Cylchgronau Cymru

Chwiliwch trwy dros 450 o deitlau a 1.2 miliwn o dudalennau

THE WELSH OUTLOOK The Editor does not necessarily identify himself with the opinions of contributors to The Welsh Outlook. Editorial responsibility is limited to the views expressed in the Notes of the Month," and in the unsigned article immediately following. NOTES OF THE MONTH Foreign The occupation of Frankfort and other Relations. German towns by French troops in opposition to the wishes of their chief Allies is one of the most unfortunate things that has hap- pened since the Armistice. It is a reversion to pure militar- ism and a defiance to all the ideas on which the League of Nations has been formed. That France may find some precedent for its policy of isolated action in the policy of the English Government in Ireland, Mesopotamia and Persia, may be true, but is in any case irrelevant. The idea that the occupation will weaken Junkerdom is absurd. The worst possible missionary of democracy is the mili- tarist. If the French wished to impress on the Germans the necessity of war lords, they could not have taken a better course. Apart from other considerations, the use of black troops in the occupation is a scandal, and we are glad that the Labour Party have condemned it. In the line that he. has taken on the question Mr. Lloyd George is consulting the best interests of all the allies, including France. We wish we could say the same of his policy in the East. Mesopotamia is in the main a Mohammedan country, but it possesses oil wells, and for that reason a portion of the army that went from Britain to fight for the little nations hugs on there like grim death. We are told at the same time that it is impossible for us to protect our fellow Christians in Armenia from outrage and massacre. The gospel of the Government seems to be that a war to save Christians from persecution is contrary to the spirit of the Gospel, but a war for Mammon is a holy crusade. Some say that Armenia has been betrayed at San Remo. We hope not, but we have our fears. San Remo. The news which has just arrived as we go to press from San Remo confirms our view that, as far as Allied policy in the West is concerned, the English Prime Minister stood for a good sound Euro- MAY,^jl920 pean policy, and apparently to some extent got his way. If, as is reported, the Ruhr Valley is not to be occupied, the German indemnity is to be fixed definitely, and, above all, the German Chancellor is to be invited to a real conference and not merely to be dictated to, then Mr. George has not merely scored a personal triumph but he has done Europe a service. When all the Allies honestly believe that, as the Prime Minister said, Germany is a sick country," and that it is to the interest of civilization to nurse her back to health, then we shall be at the beginning of the way which leads to European econcmic and political stability. The reported Allied decisions in regard to Turkey can only be said to be a second best-but they might have been worse. The Dardanelles is to be free and no blockades will be allowed in the Straits except by the League of Nations Constantinople and Haidar (on the Asiatic side) are to be internationalised and will be controlled by a special police force the Chatalja lines are to be the Greco-Turkish frontiers and the whole of Thrace is to be handed over to Greece while Bulgaria is to be given a Maritza outlet. The Speaker's As we go to press, the Times and some Committee other newspapers publish an advance on Devolution. resume of the proposals of the Speaker's Committee on Devolution. It seems that we are to have two reports-the Speaker's and Mr. Murray Macdonald's-and that, at the moment, which is to be the Majority and which the Minority Report is uncertain. If the resume given is correct, we hasten to say at once that as far as Wales is concerned the Speaker's scheme will not do, as. in no sense is it a nationalist scheme. It looks as if it had been cast in the Webb mould. Above all," said Tom Ellis in 1891, we shall work for a Legislature elected by the Manhood and Womanhood of Wales, and to them responsible." The Speaker offers -as we anticipated months ago-a Council, not a Parlia-