Sept. 28.
THe Labour Government has, had beginner's luck. It came into power just as France was beginning to tire of the Ruhr'
adventure and was inclined to believe that there was truth in the British contention that while the policy of armed intervention would quite likely ruin Germany it would bring nothing of any value of France, So under new French administration Mr.
MacDonald's suavity succeeded where Mr, Buldwin's hard common sense and Mr. Lloyd George's impetuous rhetoric had failed. The Dawes plan of reparations has been accepted by Germany and she now seeks admission to the council of the League of Nations, The thorn} question of inter-allied debts} still awaits solution and, while! it will not be easy, all parties are agreed that some sort settlement must be made, the same goodwill that has hitherto marked their deliberations continues, we may believe that the allied statement will find a solution. When that has taken place the world will breathe freely and the wounds made by: the war will begin to heal.
But with the exception of this patch of blue in the national outlook dark seas and stormy skies confront the Government everywhere. When the Great Powers announced that, the war: to end war being finished, right was henceforth to be might, optimists expected that the lion would immediately lie down with the lamb. 'The possession of a powerful navy or invincible army was, in the future, to count for nothing in the' negotiations: between nations. Though history: testified that the shadow of big! battalions in the background had always lent an air of plausibility to the arguments of those who were fortunate enough to have such adjuncts to the conduct of a conference, in future, such. considerations were to be disregarded. The kingdoms hitherto called "petty" were to stand on precisely the same footing as those that had arrogated to themselves the title of "great powers." The tongue not the! sword, eloquence not valour, was, to decide the fate of peoples and usher in the era of great peace.
It was anticipated that the smaller nations would respond gaily to these overtures and that the delegates to each succeeding conference would be Like Chinese guests at a wedding, each pushing the other forward and each protesting that too much honour was being shown to his unworthy country. But this is a world of surprises else were it 4 dull place to live in, The more pacific were the giants the more bellicose became the is The lion lay down programme but, of lying down, the Iamb "to him and butted him with his half-grown horns, Egypt was the basest of the kingdoms when Britain took, control of the situation there in 1882. Her people trembled like a herd of frightened deer every time that the wind blew from
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.