The New Zealand Times. MONDAY, AUGUST 18, 1924. NO FEAR OF FAILURE

New Zealand Times, Volume LI, Issue 11910, 18 August 1924, Page 6

The New Zealand Times. MONDAY, AUGUST 18, 1924. NO FEAR OF FAILURE

The success of the London Conference seems now to he assured. On Thursday last Mr C. E. Hugheß (Secretary for State), on returning to the .United States from" Europe, expressed the belief that the Dawes report will lie accepted by all the Powers, and become effective very eoonj adding that he did not believe that the acceptance of the plan hinged upon. the date of the evacuation of the Ruhr. In regard to the last point, he was, it proved, rather too optimistic, for Thursday Was a most anxious day in London. Conferences were held throughout the day to discuss that very problem; and, finally, the matter had to he referred to Berlin, Dr Marx explaining that the fate of the German Government in the balance, and that it would be’ necessary to consult the' leaders of all parties before arriving at a decision. At times, it appears, the negotiations reached a very' critical stage, and much plain speaking was indulged in by M. Harriot and. Dr Stresemann. The reports of “scenes,”' however, are denied; as also is the statement that Mr Ramsay Macdonald and Mr Kellogg (the United States Ambassador) sent an ultimatum to the . German delegates demanding their immediate acceptance of M. 'Herriot’s terms. On the contrary, we are told, the delegates showed the keenest anxiety to arrive at an agreement. The crux of the matter was that, while the German delegatee held that the Ruhr and the Cologne zone should be evacuated by l January 10th next, M. Herriot refused to .entertain the suggestion. Later in the day, however, he intimated that, while the period that was tor elapse before evacuation took place had been fixed at a year, that period had been decided upon without prejudice to earlier evacuation. He is also understood to have conoeded that the year shall begin when ' the agreement is signed, and that immediately, the Dawes report is put into operation they will evacuate Mannheim and other towns in the sanctions area, reserving only the right to reinforce the railway troops in case of emergency. l The French showed, in short, a very reasonable spirit of compromise. And they had their reward, for hoth Mr Macdonald and the United States Ambassador supported this revised version of their proposals; and Dr Marx, it is stated, recommended its acceptance by Berlin. The German delegates, evidently, were not a little surprised at the Allies taking up such a united stand upon the evacuation question. Indeed, the decision of the British end American representatives to support M. Herriot’s proposals, in the shape in which they were finally put forward, is reported to have caused consternation amongst the Germans. ■ Hence, no doubt, the rumour that an ultimatum had been presented to them. In spite of the excursions and alarums during the day, an easier tone prevailed in London late on Thursday night; and British official circles stated that “the worst that could happen was delay; certainly the Conference would not break down.” The fact of

Uio matter is, of course, that tne result of the failure of the London Conference to effect a settlement of the Ruhr and the reparations difficulties. would be so incalculably serious—it | would undoubtedly threaten the very | existence of our twentieth century civilisation—that all the parties to the Conference, while, naturally, holding out for the best terms they can get, are extremely anxious to reach an agreement and to see the Dawes plan , —the only possible .solution in sight— \ put into operation. The stand taken by the American Ambassador shows very clearly how seriously the United States views the situation; and there can be no doubt that Mr C. E. Hughes (Secretary for State) was voicing not j only his own opinion, hut also the hopes and aspirations of the American people as a whole, when he expressed the belief that the Dawes plan will be accepted by all the Powers, and be ef- j fective very soon. How strongly the British Premier desires that an amicable and lasting settlement shall be arrived at, his words and actions have again and again demonstrated; and in this desire the British nation as a whole, indeed, the British Empire as a whole, is most assuredly with him. Meantime, the German reply with regard to the latest evacuation proposals of M. Herriot is. awaited with much hopefulness, though at the same time with a certain amount of anxiety. In fact; in view of the immense importance of the issues at stake, no little anxiety must prevail, not merely till the Dawes plan has been definitely accepted by all the Powers, but until it has been successfully put into operation, and Germany has given such earnest of her intention to make good that the Ruhr can he safely and. finally evacuated. The reports as to the German reply are, at, the time of writing, most conflicting. But fuller and more authoritative information should ere long be available; nay, in fact, bo to hand this morning. One of the reports received states, “It is understood that the German reply accepts evacuation of the Ruhr after a year, hut invitee modifications in regard to detail.” This is a Sydney “Sun” cable. Reuter, on the other hand, informs us: “The German reply has done nothing to relieve the immediate doubts as to the fate of the Conference.- The reply | was received this (Friday) afternoon from Berlin, and is a long document, which took three hours to. decode. It is stated to he of ah, indefinite; nature, necessitating a further interchange of views.” It is greatly to be hoped that the Sydney “Sun” message is right. But, even if Reuter’s is correct, one need not be very much surprised; nor is there any real cause to fear for the ultimate success of the Conference. Berlin is probably only “sparring for time,” and seeking for some method of “saving face” before she gives way. The 1 “Morning Post” of Friday last, it is true, declared that the Conference could not last much longer,' for the chief delegates were approaching a state of physical exhaustion; adding that “Mr Macdonald was talking to the foreign delegates until 3 o’clock on morning, and rose again to i begin the day’s work at 6.30.” But | the interval to communicate with BerI lin will have given tjie Conference a I respite; and yesterday also the dele- ! gates would probably rest from their | labours: That the sittings have been carried to the verge of physical exj hausiion indicates, we axe convinced, | that the delegates are determined to I lose no time and to leave no stone unturned in their endeavours to bring about a solution of the sphinx-riddle, •which, so long as it is left unsolved, menaces the peace, not only of (Europe, but of the whole world; threatens, indeed, the utter destruction of our Christian civilisation. The delegates re arise that to fail to solve the riddle is to perish; and for that very reason, there need he no fear of failure.