Evening Star Newspaper, August 23, 1925, Page 39

EDITO NATIO RIAL PAGE NAL PROBLEMS SPECIAL FEATURES Part 2—12 Pages EDITORIAL SECTION he Sundwy Stard WASHINGTON, D. O, FEAR OF ANOTHER WAR i HANGS OVER ALL EUROPE Desire for American Co-operation for Peace Persists, But Obstacles in Way Have Not BY SHELDON ONDON.—The S. CLINE. one impression which most _vividly stamps itself upon th® mind of the American observer in Europe is the widespread sense of insecurity nd ins oility, You get it everywhere you go. obsessing men’s minds and influencing all their actions. Like Mr. Micawber, Europe today pears to be chiefly engaged in waiti for something to turn up. And Europe doesn’t seem to have any more idea than did Dickens' picturesque character as to what that “something” is likely to be. The difference lies in that Micawber was expecting good whereas Europe generally its fortune to be bad s hard for an American to ap- preciate a state of mind like that, is so wholly beyond our experie home. America is voung timistic n never has really serious setback in i toward better thin jo and pessimistic and cern no avenues of statesmen of Lurope have become largely opportunists. Instead of grap: pling with their problems and really trying to solve them they appear to be stalling and playing for ti No better illustration of an be found than the manner in which a coal strike was averted in England. Stanley Ba in knew that hi: dred-million-dollar subvention of the mining" indu was not even the beginning of a solution, but it got England a breathing spell—and some- thing might “turn up.’ Europe Lacks a Program. ces at nd op- And so it is with post-war problems everywhere in Europe. No one ex- Dects things to go on as they now are going, but no one seems to know what to do about it. When the Dawes plan was inaugurated we in America supposed it was a solution of the problem of reparations. Europe doesn’t think so. Europe is skeptical whether Germany will or can meet the payments called for. But {t Europe a breathing spell, just as Baldwin coal subsidy gave ing spell to England, and it is hoped something may “turn up.” When Germany defaults on the Dawes pay- ments something will have to be done about it, but nobody knows what. There is nothing like a program. On the contrary, both in England and France there is a great deal of un- easiness for fear that when the time comes the British and French gov- ernments will not be able to agree upon a common policy. And unless England and France can agree upon a policy and keep on agreeing Europe is going to arrive at the place she seems headed for, and it isn't a pleas- ant place at all. In discussing the {neffectiveness and epparent aimlessness of European statesmanship 1 don’t want to con- vey the impression that I believe American statesmen would do better under like circumstances. Probably they would not. It is easy to be a rear-segt driver or grandstand man- ager, and the difficulties in the way of a solution of Europe's post-war problems are very Teal ones. It must be acknowledged that some progress has been made in liquidation of the , but whether statesmanship or time has been the liquidator is a mat- ter of opinion. Some progress has been made, but that which remains to be done is so overwhelmingly great that actual accomplishments are dwarfed in comparison. In Political Bad Health. As time gives us a better perspec- tive on the war and its consequences the settleme by the peacern lles become The most charitable expl: tions of Europe were shell-shocked and in no condition to negotiate an enduring peace. Already some of the mistakes of the peacemakers have been modified and there will have to be many more modifications before Europe can hope to re either economi; There are spots where conditions have brought about a measure of prosperity, but on the whole BEurope is economically in a bad way But bad as economic cor ditions _are, political conditions are worse, for European politics are fash- ioned and gov ed to an astonishing degree by fear of another war. What- ever else may prefer to about, this war fear lies in the back of their minds and hangs over their lives like some horrid nightmare. The appalling featu of it is that ther are indications of a spirit of resigna- tion to the inevitabl state of mind in which men wonder when and where the storm will break, not how it can be ed. Certainly war is not wanted by any nation or people in Burope; but wars, as are mot the products of desire. W engendered by an- ticipation, 1 1 urope anticipates another 1 every hand is told tha last war staggered civilization that another war would fin vet another war looked forward to as something that is inevital It would seem that in Europe men look upon war as they look upon death thing to be dreaded, but in no wise to be escaped. Men take all manners of nostrums and submit to the surgeon’s knife in efforts or politically exceptional ap- | P 1t | hun. | breath- | ion is that the na- | n her health, | talk | Been Removed. to postpone death, but they do noth- ing in the expectation that death ca be averted. That seems to be about the attitude of Europe with respect to war. The statesmanship of Europe concerns itself with palliatives and | symptomatic treatment. There parently is no thought that a cure can be effected. Losing Faith in League. There was a time, of course, when mankind had high hopes that the League of Nations might be the means That bout been abandoned incurable optimists. admit that the league has ypointed their hopes and they are quick to tell Americans that the rea- on it has failed is because the United ates has refused to become a mem- r. And the more I studied the gue question