STRAIGHT TALK.

Hokitika Guardian, 24 February 1923, Page 4

STRAIGHT TALK.

U-K.MKNC'K.vr TO AMERICA. _M Clemoneenu made some Mutable speeches in the United .States during: 1 iiis recent tour, but none more strik- ; jug tlnm tile address which lie delivered on December 8, a lew days beline bis j departure. It was given in the Wash-j iiigtou .Memorial Hall, be tore a bnl- | bant social and official gathering, and loses none of its point by reason of the j crisis which has since developed in; Europe. The “grand old man'' of France was introduced to the audience by Major-General Bliss, one "j the members of the American I’eaee Committee at Baris, in these words : “He may not be a good Englishman or American, but he is a good Frenchman, and I think that is what the good God created him for.” ‘•YOU HAD TIME TO THINK.” M. Clemenceau said: —Wc are all in a bad lix—Franco. America, and Europe. Don't believe that I come to plead for France. I do not ask for money. I do mu ask for help. I do not ask for protection. I ask for nothing but friendship and good how t and good-will. These are more valuable to me than ail your gold, although I know you have a good dead of it. I am helping my country, it is true, but hollievo me. I am help-ng you at the* same time, because the: cost ni a free people in the world cannot be independent from l lie cost ol another free people. \Ye fought and wc waded for the American people to come, and they were very long in coming. If there was ever a war in which a nation had time id reflect upon what they were going to dii. I think it was America in the ease of this war. You luid two vents and a half, almost three. to make up your minds. Nobody can say that you were surprised, that you had no time to think "f the consequences. You had. It seem.‘d to me that the questions which you discussed mostly were these: “Flow far are we threatened? Flow fur are we going to he threatened:' Flow far are we going to lie entangled in European polities, with its danger. if we cannot find some way soon to get away from it and live by ourselves V' “YOU Dll) NOT GO ON." These are onlv the most natural questions. You took your tini". you decided, and you eanm with us: and we 'were very glad to see you. not only because von brought us hope, but you brought ii- more Vim brought us certainty (,r victory. Tie- American -tur,— men took the lead in the way of the armistice and of the treaty. We received the Forteen Point- of President AVilsoii. which, according to our views was in itself one of the greatest, maybe the ■•react cent „f

Tilt- peace treaty had to comidcr two aims: Itcjararious ami saivtv. President Wilson had said “Safety for democracy.'’ You brought your American | riiiciplcs. They were enscribed in the Fourteen Points ami President Wilson went to Congress and in an address he said : “If these condirinus of peace are not insured to us. we will go on.” Have those conditions been ensured:' Are you obliged to sav “No?” Aon are obliged to answer that. And you did not go on. That was the great pity, because with you going the Germans thought that Von disinterested yourselves from the execution you see." Germany is in a veiy had linaia ial condition to-day. il is true. I hear it said every day that that is because of our asking too much from her. The fact is that Germany inflated her finances in order to destroy the French credit, because we depended upon paying our debts and have not been able to do so because v.e have not received the money that has been promised to its under the signature of France, if England. of the Pre-ideiit of the United States, and so on. We have been obliged to borrow money from America to spend in American markets for the purchase of equipment, munitions and so forth. That is the cause of our debt to you. That debt we owe; we do not overlook that debt, but don’t you understand that we cannot pnv ruder the conditions that f am describing unless Germany pays us and if Germany is not allowed to pay us what can we do? I have my watch and my gold spectacles and that i.s all I can offer. AIOKAI, STRENGTH. I came here to ask you why you went to war. Did you go to wav io help France reject the enemy? ft. is not done. Did you go to make democracy safe ? book afar and you see the barbarity of Turkey and the anar eliv of Russia and.the need of revenge of Germany grouped and met together under the Treaty of Rapallo. That sets them together, these three Pow-

I do nut say that war is coming. I hope it is not. But 1 do say it looks ns though it might bo coming. You arc strong with your arms, you arc as strong as your gold, and tlie great moral situation of 'American in the world is strong. But it is not so much that I depend on that; I simply say that if the moral assurance is given that America decs not disinterest herself from the execution of the treaty that is enough. Then the Germans will keep quiet. And the Turks—T cannot suffer the Turks; I do not think anyoi e can -hut they. too. would keep quiet. And Russia will understand that if she wants to come back to the civilised world she has only to perform civilised act.-. That is all T say. My message is pence—peace by any means. You have got tile League of Nations, yon have got your four-Power arrangement ; you may do something now if you life. Of course, the League of Nations has the advantage that you can go there—may be with some reservation to keep yourself free of its dangers: I do not know, but I suggest now that the League has done much for Austria and Upper Silesia and it has done it in a rather good wav.

T put it very clearly. T hope; at least. I tried my best to do so. and I hope you will not misjudge me. I have nothing to establish, no demonstration to make. F do not say you should interfere. T do not want to know anything about that. Tt is for yon to fix your fate as you please. It belongs to you.