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degree Mussolini's suspicions of her motives. France, unwilling to suffer an eclipse of prestige in the Danubian and Balkan countries, has reasserted herself there- perhaps to the unsettlement of some of Italy's plans. At least M. Radič, the aggressively anti-Italian peasant leader of Croatia, whose sympathies are supposed to be pro-German, retired from the Pašič Cabinet in Yugoslavia and created a stalemate there. Somebody has been steadily promoting the idea of a Balkan Locarno, to include include Yugoslavia, Greece, Bulgaria, and Rumania, and considerable progress in that direction has been made. Although Italy is reported to favor such a scheme, it would lessen the need of her friendly services in that part of Europe.

Italy has discovered, moreover, that as one of the signatories of the Locarno Agreement, guaranteeing both France and Germany from aggression on the Rhine, she cannot very well become implicated in any scheme of alliances, whether conceived in the Locarno spirit or not, that might be directed against either of the other Continental parties to that compact — an interpretation of her obligations that happens just at present to work in favor of Germany.

In Greece, where there has been a new Presidential election, General Pangalos, the new Chief Executive, aims at an ultimate return to constitutionalism; and it is interesting for Americans to note that he would do this by copying our own system of government — that is, he would give the Executive the powers of an American President and make the Senate and Chamber purely legislative bodies, thus doing away with a cabinet responsible to Parliament and with it avoiding the constant political intriguing and ministerial overturns that have done so much to discredit all parliamentary institutions since the World War.

At the end of March a new cabinet under General Averescu, who commanded Rumania's armies during the World War, took office at Bucharest. The General, a peasant's son himself, is the leader of the Peasant Party, which is virtually Left-wing Liberal, but his Cabinet contains members of the Rightwing Liberals, or Nationalists, who have been in power under Bratiano for several years, and whom he has until recently bitterly opposed. The new Ministry, which is not welcomed with enthusiasm by the European press, will probably continue the policies of its predecessor. Its main function is to hold a general election, the first under the new law, which provides that the Party receiving forty per cent of the total number of ballots cast shall be entitled to sixty-five per cent of the seats in the Chamber - provided, of course, that this forty per cent constitutes a plurality. Rumania presents sharp contradictions just at present. On the one hand, Government finances seem to be healthy, and last year's budget closed with a nominal surplus. On the other hand, private business is bad and the currency remains depreciated. depreciated. Money or credit for commercial purposes is practically impossible to obtain. At the time of the New Year's settlements last winter more than one thousand commercial drafts were protested in Bucharest in a single day.

Conditions are apparently quiescent for the moment in Morocco while France and Spain negotiate with the Moors for a peaceable settlement of the difficulties there. Last month the London Times published a letter which Abd-el-Krim addressed to its editor late in January but which was delayed in transmission, in which the Riffian leader declared: 'We demand nothing but our rights, and we defend nothing beyond what we consider it our duty to

defend. The sole purpose of all our actions is to arrive at peace. We desire to educate our people and to reform our country. We are always ready to make peace and to come to terms, as soon as we can perceive that our enemies recognize justice and admit our legitimate rights without (the enjoyment of) which we cannot exist. The Rif has characteristics of its own and an ability to exist which entitle it to be governed for and by its own people and to live as other nations do, in liberty and independence. The Rif trusts that when it obtains those rights, and its just demands are accepted, it will live in peace and tranquillity with all its neighbors and open its door to foreigners in a fitting way to bring about happiness. These are our hopes and our desires.' This, of course, is not a clear-cut peace proposal, and the negotiations that are said to have occurred or to be contemplated will presumably be conducted with a more precise agendum. All parties are weary of the campaign. France has many reasons besides aversion to sterile fighting to wish for a speedy settlement of her troubles in that quarter. Pertinax, the slashing leader-writer of L'Echo de Paris, referred recently to some of these: "The French régime in Morocco is passing through a painful crisis. The depreciation of our currency, which falls faster than the prices of merchandise and property can be marked up or salaries can be raised, has created a spirit of irritation that extends even to the natives. Hitherto they have lived in the shadow of a great chief whose alert and powerful personality has masked the feebleness of his government at home. Now they have discovered, all of a sudden, that our Parliament is in helpless chaos. . . . Added to this, they learn of ambitious colonization projects which we have imprudently advertised and which they regard as a sign that

they are to be despoiled of their property. At the same time, bickerings among our officials fill the local press and lower their respect for our administration.'