in Europe the nearer I came to being willing to admit that this is true. No one can doubt that |had not the quarrel between Presi- dent Wilson and the United States Senate resulted in rejection of the covenant the league today would be a vastly different and a_much more potent thing than it is. This does not necessarily mean that American mem- bership in the league would make it an absolute insurance against war, but it would have helped. At least it would have lessened the war fear in men’s minds, and of the most proli | probability reduced by just that much. causes of war, the against membership in the League of ations they did exactly what every fon in Europe is doing today and has always done—they followed the course which they believed to be to their own best national interest in their belief that their interests were best served by remaining outside tho | league is aside from the question. It |is certain the American people will never assent to membership in the {league until they are convinced that | membership will best serve the inter- |ests of the United States. But I do not believe that precludes the possi- bility that some day the United States will become a member of the league. Obstacle to Membership. 1, for one, believe that if the League of Nations can be made an instrumen- tality for preserving the peace of the world the United States ought to be a member—if and when such mem- bership can be had without jeopardiz- have been frequently reproached in Europe because my country is not in the league, but I do not feel abashed. I know that the real reasons America remained on the outside—the reasons which underlay the difierences be- tween President Wilson and the Senate—were not American but Euro- pean reasons. It was not that America was unwilling to co-operate for the betterment of the worlds it was that selfish and short-sighted nationalism in Europe had made American co-operation for the time impossible. That same selfish and short-sighted nationalism still prevails in Europe, but there is one hopeful sign on the | horizon. The nations of Europe, six years after the armistice, now are be- ginning to see that it is not getting them anywhere. Statesmen are be- ginning to admit, privately and with reluctance, that it would have been better if more concessions had been made—{f more regard had been had to the other fellow's viewpoint. It is true, as mentioned above, that some of the mistakes of the peace have been modifled, but the spirit which accompanied the modification has not been a spirit which made for good will and better understandings. Modifi tion of the spirit is as needed as is modification of treaties. Way to U. S. Co-operation. If the statesmen and people of Europe would do considerable less grouching about how America “de- |serted” Furope after the armistice {and would devote more attention to | the things whi ‘were responsible for that *‘desertion it might be found | possible to remove some, if not all, the | obstacles which served to prevent a | greater measure of American co- operation. It is not without the range of possibility that there might {be such a remov: of obstacles as would make it possible for the United tates to become a member of the League of Nations. Had it not been for these obstacles, the children of European nationalistic selfishness, there would have been a larger measure of American co- operation in Europe during the last six years. Larger American co-opera- tion undoubtedly would have meant larger progress toward liquldation of the war—everybody in Burope will tell you that. - And there must be further liquidation of the last before there can be any substantial insurance against another war. So the liquidation of the late war bhe- comes, and ought to be made, the first busin of European i In next week’s art be the last of this series,.T am going to discuss some of the remaining post- war problems which are pressing for solution and how American interests will be affected by the nature of the solutions which may be found, (Copyright. 1925.) State Governments Increase Debts 2 Half Billion Dollars in Three Years The State governments of the United States have increased their bonded debt mnearly 50 per cent in the past three year rding to a nationwide survey of State finance just completed by the Bank of America, New York. The huge debt now amounts to $1,658,- 742,433.68, or $13.89 for every man, woman and child in the countr New York State's population, pros- perity and great permanent improve- cents are reflected in its bonded debt, which aggregates $320,991,000. Massachusetts is second with $125,- 046,961.98, of which a large proportion ents the value of its metr n district improveme and highways. Following th nois with a debt of $112,071,100; North olina with $1( ‘alifornia with $89.158,000, & with $83,500,000. Kentucky, ska_and Wisconsin have no bonded indebted- ness, Kentucky owing $5,679,008 outstanding warrants and W being indebted only to its tr to the extent of $1,9 0. . The highest per capita debt of any State in the Union is that of South Dakota, the share of each inhabitant being $93.95, nearly six times as great-as the pational perscapita-debte ac re Illi-| Oregon is second with $72 per capita, North Carolina third with §$38.87, Dela- ware fourth with $36.76, North Da- kota fifth with $36.67, and Massachu- setts sixth with a per capita debt of $30. The Pacific group, comprising the States of Washington, Oregon and California, has the highest per capita debt of any section, the Bank of America finds in grouping its figures according to geographical areas. Its debt per inhabitant is $25.83, nearly twice the average for the United States. At the opposite end of the country the New England States hold place with a per capita debt The Middle Atlantic group of States New York, New'Jersey and Penn- vlvania—have a per capita debt of $18.03, and the South Atlantic Sts ~—Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, South Caro- lina, Georgia and Florida—are next with $15.41. Below the average for the country asa whole are the East North Central division with a debt of $9.48; East South Central with $6.48; West South Central with $5.61, and Mountain di- vision with.a debt of $11.82 for every, as war fear is one | r would have been | When the American people decided | ‘Whether they were right or wrong | ing the best interests of America. 