CONFERENCES THE CITY OF LOST CAUSES GENEVA IS THE ONLY CITY IN 
THE WORLD TO HAVE GAINED FAME AND PROSPERITY FROM SUCCESSIVE FAILURES 
. THIS PLACID, TIDY TOWN LYING ON THE SHORES OF LAC 
LEMAN AND BENEATH MONT BLANC, THE TALLEST OF THE ALPS, HAS 
BEEN THE SCENE OF SOME OF HUMANITY'S MOST TRYING MOMENTS . 
IT IS A PLACE WHERE GREAT IDEAS TURN TO DUST IN 
THE ARCHIVES, AND WHERE NATIONS EXHAUSTED BY WAR COME TO END 
THEIR FIGHTING . LAST WEEK, LIKE EVERY WEEK, GENEVA RESOUNDED WITH 
THE DIN OF WRANGLING DELEGATIONS . IN ANOTHER WEARYING ROUND OF 
THE NUCLEAR TEST BAN NEGOTIATIONS, THE WEST REFUSED TO SCALE DOWN 
FURTHER ITS DEMANDS FOR ON-SITE INSPECTIONS, WHICH STOOD AT 20 ANNUALLY 
THREE YEARS AGO, EIGHT THIS WINTER, AND SEVEN LAST WEEK . 
THE RUSSIANS, WHO ORIGINALLY REFUSED TO PERMIT ANY INSPECTIONS, THREE YEARS 
AGREED TO " TWO OR THREE, " AND LAST WEEK WOULD 
NOT GO HIGHER . A NEWSMAN WHO HAS COVERED GENEVA SINCE 
1947 SAYS THAT HABITUAL ATTENDANCE AT EAST-WEST CONFERENCES RESULTS IN A 
TENDENCY TO ACCEPT THE ARGUMENTS OF BOTH SIDES : " YOU 
COME TO THINK THAT THE RUSSIANS OBJECT TO CONTROLS BECAUSE THEY 
WANT TO CHEAT, AND THE WEST INSISTS ON CONTROLS BECAUSE THEY 
WANT TO SPY IN RUSSIA . YOU REACH THE CONCLUSION THAT 
EVERYBODY IS EQUALLY WRONG . " IMPOSED DEADLINE . A CITY 
OF 182,000 AND THE BIRTHPLACE OF JEAN JACQUES ROUSSEAU, AS WELL 
AS OF THE RED CROSS, GENEVA GOT INTO THE CONFERENCE BUSINESS 
EARLY . DURING THE 16TH CENTURY, UNDER REFORMER JOHN CALVIN, GENEVA 
WAS THE PROTESTANT ROME . IN 1872 GENEVA'S CITY HALL WAS 
THE HEADQUARTERS OF A FIVE-MAN COMMISSION THAT ARBITRATED A DISPUTE BETWEEN 
BRITAIN AND THE U.S . OVER THE DAMAGES CAUSED BY THE 
BRITISH-BUILT CONFEDERATE RAIDER ALABAMA . THE LUCKLESS LEAGUE OF NATIONS WAS 
ESTABLISHED IN GENEVA IN 1920 . AFTER THE LEAGUE WAS ERASED 
BY WORLD WAR II, THE UNITED NATIONS TOOK OVER THE VAST 
PALAIS DES NATIONS AS ITS EUROPEAN BASE . GENEVA IS TO 
DIPLOMATS WHAT NIAGARA FALLS IS TO HONEYMOONERS . EVERY MEETING OF 
EVERY CONFERENCE IS FILLED TO THE BRIM WITH ENDLESS, MULTILINGUAL TALK 
. ONLY RARELY DOES THE PALAIS, ONE OF THE WORLD'S LARGEST 
OFFICE BUILDINGS, COME TO LIFE WITH SUCH DRAMATIC MOMENTS AS EMPEROR 
HAILE SELASSIE'S MOVING SPEECH AGAINST MUSSOLINI'S INVASION OF ETHIOPIA, OR THE 
SIGHT OF FRENCH PREMIER PIERRE MENDES-FRANCE, WATCH IN HAND, SIGNING AT 
4 A.M . THE ACCORD ENDING THE INDO-CHINA WAR TO MEET 
THE DEADLINE HE HAD SET HIMSELF ON TAKING OFFICE . 15 
PER CENT JUMP . MOST CONFERENCE ACTIVITY REVOLVES AROUND SUCH ANNUAL 
FIXTURES AS THE WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION AND THE U.N . ECONOMIC 
AND SOCIAL COUNCIL . OVER 170 ORGANIZATIONS HAVE HEADQUARTERS IN GENEVA, 
RANGING FROM THE INTERNATIONAL BUREAU OF EDUCATION TO THE WORLD ALLIANCE 
OF THE Y.M.C.A . THROUGH MUCH OF FEBRUARY, 1,600 DELEGATES FROM 
ALL CORNERS OF THE EARTH SAT HAPPILY THROUGH LONG SESSIONS OF 
THE UNITED NATIONS CONFERENCE ON THE APPLICATION OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY 
FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE LESS DEVELOPED AREAS, A GROUP KNOWN 
AS UNCSCAT FOR SHORT . MEETINGS MOST OFTEN OCCUR DURING THE 
GOOD WEATHER MONTHS, AND USUALLY AFFORD SUFFICIENT TIME OFF FOR DELEGATES 
TO ENJOY THE DELIGHTS OF MOUNTAIN AND BEACH . THE PERMANENT 
U.N . EMPLOYEES IN GENEVA LEAD A QUIET, INCESTUOUS LIFE MADE 
UP OF INTIMATE COCKTAIL PARTIES, SMALL DINNERS AND CASUAL MEETINGS IN 
THE PALAIS BAR, WHICH SERVES SANDWICHES SO DISMAL THAT THEY ARE 
ALLEGED TO BE REJECTS FROM COMMERCIAL AIRLINES . THE CITIZENS OF 
GENEVA, WHO ARE MOSTLY FRENCH-SPEAKING SWISS, IGNORE THE PERMANENT U.N . 
