But they, or rather whoever drew up their report— was
it Mr. Maxton, we wonder ?—show a real grasp of the dominant importance of the economic element from the British point of view when they say that the crux is the indivisibility of Ruhr coal from Lorraine iron :- "Every thoughtful person recognizes the importance .of the economic unit formed by combining the ore of Lorraine with the coal of the Ruhr. This is regarded as the key to the whole trouble. While Germany controlled this ore and coal she was a. great military Power, and a terror to France. She was also a great steel producer, and, as such, a powerful rival to Britain in the markets of the world. The Peace Treaty separated the coalfield from the orefield, leaving the possessor of each comparatively weak: An effort was made recently to unite them into an economic unit by the formation of a Franco-German syndicate, but this failed. Herr Stinnes, the German millionaire, is stated to have been behind this proposal."
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