1| SUNDAY MORN NG, AUGUST Society News | 23, 1925. Burdensome Taxation Held Direct Aid To Endeavors of Radicals in U. S. BY DREW PEARSON. AXATION and radicalism are two subjects more closely link- ed than is generally imagined, and the surest way to help the agents of Moscow in this country is to keep up the foolish and futile practice now so popular in taxation of “soaking the rich.” This seemed to me to be a very ex- traordinary doctrine, but it represents the substance of what was said to me by Edward N. Hurley, the war chair- man of the United States Shipping Board and a business man noted for his liberal views. I had already discussed radical propaganda and the method of deal- ing with it in this country with a great labor leader and a great social student of social philosophy, and I wanted the views of a_great practical business man. And I must confess at I was hardly prepared for such a agnosis of the question as Mr. Hur- ley gave me. The gist of his analysis was this: That the country needs the industry and energy of its business men more than it needs their money, and that under the present system of high surtaxes business men were los- ing their interest in organization and enterprise and turning to tax-exempt securitles and golf, with the net re- sult that the nation is getting neither their taxes nor their services. We don't “soak the rich,” because they dodge the blow. We don’t soak them. We merely make them laz * Has Unbiased Attitude. Edward N. Hurley has some claim to a more unbiased attitude toward business and labor than any other man in this country. Inf the first place, his father was a workingman who was not afraid to get his hands dirty, and Edward N. Hurley's first job was that of a locomotive fireman. He became an engineer, and later a salesman. Then he organized his present business, | which has netted him a comfortable fortune. Mr. Hurley not only knows busi- ness and labor from both sides, but knows it from the Government's side. He was once chairman of the Federal Trade Commission and also acted with Samuel Gompers as a_delegate, repre- | senting business, to the international labor conference in Paris during the peace negotiations in 1919. American Workman Different. “The American workman has noth- ing in common with his more radical tellow worker in Europe,” said Mr. after I explained my mission. that when I attended the | the Mellon tax bill, old organizations and losing HURLEYISMS. “The American workman has nothing in common with his fellow-worker in Eu- rope.” “Secretary Mellon’s fight to reduce the surtax was a step toward preventing the sowing of the seed of so- cialism.” “Although alarming in it- self, the withdrawal of mil- lions of dollars from indus- tries for investment in tax- exempt securities was not as serious as the fact that it frequently was responsible for efficient executives be- coming less active in direct- ing the management of their direct contact with their workers, who had theretofore followed their advice and coun- sel—a powerful weapon against the radicals.” Labor Conference in Paris. There were all shades of delegates there, red, pink and white; but the majority were conservative, and it was easy to see that the minority’s objective was to get control of and nationalize the basic industries of every country. They wanted to capture the coal mines of the world, particularly. “But our workmen won't stand for that sort of thing. They are in- telligent and reasonable, and I am not greatly concerned that socialism will ever make great progress, as long as we have our present labor leaders and g as business men will do thelr Then Mr. Hurley made his interest- ing statement about radicalism and o ecretary Mellon’s fight to reduce the surtax was a step toward pre- venting the sowing of the seed of soclalism, and if Congress had passed we would have less industrial money in tax-exempt securities and more efficient methods in business today.” I was surprised at this statement and asked him what bearing the re- duction of the surtax would have upon socialism. “Well, let us analyze the situa- tion,” he continued. “Our sucess be- fore the war must be attributed, in a large measure, to the hard work of the presidents and other officials in industry. They were giving their personal attention to every branch of their business. Their wealth was in their business, and the salaries and dividends paid by their companies Wwere thelr chief ‘means of support. Their sporting thrills were derived from leading a successful organiza- tion, and their method of doing things forcefully was reflected all along the line, down to the day laborer. Sales- men were hustling, and when one of them procured a fair-sized order, there was rejoicing throughout the organ- ization. War Changed This. “As chairman of the Federal Trade Commission, I met thousands of busi- ness men whose sole objective was to learn from the Government ways to improve their business methods and be helpful to the industry