The report of the Permanent Mandates Commission on the troubles in Syria presented to the Council of the League last month escaped public notice on account of the more important matters before that body, but it contains some severe reflections on the French administration. It began by complaining that the mandatory Power had not supplied the Commission with proper information. It found the judicial system set up there unsatisfactory, condemned tying up the Syrian pound with the French franc, and censored the mishandling of the Druse. It contained some caustic criticism of General Sarrail and his subordinates, and hints that some of the methods proposed by M. Jouvenel, the present CommissionerGeneral, are of doubtful advisability, but concluded with an expression of hope that he will be able to repair the errors of the past. Le Matin's Cairo correspondent writes that every day brings new evidence that the Druse revolt did not break out spontaneously in Syria, and is not a national affair, but the result of a plot worked out long beforehand by anti-French and antiEuropean organizations, the most important of which is the Syro-Palestine Committee in Cairo. The members of this body are rich men ready to devote their wealth to supplying arms and munitions to insurgents and to sending delegates to Geneva or Rome to protest against French rule. They have a Syrian Information Office at Cairo which supplies news dispatches and articles to two hundred and eleven newspapers printed in Arab, Hindu, and Western tongues, and has a body of twenty-five correspondents constantly in its employ.

Lord Irwin has assumed office as India's new Viceroy, succeeding Lord Reading, who leaves the Indian people in a better political mood than when he took office. Nevertheless, disorders like the Hindu-Moslem outbreak in Calcutta early in the month, which cost the lives of forty people, indicate the seriousness of the internal problems that face the new administrator. An attempt has been made to unite the political parties opposed to the Swarajists and Noncoöperationists under the name of United Nationalists.

For a time it looked as if an unpleasant incident might arise over the closing of the Taku River by General Feng's forces at Tientsin in order to keep Chang Tso-lin from landing troops to attack that city. A Japanese destroyer was fired upon and members of its crew were wounded. The Powers promptly presented a note of protest and the river was opened, and Chang Tso-lin lieutenants occupied Tientsin. China's triangle, which it is to be hoped is not eternal, still involves Chang Tso-lin, the Christian General Feng Yu-hsiang, and Wu Pei-fu, who has come back sufficiently to be recognized as the former's ally instead of his opponent as last summer. Feng is said to be withdrawing to the northwestern provinces to recuperate and possibly to accumulate a supply of ammunition. In the South, Canton is more or less active, apparently preparing to attack Wu Pei-fu from the rear. Japanese and European influence is said to have been thrown into the scales of war in favor of Chang Tso-lin and Wu Pei-fu, who has always been the favorite of the Western Powers. The New Statesman declares that 'foreign Governments and foreign armament firms and shippers certainly are playing a mischievous hand in this imbroglio, and it is essential that the traffic in munitions should be stopped'; but it emphasizes at the same time that

the stopping must be done by Russia as well as by the Governments represented at the treaty ports.

Japan has been humiliated by disclosures of corruption or attempted corruption in the Diet and by an unseemly fight in that body which resulted in more or less — superficial injury to one or two of the members. The press expressed profound disgust at both incidents. Tokyo Asahi said: 'The brutality of the members of the Diet debases the moral standards of the nation. . . . That body is a group of wild beasts.' Yorodzu described Japan as a country entering the shadow after the sunset of the Meiji age. Even her religious world 'is all corruption, decadence, deterioration, and immorality.' The growth of great cities and the rise of modern industrialism have demoralized the nation. Children are growing up to think of the Diet as a place of 'ugly disputes and brutal fights.' Simultaneously, however, a new Proletarian Party is being formed, Party is being formed, this time with the consent of the Government, and there is evidence of new political forces astir throughout the nation.

