4 JUNE 1921, Page 1

The fighting in Upper Silesia between the Poles and the

Germane has ceased, except at ICattowitz. The German and Polish Governments appear to have closed their frontiers, in obedience to Allied warnings. Six battalions of British troops— four from the Rhine and two from England—have been sent to Upper Silesia. The British Government have proposed that the indisputably German and Polish districts, in the west and south respectively, should be occupied forthwith by Germany and Poland, so that in the central district, which with its mixed population is the main cause of quarrel, the small Allied forces may be able to deal with the Polish and German irregulars. It is not known whether the Allies will adopt this reasonable suggestion. Experts have been appointed, at the instance of the French, to report on the whole question to the Supreme Council. We cannot help saying that after two years' delay the Allies ought to have been able to settle this dispute out of hand. All the information was easily accessible in numerous books, and the plebiscite merely confirmed the racial statistics. Further delay is inexcusable.