of which they were a part. Many of them had started their enterprises with only a few dollars, but by courage and hard work had accomplished wonders, not only for themselves but for the coun- try. ' Then came war profits and war taxes. “After the war started in Europe we began to make enormous war profits, which were greatly increased after our entrance into the war. “With plenty of money, all made without any great effort on the part of presidents, managers and salesmen, we” began to feel that we were the most efficient and greatest business men in the world. This feeling was shared by almost every business organization after the war. If enor- mous profits could be made without hard work, why not continue the same methods? This would necessi- tate less time around the office and factory, and allow plenty of time for travel 'and outdoor sports. The opinion prevailed that about the only change necessary was that the wages of labor must be readjusted. “The Government had placed a heavy tax upon war profits and a high~ surtax on incomes, and thou- sands of business men purchased rge amounts of tax-exempt securities in or- der to escape the heavy toll of taxes. They quit putting money into_ their plants. In many cases they sold the securities of their companies, thereby substantially reducing their holdings in the propertles they managed. ‘Weapon Against Reds. “Although alarming in_itself, the withdrawal of millions of dollars from industries for investment in tax- exempt _securities was not as serious as the fact that it was frequently re- sponsible for efficient executives be- coming less active in directing the management of their old organizations and losing direct contact with their workmen, who had heretofore followed their advice and counsel—a powerful weapon against the radicals. “This country was built by pioneers upon a foundation of efficiency. Eff. clency enables us to compete with for- eign countries. Efficiency on the part of management and workmen pro- duces greater returns and permits higher wages. Inefficiency results in low wages, and, as a consequence, workmen become discontented and lis- ten to socialistic arguments, “If our leisure class does mnot in- crease in number too rapidly—if the business men of the country will not become overindulgent in their sports too early in life—with taxes, particu- larly surtaxes, further materially re- duced along the lines of Secretary Mellon’s recommendation, which will lessen the amount of money diverted from industry—and if the chief busi- ness executives will keep in close touch with their organizations and workmen, radicalism will not make much progress in this great country of ours.” PROPOSED SOFT COAL MERGER IS VIEWED WITH SKEPTICISM Plan to Unite $500,000,000 Holdings, or 30 Per Cent of Output, Into One Combine Considered Impossible by Officials. Viewing the projected $500,000,000 merger of soft-coal properties worked by non-union miners with a tongue in the cheek, Government officials who have been closely watching de- velopments in the coal flelds of the Nation are inclined to visualize the proposal as the Utoplan dream of some optimist who hopes thereby to reduce the price of coal to the ulti- mate consumer, since non-union coal sells lower than union-mined coal. Dispatches to Washington from Western and Midwestern points giving particulars of the gigantic merger were recelved with mixed feel- ings in Washington. Secretary of Commerce Hoover, always in the forefront when any economic question arises for discus- sion by the administration, had heard nothing of the project, nor had he been approached to accept the presi- dency of the merger, as reported. Other officials of the Department of Commerce knew nothing of the scheme, although some regarded it as a business accomplishment _little short of an impossibility. The Hoov- er presidency was the phase of the reports which caused not a little amusement, for Herbert Hoover is rather out of popularity @vith cer- tain bituminous operators because of the part he is said to have taken in arriving at the Jacksonville agree- ment, one of the precedent-making agreements in the coal industry. Trade Board Watching. The Federal Trade Commission has heard of the proposed merger and officials were said to be watching the developments scheduled in the new dispatches telling of the project. The Federal Trade Commission: ap- proaches such a proposal with a viewpoint differing from that of any other Government agepcy. It is mot concerned with production nor with labor troubles. Its chief interest in such a merger would be the possibil- ity of a monopoly which might have another corollary—the chance that a. price-fixing combine might come out of the scheme. Intrusted with administration of the Sherman law and other anti-trust legislation, the Federal Trade Com- mission has never been overly pop- ular with coal operators. Its activ- ities in the field of collection of statls- tics regarding price, production, wages and other incidentals of the most highly developed industry in the United States have not added to its esteem by the coal producers. Just a few vears ago certaln operators in the soft-coal fields sued the commis- sion to prevent obtaining of further information in connection with coal mining. The suit was won and the commission is now under permanent injunction, although this_injunction, it is claimed, would not bar it from an investigation of the merger scheme. Only a little more than a month ago the commission made public a series of findings as a result of an investiga- tion into the anthracite industry in which it alleged high premtum prices for anthracite coal, charging an an- thracite combination