cumstances this is the danger that faces Great Britain as a nation; that the collection of an enormous German indemnity of manufactured goods would hasten the process is apparent. This is only one aspect of the problem presented by a defeated Germany. It only shows again that there can be no economic or industrial equilibrium until this matter is settled. The idea that the United States can remain aloof while settlement is being made is simply childish. Whether there is to be a political League of Nations may be disputed, but there can be no question that an economic League of Nations already exists, that the world is an economic entity, and that nothing can happen in one section that does not immediately affect the rest. One of the greatest arguments for a world organization to assure peace is that a war is no longer the private business of the nations that chose to wage it. It is the concern of the entire world. Certain economists insist that, whatever the size of the German indemnity or whatever arrangements are made for its liquidation, the United States will really pay it. Since all nations have such a personal stake in international quarrels, it is not unfitting that they should have something to say as to whether they shall lead to war.

Balance of Idealism in America's Favor

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HILE most enlightened Americans believe that their nation should join some kind of a league or an association, they still believe that the manifestation of a new spirit in Europe would help the general situation. If the future of the world is to be settled on the basis of idealism, this idealism should be organized on a practical basis. Despite the unkind things said of the United States in foreign countries the balance of idealism, so far, is in this country's favor. But the difficulty is that neither our idealism nor that of any other nation has produced a sufficiently practical formula. Premier Clemenceau started the peace proceedings at Paris with a speech in the Chamber of Deputies, in which he took his stand in favor of reconstituting Europe on the basis of the old balance of power. Despite the Wilsonian League, that is the principle which ultimately triumphed.

The world did not clearly see this at the time the peace was signed, but it sees it clearly enough now. Territories Territories were

passed about for the purpose of establishing strategic frontiers and also as the spoils of victory. France and Great Britain acquired enormous accessions of new territory in Asia and Africa, Italy obtained purely Germanspeaking populations in the Tyrol, to say nothing of Trieste and other territories in the Mediterranean and Asia Minor. Japan obtained virtual possession of the great Chinese province of Shantung besides valuable islands in the Pacific. Some of these non-European territories, it is true, were transferred under the guise of "mandatories," but the terms of such of the mandates as have since been published show that the new possessions are to be controlled in the interests of the trustee nations rather than in the interests of their wards or mankind generally. Perhaps, in the present state of international conscience and capacity, the distribution of the assets of victory on the spoils basis is inevitable; the question is not a simple one. But in the whole situation one fact stands out conspicuously. The one nation which has not claimed a reward, and which certainly has received none, is the United States. Directly connected with this is the fact that the one nation that has refused responsibility is the United States. Had we been willing to accept responsibility it would have given us added power either for self-aggrandizement, if selfishness controlled us, or idealistic efforts if we were less selfishly inclined-more likely for a mixture of both. But by refusing responsibility we are without either profit or opportunity to practise ideals. The ordering of Versailles appears most strikingly perhaps in the relative positions tions assigned the United States and Japan. The United States spent 40 billion dollars in the the World War; Japan invested about 250 million. The United States lost about 100,000 men-Japan about 300. The United States has demanded no advantages in return for its expenditures; the defeat of Germany and the elimination of the autocratic menace are compensation enough. Japan gets China's richest province, a large number of islands north of the equator that strategically nullify American occupation of the Philippine Islands, and the possession of a Pacific Island-that of Yap-which deprives this country of cable communication with its Far Eastern possessions. So far as material results are concerned, this country is thus considerably worse off than it was before the

World War-this despite its expenditures of treasure and its considerable expenditure of life.

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America's Duty to Europe

ROBABLY as far as land is concerned

this is precisely the position which the mass of Americans would prefer to occupy. We have no interest in more land. Probably if this country had insisted, it too, could have shared in the parcellings out that took place in Paris. Great Britain frequently expressed a wish that the United States would join her in administering the German colonies, and our refusal to do so was perhaps a mistake. However, while we do not want more land we do want more trade and trading facilities, in the shape of cables and ships and markets. But on the whole it is fair to say that no fair charge of selfishness or lack of idealism can be made against the United States. This country had no responsibility for the World War. The origins of our troubles, such as those with Mexico, are far removed from the origins of European disturbances. The principles by which we have in the past governed our foreign affairs are likewise different and less complicated than those of Europe. If we are going to coöperate more in world affairs it is fair to ask Europe to bring her methods and ideals into conformity with ours at least as much as we change our habits to suit European conditions. On such a basis we can coöperate.

