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Show LOUD PRAISES SWISS DIPLOMATS Considers It Remarkable That Country Has Been Kept Out of War. . d . An eloquent tribute was paid to the diplomats dip-lomats of Switzerland who have so successfully suc-cessfully maintained the neutrality of that little nation by "Louis Lombard, composer and author, who arrived In Salt Lake last night with a party of motorists from'Santa Barbara. Cal. Though a naturalized nat-uralized American,. Mr. Lombard possesses the Chateau de Trevano at Lugano in Switzerland, where he was for a month after the outbreak of the European war. Mr. Lombard emphasized how the strategic position of Switzerland made her an enviable possession for the European Euro-pean nations at war and said that in his belief the fact that the little nation had 400,000 soldiers, or a tenth of her population, popu-lation, under arms within a few days prevented pre-vented an overt attempt to violate her neutrality. Switzerland's impartial neutrality, he said, has been most clearly brought out in the way In which the country has handled the mail for the various belligerents. belliger-ents. Mail is handled through Switzerland Switzer-land and at Its expense for the French and Russian prisoners of war In Germany, Ger-many, for the Italian prisoners of war In Austria and for the German prisoners scattered throughout Europe. Had it not been for the unity of the Swiss nation, in spite of the diversity of the French, German and Italian portions of lier population, Switzerland would have encountered even greater difficulties difficul-ties in maintaining her Integrity, said Mr. Lombard. But the Swiss officials, he said, have held an absolutely even course, : have played no favorites and helped no belligerents, with the result that, even with the cataclysm raging at her very doors, Switzerland stands today isolated, but at peace. Mr. Lombard has spent ft great deal of time visiting the pleasure places of the globe, but the most glorious vision that he has ever seen, he declared last night, was the mirage that greeted the members of his party as they entered the great American desert from the west. He called particular attention to the failure of Americans to make proper capital of the glories of landscape and view that they" have about them. The English, he said, would have celebrated cele-brated such sky effects, such colorings and such splendor of landscape as he reveled rev-eled In on his trip through the -desert. A composer and author, as well as globe-trotter, Mr. Lombard has gained an international name. He was decorated by King Emanuel with the order of the Crown of Italy In 1913 for distinguished services in furthering the traiffc relations between that country and t he United States as a member of the jury at the international exposition in ltlll. He was the founder and is a director of the International In-ternational Theatrical society, which con- i trots the leading opera houses of Italy and South America, and fs a member of countless musical and scientific societies ! in the United States and abroad. j In his party are Mrs. Lombard, Allen. ; A Ida, Louis and Zuleika Lombard and i two step-children, Ixtrna and Judith A t- water. They will motor through the Yel- I lo'wstone before proceeding to New York. From New York the party will sail on a neutral Spanish vessel for Spain. Leaving his familv in Spain. Mr. Lombard will go 1 through France to Lugano, Switzerland. ! |