The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is in corporated the West Coast Times. FRIDAY, APRIL 13, 1928.

Hokitika Guardian, 13 April 1928, Page 2

The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is in corporated the West Coast Times. FRIDAY, APRIL 13, 1928.

A DANGEROUS QUARREL. EvkhyjiOOY who is seriously concerned for the future of the League of Nations and the prospects of European peace must be relieved, says the Auckland Star, to learn that Poland and Lithuania have at last taken practical stops towards the settlement of their long standing frontier dispute. The formation of a new Poland by the League of Nations m 1919 made it necessary to fix definitely the boundary line which separates these two countries, but the claims put forward by the two States were extremely complicated and difficult to decide. At

last, in 102:5, tlie Ambassadors' Conference, representing tho Allies, assigned tho province and city of Vilna to Poland, and from that moment there has always been imminent danger of war between tho two countries. The questions at issue in the delimitation of this frontier were partly racial or nationalist, partly economic. Bnt the situation is further complicated bv Poland’s “historical” claim to large areas once ruled over by her kings centuries ago. The award of the Ambassadors’ Conference was regarded by Poland as final, but by tbo Lithuanians as merely provisional, and to mark their determination never to accept this diminution of their territory the Lithuanians have firmly refused to make any formal peace with Poland. A state of war has, in fact, technically existed along the disputed frontier for the last seven years, and tho League of Nations therefore summoned the representatives of the two States to Geneva in December last to discuss the situation fully. At this meeting a dramatic scene took place between Marshal Pilsudski. who is virtually dictator of Poland, and AT. Wnldemaras, the Prime Minister of Lithuania. At last after Pilsudski had threatened to withdraw to Poland and give the signal for war, Briancl intervened. and Waldomnrns was induced to give an assurance of peaceful intentions. The Council of the League seems now to have, decided that tho right moment had come to assert itself. It adopted a resolution to the effect that the “.state of war” which had officially existed for seven years between Poland and Lithuania is now at an end, and it further resolved that, if more trouble arose later, the League, acting through the President of the Council, “might take such steps as would be considered necessary to prevent another crisis.” This amounts to

an assertion of authority over an independent sovereign State which tho League has not claimed hitherto. But apart from this, the main question at issue is still unsettled. No suggestion was made that Vilna must he restored to Lithuania. But on the other hand, as long as the Poles occupy the province without the sanction of the League, and without any confirmation of their title, Lithuania is justified in demanding aiul expecting their withdrawal. The Conference now sitting at Kovno must arrange some sort of compromise agreeable to both parties, under penalty of compelling the League to intervene, or plunging Europe again into the tragedy of a great war.