The first thing to be done is to stop Germany in her frantic attempts to escape the consequences of her crimes. The Treaty of Versailles, like most human documents, is a mixture of good and bad, but the balance inclines to the good. The penalties inflicted on Germany represent nothing but justice. This country should exert its full influence to make certain that those penalties are carried out in full. The existence of these penalties in itself provides a sufficient reason why we should ratify the Treaty with such reservations as are essential. That there are great faults in the document is apparent, and these should be corrected. But the only way in which this country can assist in correcting them is by becoming a part of the general association of nations which will administer the Treaty. The visit of M. Viviani shows that the Allies are prepared to accept the changes which the American people demand. The business of

Mr. Eugene Meyer and the War Finance Corporation

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HERE is a great appropriateness in President Harding's selection of Mr. Eugene Meyer as head of the resuscitated War Finance Corporation. Mr. Meyer is the one person who is chiefly responsible for the existence of this board in its present shape. In March, 1919, Congress assigned a credit of $500,000,000 to the War Finance Corporation for the purpose of providing long credits to European customers who greatly needed American products. In a year's operations this organization lent $125,000,000 to such creditors; the reason it was not forced to encroach still more upon its resources was that it was able to persuade private bankers to assume a considerable part of the loans. In May, 1920, Secretary Houston suspended these operations; at that time our foreign trade was progressing prosperously and this work of the War Finance Corporation was regarded as superfluous. With the falling off in the demand for American agricultural products, strong pressure was exerted upon Congress for a resumption of this function. The judgment of many bankers and economists was strongly against it. The use of Government credit to finance exports was criticised as class legislation. Its purpose, it was urged, was to enable the farmers to sell their grain at high prices, and to use the money of the taxpayers in doing it. The process, therefore, was merely a temporary palliative; it might help the agricultural classes over their present hard times; the net result would be to maintain high prices for a somewhat longer period; the injustice of the whole proceeding was that it took the money of one part of the community to bolster up the fortunes of another.

This was the attitude of Secretary Houston and that of the President. The voice that most eloquently upheld a contrary view was that of Mr. Meyer. His testimony before a Congressional Committee was the most effec

tive plea made in behalf of the War Finance Corporation. It converted Congress itself and many people whose natural tendency was to look upon this activity as a defiance of all the laws of finance and trade. As Mr. Meyer was a practical and successful banker, with international associations, his arguments naturally carried a weight that would not have been attached to those emanating from the plains of lowa and Kansas. The appearance of this Wall Street financier as a friend of the farmer also had a piquancy which was not lost upon congressmen and senators. Practically on his assurance that the plan would succeed, that it would promote trade generally and not burden the taxpayer, Congress passed the resolutionand again passed it over the President's veto. The War Finance Corporation, however, has accomplished little since receiving this new lease of life. Naturally the farmers attribute this to the fact that the work had been placed in unfriendly hands.

Whatever the justice of this criticism, President Harding has done well in making Mr. Meyer the new head of the Board. If any man in the country can make the plan work, he is clearly the man. One of the most important of his duties will be the stimulation of similar activities in non-official quarters. Already the Foreign Trade Financing Corporation, organized under the Edge Act, is making preparations to engage in extensive operations. The organization of this concern is one of the most important developments in the business of promoting American foreign trade. There are foreign precedents for the Edge Act, under which this corporation is formed. Great Britain began its foreign trade expansion in earnest about 1860, and ten years afterward the German Empire started its competition for world markets. Both nations Both nations attempted to capture new markets by extending long term credits to purchasers, and the custom spread in all countries with which they did business.

The Edge Act represents an attempt to introduce the same system into this country. The Foreign Trade Financing Corporation, organized under its provisions, aspires to accomplish in the foreign field of commerce almost what the Federal Reserve Bank accomplishes in the domestic. Its capitalization is large enough to exert a powerful influence on our foreign trade problem, and it has the power to issue debentures

in an amount ten times greater than its capital. The proceeds of the sale of the debentures will be used solely in the interest of expanding American foreign trade. It will include in its activities every American industry and will operate in all foreign countries, taking the securities of the foreign buyer for the credit extended to him, or investing outright in foreign producing enterprises. Like the English and the German organizations, the Foreign Trade Financing Corporation will establish outposts in every part of the world, for the furtherance of American commerce.

