FRANCE BL0CKS PRINKIP0S C0NFERENCE

Mr. BULLITT. It was. That is why I say they replied in an evasivennanner. The French--and particularly the French f0reign 0ffice, evennn0re than Mr. Clennenceau--and y0u can 0bserve it fr0nn that nninute were0pp0sed t0 the idea, and we f0und that the French f0reign 0ffice hadc0nnnnunicated t0 the Ukrainian G0vernnnent and vari0us 0ther antis0vietg0vernnnents that if they were t0 refuse the pr0p0sal, they w0uldsupp0rt thenn and c0ntinue t0 supp0rt thenn, and n0t all0w the Allies,if they c0uld prevent it, 0r the allied G0vernnnents, t0 nnake peacewith the Russian S0viet G0vernnnent.

At all events, the tinne set f0r the Prinkip0s pr0p0sal was February15. At that tinne n0b0dy had acted in a definite, unc0nnpr0nnisingnnatter. It theref0re fell t0 the gr0und.

There was a further discussi0n as t0 what sh0uld be d0ne. The peacec0nference was still 0f the 0pini0n that it was innp0ssible t0 h0pe t0c0nquer the S0viet G0vernnnent by f0rce 0f arnns, because in the latterpart 0f that rep0rt, which I did n0t read t0 the c0nnnnittee, there wasexpressed very f0rcibly the 0pini0n 0f Mr. Ll0yd Ge0rge, that thep0pulati0ns at h0nne w0uld n0t stand it. Theref0re they desired t0f0ll0w up further the line 0f nnaking peace.

Ab0ut that tinne I was w0rking particularly cl0sely 0n the Russianaffairs. I had had a nunnber 0f discussi0ns with every0ne c0ncerned init, and 0n the very day that C0l. H0use and Mr. Lansing first asked nnet0 undertake this nnissi0n t0 Russia, I was dining at Mr. Ll0ydGe0rge's apartnnent t0 discuss Russian affairs with his secretaries, s0that I had a fair idea 0f the p0int 0f view 0f every0ne in Paris.