“The National Democrats are powerfully influenced by the Polish historical tradition. That is their strength, but it also creates certain difficulties in the search for an equable solution of the problems of Eastern Europe. Without going into the larger question of the extent of territory that may ultimately be included in the reconstituted Polish state, it may be sufficient to point out in reference to Lithuania:-- “(1) That it includes a very considerable White Russian population which is certainly more Russian than Polish. The official language of the Lithuanian state which under Jagello was united with Poland was White Russian, and the ground of the claims of the Grand Dukes and Tsars of Moscow and Russia on Lithuanian territory was the fact that Lithuanian territory was largely ‘Russian,’ and included principalities which in the Kiev period formed a part of the loosely federated Russian state. This purely historical argument has little force now, but the ethnographical argument retains its weight. “(2) The Lithuanian National movement, which has developed in recent years, is predominantly anti-Polish, and is not anti-Russian, though it strongly opposed the oppressive measures of the Russian Government. Russian was not merely an official language. It was, next to Lithuanian, the principal language of civilised intercourse used by the Lithuanian educated class. It is true that numbers of educated Lithuanians also spoke Polish, but in their modes of thinking and methods of action the influence of their training in Russian schools and universities is very noticeable. “(3) The assertion that the inclusion of Lithuania in Poland would not cause friction between Poland and a reconstituted Russia is hardly tenable, and would certainly not be upheld by responsible Russian politicians of any party. The restoration of an independent Poland within her ethnographical frontiers is an axiom of Russian statesmanship, but to my knowledge it is equally certain that Russian political leaders do not admit any Polish claim to sovereignty over Lithuania. If the physical possibility of deliberate and unfettered choice can be established, it is of course for the peoples of Lithuania themselves to decide with which neighbouring political unit they prefer to be more intimately connected. But from the standpoint of political stability in Eastern Europe, which is the consideration of greatest importance to the Allies, it would be more desirable to see Lithuania federated in some way with Russia, while giving certain economic privileges to Poland. The ideal solution would be one that would make Lithuania a link, and not a bone of contention between Russia and Poland. HAROLD WILLIAMS.”