The Harding Administration and
the Civil Service

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NE subject of which little has been heard in recent years, despite the fact that there is hardly one that is more important, is that of civil service reform. This matter is important because it strikes deeply at the spirit that should underlie democratic institutions. The gross manifestations of political corruption-such as the brazen use of money for the purchase of votes or legislation are probably not the most serious impediments to honest government. These things are crimes and can be treated as crimes; there is no man so unblushing as to insist that they are anything else. The more difficult problems are those which arise from perverted points of view. Efficient and honest government is the kind which furnishes an exact return for every penny invested in it. In an administration conducted on ideal lines there would be no ground for personal favoritism-for the bestowal of offices in return for party services; every man and woman, in the humblest position as in the highest, would be selected purely on the basis of qualifications for the post. This is a conception which makes its way slowly, but political progress is measured in accordance with the extent to which it becomes a rule of action. It is an idea which many of the most fiery advocates of political honesty have never absorbed. Mr. Bryan, for example, had spent a lifetime denouncing the men who sought to use the government for the advancement of their private interests, yet he never perceived that he was doing something just as reprehensible when he stuffed the Federal payrolls with his own political followers. Reduced to its final meaning, this amounts simply to using the

The bill does not interfere with "states' rights," as has been charged, for it specifically states that the physical education programmes shall be conducted independently by the states in accordance with their own laws. Another criticism of the bill has been advanced by various anti-medical groups who base their objections on the grounds that the bill would compel the physical examination of the children against the expressed desires of the parents. This objection will probably be entirely eliminated by the inclusion of a provision preventing this interpretation.

The Fess-Capper Bill is not one that will attract a great deal of popular interest, and yet its effects might easily be so far-reaching, so constructive that Congress can hardly be urged too strongly to act favorably upon it.

Reasons for a New Arctic Expedition

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HERE is wide-spread interest in the proposal that the American Navy send a large expedition of scientists to the Arctic. This would perpetuate the reputation established by the American and British navies as pioneers in polar exploration. But there are practical reasons now for Arctic exploration that did not exist a few years ago. Indeed, now that the North Pole has been found, the romantic period in Arctic exploration may be regarded as having passed. The old question, "What is the good of these expeditions?" can now be answered by pointing to essential advantages that may result. The unexplored Arctic still covers a vast area. Greenland alone, whose interior is almost wholly unknown, is nearly one fourth as large as the United States, and, if the deductions of scientists are well founded, there is in the Polar Sea a great continent, as yet unseen by civilized eyes. The scientific possibilities of such an expedition are too vast to be conjectured. There are thought to be vast deposits of oil in the polar regions, and their discovery might solve a problem which is perhaps the most serious menace to the present economic fabric of the world. How long the present fields can supply the demand is a matter of speculation, but many trustworthy estimates fix the maximum period at twenty-five years. Although oil-fields in the Arctic, probably have little practical importance now, they may have stupendous value in the future. Coal-mines in

as central Greenland, have been profitably worked for some time. Therefore, the explorers who can plant their country's flag in the ice above such deposits, will confer an incalculable boon upon coming generations. The world already greatly needs larger supplies of the rare metals; their use in the naval mines of the North Sea is still a secret, but even the non-scientific world is familiar with the importance of vanadium and molybdenum in the steel industry, platinum and iridium in the laboratory, and radium in medicine. There are good chances that such deposits exist in polar continents.

These are a few of the possible direct benefits which this rumor of an Arctic expedition suggests. But, after all, those results we can predict are likely to prove the least important. To the devotees of science and learning the extension of the knowledge of mankind is in itself a sufficient excuse for the expense involved. The advantages that may result from the discovery of new lands cannot be foreseen. Four hundred years ago America was interesting to Europe chiefly as a land of possible gold and silver and precious stones, but, in its farms, its forests, its rivers, its coal, it has developed riches far greater than any ever dreamed of by Columbus and his followers. The fact that there are great areas still undiscovered and unexplored, even though they lie under ice and snow, is a sufficient excuse for such enterprises as are now in contemplation. Moreover, pure science will probably gain from a great Arctic expedition. It is only in the polar regions that atmospheric conditions approximate the phenomena of the high altitudes further south; the study of these conditions is of great importance to the progress of aeronautics. Probably the airplane will prove a great assistance to all future Arctic expeditions.