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All of the Australian States except one have Labor Governments, although - largely due to the influence of Victoria, which is more Conservative the Federal Ministry is merely Liberal. Recently the Premiers of the Labor States proposed to London that the office of State Governor should always be filled by an Australian citizen nominated by the local Cabinet, instead of by a titled or knighted Britisher as at present. The minister to whom this request was addressed replied tactfully that the British Government would of course bow to the wishes of the Australian people, but that so important a constitutional change could only be made when there was undoubted evidence that the Australians really wanted it. The Labor Party holds

office in the States in most instances by narrow margins. The stay-at-home vote, it is assumed, is in favor of the present practice of appointing an outsider as the decorative head of the Government. No serious conflict has arisen, or can arise, between a Governor appointed by London and the people of the State or Commonwealth to which he is designated.

Mexico has been disturbed by rumors of a new Presidential campaign in which General Obregón would be slated to succeed President Calles, thus inaugurating the unfortunate alternation in office that prevailed under the Diaz régime. General Obregón, however, has proposed an amendment to the Constitution to forbid the reëlection of

a President for a second term either immediately after serving his first term or subsequently. The Tacna-Arica plebiscite has not been held as scheduled, and a diplomatic solution of the territorial dispute between Chile and Peru is being sought with Latin America as eager as the United States for a speedy agreement. In debating Brazil's claim to a permanent seat in the League Council some Latin-American newspapers, which have been disposed hitherto to consider the League a counterpoise to the United States and a guaranty against 'Yankee imperialism,' now exhibit resentment at the disposition of Europe to use that body to establish 'a sort of tutelage' over South America.

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DISARMAMENT AND SECURITY1

BY JACQUES KAYSER

"To make war one must have armaments. Abolish armaments, and you abolish war.' Ordinary people reasoned thus before 1914. But it took the World War to make so simple a proposition comprehensible to governments. Before that conflict the only people who understood the perils of an armed peace and who insisted upon the limitation, and eventual abolition, of armaments by international accords were regarded as Socialists and Radicals. Today these demands are considered normal, legitimate, and wise.

Even the very drafters of the Versailles Treaty were impressed with this truth, and expressly recognized it in the Eighth Article of the League Covenant, which declares that 'the members of the League recognize that the maintenance of peace requires the reduction of national armaments to the lowest point consistent with national safety and the enforcement by common action of international obligations,' and requires the Council to 'formulate plans for such reduction for the consideration and action of the several Governments.' Furthermore, the Fifth Article of the Treaty itself provides for the disarmament of Germany, and machinery was set up at Versailles to prevent any of the conquered countries from creating military establishments endangering the peace of the world.

It is in virtue of the Eighth Article of the League Covenant from which we have just quoted that this question 1 From La Revue Mondiale (Paris currentaffairs semimonthly) March 15

will come before a Preparatory Commission at Geneva on the fifteenth of May this year. That Commission will not have to consider all phases of disarmament, for certain of these have already been settled or are reserved for separate discussion. It has previously been decided that there shall be com

plete publicity in respect to the armaments of all countries; and the members of the League have obligated themselves to furnish such information to the Secretariat of that body. It was upon the basis of such information that the League issued the first volume of its Military Annual two years ago. International trade in arms and the munitions of war has been regulated, and methods of controlling their manufacture are being studied. Last June a majority of the nations of the world, excepting Soviet Russia, adhered to a convention for restricting the international trade in war materials. The two principal provisions of this convention are that the exportation of arms to private parties is prohibited, and that the exportation to governments is regulated and supervised. No agreement has yet been reached for regulating the mere manufacture of war materials, but that subject is under investigation.

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