and excessive gross profits, all pald by the consumer when he puts coal in his bin. Legal Branch in Dark. The legal branch of the Govern- ment knows nothing officially of the merger, it was said at the Department of Justice. The latter department would doubtless not be too keen to take over inquiry of another angle in the coal industry since it is now en- gaged in quite a family row with the hard-coal trust. Ten great bituminous fields in West Virginia_and Kentucky, producing nearly 150,000,000 tons,” or about 30 per cent of the normal bituminous output, would be embraced in the great soft-coal combine, according to the dispatches out of the West. . The underwriters are reported tobe Dil- lon, Read & Cou JHQ ZSCORUl p¢ organized the Dodge Motor Co., and J. P. Morgan & Co. The production embraced in the group included in the merger would amount to about 80 per cent of the normal non-unfon output, centering in the State immediately south of the Mason and Dixon line. In time of strike in the union flelds the non- union producing combine would have a powerful weapon with which to fight the union. States such as Illinois, Indiana and Ohio are thoroughly and completely unionized. They are included in the tristate agreement which forms the basis of all soft-coal union con- tracts, and is in reality the strong- hold of the United Mine Workers of America, even though that organiza- tion has a strong foothold in the closely knit anthracite industry. Other developments in coal presage a prob- able combination of union bituminous mines in Illinols and other points in- cluded in the tristate agreement. These, however, large, pale beside the size of the projected non-union merger. FURTHER EVASION BY GERMANY OF DEBT PAYMENTS PREDICTED Obligation Voluntarily Assumed to Pay Less Than Half of Just Claim Will Be Dodged by Berlin 2 Government, BY ANDRE TARDIEU, Former French High Commissioner to the United States. By Radio to The Star. PARIS, August 22.—On numerous occaslons the writer has predicted in his dispatches events which subse- quently happened as foretold, such as the victory of the Cartel Des Gauches in 1924, Calllaux’s return to power and the parliamentary split between the Soctalists and Radicals. Today, without the risk of going wrong, the writer German offensive against reparations for this coming Autumn. From 1919 to 1924 Germany has_steadily pro- tested against those clauses in the peace treaties which required her to pay damages which her aggression caused. Little by little she wriggted out of the first obligation, which was total repayment of all damages. From the Boulogne conference of 1920 onward, her obligation, instead of being total, has been fractional, and this fraction BIG NATIONAL ORGANIZATION TO WORK FOR TAX REDUCTION Taxpayers’ Union Seeks to Enroll a Membership of Millions to Force Reduction in Cost of State And Local Government. Millions of people will be united in a concerted Nation-wide effort to re- duce and eliminate unnecessary tax- ation if the goal of a group already formed is reached, according to Jacob Pfeifer, leader of the movement. The project is being fostered by The Tax- payers’ Union, which is indorsed by many powerful business and indus- trial leaders of the country. “It is a matter of urgent national requirement,” Gen. H. M. Lord, di- rector of the Federal Bureau of the Budget of Washington, declared in a letter indorsing the movement. ‘“We have on the one hand a material re- duction in Federal taxation and on the other hand, as I understand it, a menacing increase in State and local taxation. “With this situation in mind I can conceive of no work more essential today than that directed to lightening State and local taxes. Four years ago the cost of government was divided {approximately 60 per cent Federal Government and 40 per cent State and local government. “In the short span of four years this ratio of govern- mental cost has been more than re- Versed, standing today at approxi- mately 36 per cent Federal Govern- ment and 64 per cent State and local government. ~ This is a _startling change of conditions,” the budget di- rector said. Movement Widely Indorsed. “Agriculture, labor, business and women’s orga: ons are grasping the importance the movement to- ward obtaining lower taxes and are indorsing it,” Mr. Pfeiffer declared. Mr. Pfeiffer, who is president of The Miller Rubber Co., Akron, Ohlo, has outlined the organization’s aims before Andrew W. Mellon, Secretary of the Treasury; Vice President Dawes and other high Government officials. Louis J. Taber, master of the National Grange, has indorsed the plan. f the leaders who represent agri- culture, labor, business, women and | study of taxes being collected with a. view of finding which ones are useless and unnecessary, and to impart that information to its members. Most of the information on such problems is so involved that only an expert can understand it,” said Mr. Pfeiffer. “We propose to place this information in such form that any- body who can read can understand it. The Taxpayers' Union hopes to show not only the big taxpayers, but the employes of industrial and busi- ness establishments, small stockhoid- ers, and the like, just how excessive taxation is eating into their incomes and salaries, and to show every per- son that unnecessary taxation, which exists at present, is detrimental to every person in the country, whether his toll to the tax collector is large or small. 