STAFF, THE DELEGATES AND THE TOURISTS, AND DEVOTE THEMSELVES TO MAKING 
WATCHES, PRECISION TOOLS AND, ESPECIALLY, MONEY . AN 18TH-CENTURY FRENCH FOREIGN 
MINISTER ONCE ADVISED A FRIEND, " IF YOU SEE A GENEVESE 
JUMP OUT OF A WINDOW, JUMP RIGHT AFTER HIM . THERE'S 
15 PER CENT TO BE GAINED . " BUT AS SWISS 
CITIES GO, WHICH IS SLOWLY, GENEVA HAS A REPUTATION FOR WILDNESS 
. IN BERN AND ZURICH THE SIDEWALKS ARE ROLLED UP AT 
MIDNIGHT, BUT GENEVA'S NIGHT SPOTS CAN STAY OPEN UNTIL 4 A.M 
. POLICE CANNOT BREAK INTO GENEVA HOTEL ROOMS AND ASK TO 
SEE MARRIAGE LICENSES AS THEY CAN IN MOST GERMAN SWISS CITIES 
. GENEVA HAS ONLY A FEW LICENSED PROSTITUTES BUT NO SUSCEPTIBLE 
VISITOR HAS EVER BEEN KNOWN TO COMPLAIN OF A LACK OF 
COMPLAISANT WOMEN . OCCASIONALLY, THERE ARE CRIMINAL ACTIVITIES . DURING THE 
1960 DISARMAMENT CONFERENCE, SIR MICHAEL WRIGHT, CHIEF BRITISH DELEGATE, FOUND A 
THIEF UNDER HIS BED . AND CAMEROON'S PRO-COMMUNIST POLITICIAN, FELIX-ROLAND MOUMIE, 
DIED SUDDENLY AFTER DRINKING FOUR GLASSES OF PERNOD THAT SOMEONE HAD 
SPIKED WITH RAT POISON . POETIC CHEF . THE PROPRIETORS OF 
GENEVA'S 300 BARS AND 18 NIGHTCLUBS, REPORT THAT ARAB, SOUTH AMERICAN 
AND AFRICAN DELEGATES LIVE IT UP THE MOST . COMMUNIST BLOC 
DELEGATES USUALLY REMAIN DOURLY BEHIND THE HIGH STONE WALLS OF SUBURBAN 
VILLAS . ONE POPULAR BAR, THE NAVY CLUB, WAS FOUNDED BY 
U.S . NAVAL OFFICERS DETAILED TO THE 1954 INDO-CHINA PEACE CONFERENCE 
. MOST RESTAURANTS ARE FRENCH AND VERY GOOD ; DELEGATES WHO 
CAN AFFORD IT HAPPILY DRIVE 30 MILES TO THE FABULOUS AND 
EXPENSIVE LE PERE BISE, JUST ACROSS THE FRONTIER IN FRANCE ITSELF 
. IN GENEVA THERE ARE THREE CHINESE RESTAURANTS (ONE NATIONALIST AND 
TWO RED CHINESE), A VIETNAMESE ONE WHOSE CHEF IS A POET, 
AND EVEN AN ARAB EATING HOUSE, KNOWN FONDLY AS CHEZ FAROUK 
. FOR THE ATHLETIC, GENEVA BOASTS AN AMERICAN-RUN TWELVE-LANE BOWLING ALLEY, 
AND FOR GAMBLERS, TWO CASINOS ; AND FOR THE PRURIENT, THERE 
IS A STRIPTEASE JOINT CALLED THE BA-TA-CLAN, WHOSE HUGE RED NEON 
SIGN WINKS WICKEDLY ACROSS FROM ST . PIERRE CATHEDRAL, WHERE CALVIN 
DELIVERED SERMONS LACED WITH FIRE AND BRIMSTONE . FOR ROUES WHO 
WANT TO KEEP GOING EVEN AFTER 4 A.M., A SECOND-FLOOR ESTABLISHMENT 
NAMED THE U.N . BRIDGE CLUB SERVES DRINKS TILL DAWN AND 
POLISH LOVE SONGS RENDERED BY AN ITALIAN BARMAID . UNSIGNED TREATY 
. DESPITE THE SEEMING AIMLESSNESS OF MOST GENEVA NEGOTIATIONS, THERE IS 
A RESIDUE OF IDEALISM AND OPTIMISM . LAST WEEK THE BRITISH 
GAVE A FAREWELL PARTY FOR SIR MICHAEL WRIGHT UPON HIS RETIREMENT 
AS BRITAIN'S CHIEF NUCLEARTALKS REPRESENTATIVE . THERE WAS AN ELEMENT OF 
SADNESS, SINCE SIR MICHAEL HAD PLAINLY HOPED TO END HIS CAREER 
BY SIGNING THE EAST-WEST TREATY . NEWSMEN APPLAUDED WARMLY WHEN SIR 
MICHAEL TURNED TO HIS GUEST, SENATOR HUBERT HUMPHREY, AND SAID, " 
I HOPE YOUR SIGNATURE WILL BE ON THE TREATY . " 
IF THE TREATY IS EVER SIGNED, GENEVA WILL HAVE LOST ITS 
PRESENT UNWANTED TITLE OF THE " CITY OF LOST CAUSES . 
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