Evening star., 1951-03-23
The Schumon Plans Promise

Although it still has long road to travel
before it can become an effective operating
reality, the Schuman Plan has made remarkable
progress since the French Foreign Minister first
proposed it less than a year ago. It's latest
ladvance-the biggest and most important to
@date-has been brought about by the completion
of draft treaty to effectuate it. The treaty
formally initiated by delegates from six nations
has significance that can hardly be exag-
gerated In effect, potentially at least what it
means is that great and far-reaching revolu-
ton for peace and prosperity is in the making
In Europe.
True enough, the revolution cannot even
begin to make itself felt until the initiated
treaty is ratified by all the Parliaments involved
and until elaborate intergovernmental machln-
cry is set up to convert the project into going
concern But the objective held out here
though unprecedented and not easily attained
is not an idealistic dream. In today's world,
it has become practical necessity for Euro
peans, and the fact that representatives of six
different countries-France, Western Germany,
Italy, Belgium The Netherlands and Luxem-
bourg-have been able, within a matter of
months to negotiate an agreement on the
subject offers ample ground for the hope that
this momentous enterprise barring all-out war,
will be operating at full blast within a reason
able period of time.
brief outline of the schuman Plan is all
that is needed to demonstrate it's revolutionary
nature. Thus, as set forth in the draft treaty, it
calls for the creation of joint High Authority
with supranational power to pool the coal and
steel resources not merely of France, Western
Germany and the four other charter members
of the enterprise, but also of all European coun-
tries (including Britain) willing to surrender
some of their sovereignty and become signatories
Under the authority-which would be subject to
a special system of checks and balances-the
participants would be committed for so years to
the following, among other things: ID Strict
uniform rules governing their production of coal
and steel; (2) the elimination of customs duties
and discriminatory freight rates; 90 equitable
price-hxing procedures; (4) equalization of the
wages and living conditions of the workers in
volved, and a. adherence to a common program
designed to improve their productivity, stimulate
their mutual economic progress and promote a
continuing advance toward political unity and
federation.
Certainly, if carried forward with vigor, this
project even though it can accomplish no
overnight miracles-can 60 far toward Kidding
Europe of its ancient suspicious its wilderness
of clashing economies its crippling complex of
trade barriers and all the other things that
have initiated against its material progress and
peace. Thus by pooling coal and steel-the
main sinews of modern economic Strength-the
six-nation Schuman Plan can slowly but surely
lead to the creation of single, overall Western
European economy. Such an economy ike that
which characterizes our own Nation of 48 tariff
less States, would constitute within itself vast
market of free-flowing commerce of the sort that
the Marshall Plan has sought to encourage