23 Kinds of Taxes. “As an instance of the excessive levies, duplication and unnecessary taxation now imposed on industries, our company pays 23 kinds of taxes and other industrial and business or- ganizations must face similar hard. ships,” Mr. Pfeiffer declared. A temporary membership committee, with Mr. Pfeiffer as chatrman, is soliciting membership and funds for a five-year budget program before a permanent organization is formed. The union, financed for five years, will enable it to secure the services of men who could not be secured on a one-year basis for conducting its work. Stay Home or Pay Double Those Bratiano brothers who are now governing Rumania have resort- ed to several new methods to increase the national revenues. For instance, any Rumanian subject who spends more than six months of the year the general public could sit around a |abroad must pay double taxes on his table and discuss their tax problems, many laws that are now being urged would never see .the light of day,” C. A. Dyer, chairman of the executive committee of the Ohio State Grange, uniop- 18 -seeking 1A-Inake 4 Brave lucative, income from securities and on reve- nue derived from houses and land. As many Rumanians have been in the habit of living in Paris and re- home only for the Spring and Autumn seasons, the-new tax she predicts a great | ould ¥ the Tardieu Says. has been progressively decreased, one conference followed another until in 1924 the Dawes plan, accepted first by Premier Poincare and then by Premfer Herriot, reduced Germany's original obligations 60 per cent. To induce France to swallow this pill two arguments were made: First, that Germany’s debt had been reduced to a figure which unquestionably she could pay, and second, that instead of dictating terms to Germany as at Versailles, her voluntary consent had been obtalned to an arrangement which therefore she would honorably keep. Before a year has passed both these predictions have been confuted. Ger- many, which thus far has made pa: ments solely from the $200,000,000 loan granted by the allies, is beginning to say she will cease paying when this money is exhausted. Dr. Schacht, president of the reichsbank, declared last June that the new reparations figures which Mr. Dawes and his col- leagues deemed Germany could easily pay were beyond her means. So much for the practical side. On the moral side, Dr. Scha -t did not say, “Germany must exs.'ite this solemn engagement to which she has placed her signature and which rep- resents enormous attenuation of the original obligation.” He said, as Hugo Stinnes previously had said at Spa, “The allies must be sensible.” In other words, whether Germany must pay little or much, her attitude is the same. It is the same whether the terms are dictated or are voluntarily agreed to. She is not disposed to pay in any case, and any paper she signs is always @ scrap of paper. Millions For Housing. Will those American readers who sometimes accuse the writer of anti- German prejudice please admit that the attitude of a man like Dr. Schacht gives some foundation for his pre- dictions? Will they permit him to add that at this very moment, besides spending large sums for military pur- poses in deflance of the treaty, Ger- many is using money which rightly belongs to her creditors to subsidize various German states and cities and for building new houses, thus placing Germany far ahead of France, Bel- glum and England in this matter of housing? Yet France not only is evacuating the Ruhr as she promised last year, but also is quitting Duis- burg, Duesseldorf and Ruhrot, occu- pied in 1921 by unanimous agreement of the allies because of Germany’s violation of the disarmament clauses of the treaty which still are as fla- grant as ever. For a long time France has been urged to abandon coercive measures and adopt a mild manner. She is now following this advice. What is the result? Germany’s offensive against the Dawes plan will begin in. October, at the precise moment when the French delegates go to America to settle the debt repayment problem. May Amer- ica note well this coincidence in judg- ing Germany and France at that time. France—attacked, devastated, vic- torlous—is preparing to pay ail she owes. . Germany—aggressor, intact, defeated—is preparing to evade pay- ment of the most just debt a nation ever owed. (Copyright. 1925.) Floral World Novelty. Roses made of rubber are the latest novelty in the floral world, but they are so scented and tinted that it is dif- flcult-to distinguish them from real flowdry Rubber roses are the inven- tion of 'Mrs. McGarvie Munn of Eng- land, who hopes soon to establish work shops in which she will teach dis. gbled ex-soldlers the art of making these l.rflflé{nl blofl-oml. ‘The g:dvu;; are. washable, and are descr! "Rubber’ Growers’ a8 EXPULSION OF GERMANS IS DEFENSIBLE POLICY Polish Evictions From Silesia Necessary to Preserve Homogeneity of Nation and for Protection. BY FRANK H. SIMONDS. HE persistence and growing bitterness of the crisis pro- voked by the expulsion by the Poles of German residents of upper .Silesia who in the plebiscite three years ago voted for German sovereignty has evoked many American comments, not a few of which have been based upon senti- mental rather than critical grounds. It is obviously nothing less than a tragedy to see thousands of people suddenly driven forth from the land in which they were born, and the conditions which have attended the enforced migration have added to the horror. Moreover, used as we are in America to the peaceful association of many European races come here to establish themselves, the whole episode seems barbaric. Yet the facts are rather different from the superficial appearance and, bad as the method of expulsion may appear, it is still a matter of debate whether in the long run it may not prove, where possible, the simplest solution for one of the most difficult world problems. In the