The Daily News. FRIDAY, JULY 2, 1920. FOCH'S WARNING.

Taranaki Daily News, 2 July 1920, Page 4

The Daily News. FRIDAY, JULY 2, 1920. FOCH'S WARNING.

The remarks made by Marshal Poch, in the course of his recent interview with the Paris correspondent of the Daily Mail, show, that he has lost none of his profound mistrust of Germany, and once again he stressed the imperative need for carrying out to the full the conditions of the Armistice, as well as those contained in the Peace Treaty. Marshal Poch does not regard German disaraa ment as merely a question of destroying fifteen thousand guns. It is in the militaristic spirit, of the people that he sees the chief menace to peace- "If,",he said, "that spirit is translated, into action, there will be a new, terrible, and swifter weapon in the air. The Al, lies must increase their distance from the enemy. The Rhine-bank must be evacuated; for from there Ostend could be smashed, and from Ostend London could be laid waste between a single dawn and dark. The duty of the next generation is not to abandon its precautions." The warning is one that is fully justified. Germany's persistent evasion of the Treaty and Armistice terms admits of no other construction than deliberate policy of gaining advantages by hook or by crook, and particularly by Labor agitations. There is no doubt the German militarists fondly hoped for a split among the Allies, but this hope was dispelled by the Boulogne Conference, the outcome of which was a complete restoration of Allied loyalty and unity of purpose, as will be demonstrated at the forthcoming conference with German delegates at Spa. Only one policy is possible when treating with the Germans —absolute firmness ia compelling the vital provisions of the Peace Treaty to be observed to the letter. Apparently the Allies are determined to enforce effectual disarmament, destruction of war material, reduction of military effectives, payment of indemnities, and the prevention of the manufacture of arms, munitions, warships, and aircraft. Thereby alone can peace be assured. According to a recent statement by Mr. Winston Churchill, Germany possesses 17,000 guns and 15,000 aeroplanes. The present German Government is at best a makeshift coalition! thafe can be upset at a

moment's notice, and the result of the Spa Conference may supply the opportunity. The militarist? are still a power to be reckoned with, and indications point to their readiness to seize any favorable opportunity to regain dominance. No one knows more surely than Marshal Poch the danger of abating one iota from the Treaty terms. When Mr. Lloyd George returned from the San Remo Conference he said: —

"The guns wc must get; the aeroplanes we must get. That is essential. We cannot allow these terrific weapons of war to be left lying about in Germany, where there is nobody m real authority to deal with them. It is too dangerous. You can never tell what may happen Someone may arise who may know what use to make of these weapons. Therefore they have" got to be cleared out."

There is no sign of yielding to German wiles in that statement, though it does not envisage the terrible danger of attack by j aircraft to which Marshal ! Pock attaches such great importance. Nor does the statement refer to reparation—another matter on which the Allies should insist on being settled to their-satis-faction. Exemplary patience has been displayed over this question' owing to Germany's great difficulties and troubles, though it is perfectly clear.that Germany has persistently refrained from making any effort to pay. This obligation is practically the' main business of the Spa Conference. It is for the Allies to name the irreducible minimum that will be accepted, and to enforce payment (if necessary), at the same time making the period over which the amount is spread as reasonable as the circumstances will justify. Had Germany been in any way alive to her best interests she would have disbanded her large army, thereby enabling the soldiers to engage in industrial development, and thus have paved the way to discharging her Treaty obligations, but the militaristic spirit of the people is still in evidence, and that is .a deterrent as well as a raenaca. Although there appears to be complete unanimity among the Allies as to the policy to be adopted at the Spa Conference, Marshal Poch's warning should have a stimulatiye effect on them. Both the present and the next generation must be on strict guard and take exceptional precautions against this wily nation, nor will it be prudent for succeeding generations to relax their vigilance, otherwise the tremendous sacrifices made during the war will hare been in vain.