europe, Russia or Britain. or
both. will be the dominant nations
to police the European area and
that in the Far East Russia or
China, or both, may do the same
thing. Will the United States have
nothing to say till there's another
cry for help and the seeds of a new
war have been sown?
Vagueness Dismayinx.
Mr. Churchill recognizes that the
smaller states should be confeder-
ated in some sort Of group and pre-
sumably send representa- tives to the
larger groups. This very vagueness
of language will cause dismay, be-
cause 1t ignores the experience of
decades in solving the vexatious
problem of small states versus large
states. This was happily settled by
the Council and Assembly machin-
cry of the League of Nations, which,
so far as mere machinery is con-
cerned, affords today still the best
framework for collective security
that has yet been devised.
Il hope We shall not lightly cast
aside" said Mr.. Churchill, "all the
immense work which was accom-
plished by the creation of the League
of Nations. Certainly we must take
as our foundation of the lofty con-
ception of freedom the law and
morality which was the spirit of the
League
speech, goes on to propose a Council
of Europe and Council of Asia,
which indicates that either he does
not want to build upon the founda-
tions of the League and really in
tends that it shall be discarded or
else that he has not given the sub
1ect the thorough study which it
deserves and he is merely throwing
out generalities now in the course
of speech which he himself warns
must not be taken at this time as
anything but tentative program
League Form Was Good.
There was nothing wrong with
the words written into the Cove
nant of the League of Nations
There was nothing wrong with its
machinery and its system of giving
representation to Large and small
states. What was wrong was the
character of the governments that
refused to honor the obligations Of
the League or to assume police
obligations.
Also it wasn't Just America s
failure to participate which weak
ened the League of Nations. Ii
was the failure of the statesmen
of France and Britain to play the
game unselfishly and disinterestedly
instead of nationalistically and self
ishly. Likewise it was the failure Of
the statesmen of Europe to set up
an economic grouping of states,
large and small, that could provide
employment and economic outlets
for Europe's congested populations.
This, more than anything else,
helped to bring on the economic dis
order on which Fascism thrived in
Germany and Italy. There was 4
singular indifference, too, to the
economic problems of the German
republic and a failure to enforce the
disarmament clauses of the treaty
1t wasn't the machinery or the
words OF the League that brought on
the second World War. and even
perfection on these points will not
prevent a third world war. What
Is truly needed is rebirth of char
acter and honesty. as we'll as a sense
Of new responsibility for collective
security, and that has to happen in
Britain, in America and in Russia