present Polish instance the situation is clear. In the plebiscite of three years ago taken in all of upper Silesia the vote favored Germany by approximately seven to five, but the north went solidly Ger- man and the south equally solidly Polish, while in the great indust region of the center there was only a slight German preponderance. In accordance with the provisions of the treaty of Versailles, and after long disputes, the territory was divided under the decision of a_commission named by the League of Nations, and Poland received the south, Pless and Rybnik Counties, which voted for Poland, and a portion of the center, including the cities of Konigshutte and Cattowitz, which had voted for Germany. Thus Poland acquired a considerable German population which had indicated its desire to re- main German. Germans Were Immigrants. This German population was grouped in citles and about indus- trial establishments and, while it had been relatively long settled in Silesia, was nevertheless the result of imm gration, for the native population has been, since the beginning of history, Slavic. These Germans had come and settled after Prussian conquest and they had been responsible for the great industrial development of the last century, but they were not- withstanding quite as forelgn as, for example, the Scandinavian influx which has peopled much of the Amer- fcan Northwest. Unlike our immigrants, however, they had declined to fuse with the native race or, rather, they regarded the Poles as our immigrants regarded the native Indians. Supported by the central Prussian government, they exercised political control. But with the rgturn of Polish rule after nearly seven centuries, they found them selves not only a minority but, hav- ing voted to retain German rule, lia- ble to expulsion under the terms of the general settlement. The legal right of the Polish Government to expel them was presently upheld by the League of Nations itself. Despite this legal right, however, not a little American comment has dealt severely with Poland, arguing that the part of wisdom and human- ity demanded that there should be no expulsion and a policy of reconcilia- tion, not severity, would have been better. This is, however, to ig- nore certain facts. Germany on her side has never recognized as final or right the loss of Upper Silesia and steadily reaffirms her purpose to re- gain it. In the present negotiations over a guarantee pact with France she has declined to give similar assur- ances for her eastern frontlers. Poland is therefore on notice that Germany means to reclaim Upper Silesia. Danger to Poland. This German purpose has two con- sequences. In the first place, the German residents have no temptation to yield to the situation of the hour and become loyal Polish citizens. In the second place, they constitute a permanent danger as they serve not alone as a basis for German manipu- lation but also a pretext for German propaganda. While there is a large German population in Polish Upper Silesia, the agitation for reunion in Germany will continué and, in case of war, Polish security would be com- promised by this alilen and hostile element. But the Upper Silesian question is only a detail in the far broader Ger- man-Polish dispute which covers all the border land from the Baltic to the headwaters of the Oder, from Danzig to Cattowitz. Here for ten centuries the German and Slavic races have not only been in contact but as the tides have ebbed and flowed the races have become intermingled There was a time when the Slav fron- tier was west of Berlin and there was a moment in the period of great- est power of the Teutonic knights when German rule was pushed far to the east of the existing line. As the treaty makers at Versailles dis- covered in 1919, it is quite impossible to draw a frontier which would sepa- rate the two races. But before the war the German frontier had been pushed very deep- ly into undeniably Polish territory and several millions of Poles in West Prussia, Posen and Silesia were Ger- man subjects. They had been de- prived of national and racial inde- pendence by the odious partitions of the earlier. century and they wete sub- jected to a long regime of tyranny which' culminated in the efforts to replace them on the land by enforced expropriation, one of the most brutal of the Bismarckian policies. In all this frontier region the Germans were in the minority, although they had settled largely in the cities and in a few scattered country districts about the cities. Treaty Started Migration. ‘The Treaty of Versallles did not un- dertake to return to Poland her an- clent frontiers; it limited itself to seeking to give the Poles the dis- tricts in which there was a clear Polish majority, although this nat- urally involved transferring to Polish sovereignty many enclaves with a German majority, districts in which the people were German and obvi- ously hostile fo the Polish annexa- tion. As a consequence, when West Prussia, Posen, Upper Silesla and other border districts refurned to Poland there was an immediate emi- gration of many thousands of Ger- mans, a migration which was partly Poles with utmost harshness, they could expect little consideration. Yet this emigration was discouraged by the German government, which saw in the removal of this German ele ment the elimination of an argument and an ald to reconquest. So in due time the Germans began to seek to remain and the Poles adopted a more or less settled policy of expulsion. In the case of the Germans of Upper Silesta, the Germans are handi- capped by having to admit the prec edent of Alsace-Lorraine, where their annexation in 1871 was followed b a similar migration of the inhabitar who had elected to remain French citizens, some 200,000 abandonin their home: nd in some cases, in Metz, even taking up the dead from the cemeteries that they might lie in French soil The German-Polish situation was still further aggravated by the en during bad blood between the gov ernments and the multiplicity of dis putes. Not only did the Germans refuse to recognize as definitive the loss of the lands ced Poland, but in a number of cases they car ried on a policy of pinpricks whi led to Polish reprisal might more exactly governments were < ble for the enduring friction, though the Polish was innocent any design to annex more Germ territory Reprisal Charge Denied. The last episode, the failure to agr upon a tariff adjustment and the con- sequent tariff war, which closed the German market to Upper Silesian co and iron, was followed so nearly 1 the expuision affair as to suggest prisal, vet this is denied fn Warsaw. Be this as it may, not only are many thousands of Germans now affected, but since the making of peace seven vears ago upward of a million G mans have left Polish lands and it hardly to be denied that Polish polic would welcome the departure of tk last Teuton. German reprisal cannot effective because, while ain number of Pol ent German territory, they almost without exception industrial workers without any real roots; more- over, most of this population, once very numerous in the Ruhr, has al ready gone on to France and settled in the devastated area where there are now whole villages with only Polish inhabitants. Germany thus sees a systematic up- rooting of the German elements all along her eastern boundary and thus the diminution of her chance to re cover these lands. It is not true th the Polish action has increased the Polish danger of German attack t se there never has been at time any chance of German accept ance of the loss of West Prussia of Upper Silesia or toleration of separation of Danzig under the free ity arrangement. But the whole ex pulsion episode has led to an ex, losion of German resentment and ser s to emphasize the enduring danger in the east of Europe. But, after all, what is most signif icant for Americans in the whole af- fair is the underlying European cond tion which it discloses. Not only is there a Pole-German situation in’ the stula and Oder lands, but there is a German-Czech situation to Czechoslc vakia, where there is a ( n o nority of 3,500,000, at least a quart of the whole population, and occupy ing solidly many frontier districts This population, which is hostile to the Czechs and eager to to German rule, constitute: ger and the Czechs on thei adopted a policy of enforced : tion, which has been quite as disturh ing in Berlin. Czech Security Menaced. As long as there is a German minor ity in Czechoslovakia, the unity and security of the new state are menaced, but here the policy of expulsion is un- available and that of denationalization the only possible substitute. But it as certainly makes for international un rest, and just as German policy envis- ages the reconquest of the lost eastern provinces, it contemplates some course of action to protect the Germanic character of the large Teuton minori ties in Bohemia and Moravia The German question in Poland and Czechoslovakia is, too, matched by both German and Hungarian ques- tions in Rumania and by a Hungarian question in Czechoslovakia. In Ruma- nia the frontiers were drawn at Paris to include nearly a million Hungarians who lived in enclaves within the area igned to Rumania. Theoretically their protection was provided in the treaty, but actually they constitute a permanent danger, since Hungary continues to plan to reconquer those lost areas and her race brethren in them beckon with ever-increasing ear- nestne: A policy of expulsion has been in progress here for seven yvears and many hundreds of thousands of Magyars have been forced or per sdaded to quit Transylvania, the Ba- nat and other areas adjoining Hun gary, and return to their already crowded Magyar state. The Germans, who could hardly be driven out to re turn to a.land fheir ancestors left many centuries ago, have been sub- jected to a process of denationaliza- tion, which has aroused bitter but fu- tile ‘German protests. Of course, the most gigantic illus- tration of this policy was the still re cent exchange of populations between Greece and Turkey, which involved the transfer:of more than a million Greeks from Asia Minor, where their ancestors had been established since the classical age, and the reciprocal removal from continental Greece of upward of half a million Turks, whose forebears had followed the wave of invasion of five centurles ago. be ver there are a s left in the ‘Wanderers Over Europe. Indeed, all over Europe a new wan- dering of the tribes is taking place. In 1914 the east and south of Europe was a kaleidoscopic ethnographic pic- ture as disclosed by a race map and the conquering races, the Germans, the Hungarians and the Turks had flung out relatively vast racial out- posts established in the midst of sub- ject races. Remaking the map of Burope in_conformity with the doc trine of self determination has had as its inevitable concomitant, the re- moval of those minorities, who rep. resented the principle of the superior race and ruled subject majorities in the Interests of an alien minority. It has been inevitable, too, that pre- cisely as the subject and theoretically inferfor races have been submitted to intolerable persecution at the hands of the dominant minorities, when they come into absolute mastery they should employ the spirit and methods of their recent oppressors. What the (Continued on Third Page)