The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1911-12-09

lomatic corps and applauded the remarks
OF Mr.. Shimada. In following Mr..
Shimada, the President said:
Peace His Ambition.
You have just listened to a most in
teresting speech recounting the number
of reasons why Japan and the United
States ought to be and are united in
bonds Of amity. We heard from the dis
tingulshed gentleman who represents
Japan the statement of his ambition that
the day was not distant when Japan
should be united with the other nations
in such a peace obligation as that we are
now trying to make complete between
England and the United States, on the
one hand, and between France and the
United States, OF the other.
Il ask you whether we ought to defeat
his ambition and the ambition of the
people whom he represents by saying
that there is some constitutional objec-
ton to the perfection of those treaties?
Are We going to take the flavor out OF
this movement by some narrow reading
of the powers OF one of the branches of
this government? Are We going to cause
a halt to a movement that now seems to
have an impetus. which will be world
wide, because there is some quirk in the
construction of the powers OF one OF the
You have got TO hunt around to find 1t,
at any rate. What Is the use of disCov-
ering something that is of no use?
Interested In Treaties.
To recur again to the speech of the
distinguished gentleman whom We have
just heard, while Japan is not now one
of the treaty-making powers with whom
we are hoping to come into closer union
by reason of these treaties, she has man.
ifested her deep interest in those trea-
ties and her sympathy in making them
possible by waving altogether one of
the terms of a treaty she made with
Great Britain which might have inter
fered with closing the treaty between
United States and Great Britain. We
are indebted to her for that, and If
she can make that concession, having no
interest-or at least no direct interest
why cannot the Senate of the United
States make a similar concession?
Those of US who are gathered here.
am sure, are not wild enthusiasts in re-
spect to this movement, and do not hope
for something that never can come
about. l think We are practical people
We don't expect that war is going to be
abolished tomorrow morning, or that the
millennium is coming just after break
fast. We know that movements of this
SUIT HluSj progress Slowly. But. on the
other hand. We ought to have foresight
and Intelligence enough to recognize
real step OF progress when IT is taken.
We will never dispose OF the movement
toward armament and toward increasing
armament until We satisfy the nations,
who are carrying on this movement
merely for self-defense and for the pro-
lection of their integrity. that there is
some other means upon which they can
oil r.. % TT
national controversies. When they find
that means, and can certainly rely on It.
then they will give up armament 1t is
not with pleasure that they are pursuing
the policy OF appropriating $500. 600 900 or
$500, 900 or s50O.OOOOOO a year in order
that their armament may increase. II
they can count on some practical means
by which that can be avoided against
which the armament is to be a protection. |
then we can be certain that armament
will be given up.
Duty of ArbItrnI Court.
Now. ultimately, of course. We all |
look forward to an arbitral court, into |
which one nation may summon any other |
nation and make that other nation re- |
spond to a judgment of that court. 1t |
may be that the nation will come in I'M |
willingly, but il will originally have made |
a treaty by which It agreed to abide the |
judgment of that court, and then, the |
judgment having been rendered 1t will |
be enforced either by public opinion of |
nations or, II necessary, by an interna- |
tional police force. Then we shall have /
something upon which we can count |
Now let me ask you whether we are |
ever going to get to that court II 1t is !
impossible for the Senate of the United !
States to agree that we are bound to go |
into that court whether the Senate likes |
1t when the case comes or not? II that |
is the limitation upon the power of the |
Senate, We might just as we'll give up |
going into court at all, or the hope that |
We will ever have such an arbitral court. |
We have got to surrender something. !
We have got to surrender something of !
our independence If we are going to &C
anything in the way OF arbi-
tration.
There is nothing so humorous-and |
mat Is one of the saving graCes of the
American people-nothing so humorous,
as you look back in the history of the
English and the American people, as this .
method of settling disputes about honor.
The idea that when a man has insulted .
me, the only way by which I can wipe
out that insult is to invite him out into .
a ten-aCre lot and stand myself up as a /
target at forty PAGES to see whether he
can hit me or not. You will understand
that the kind of a target I make i'm
presses me with the force of that argu-
ment. OF course, if I am a good marks
man and he is a fairly good target, and
have the right, under the code duelIo, to
hit him If ! can. and II l do, and he
misses me, I go home with that satisfac-
ton with respect to conditions as they
are, that those who are situated COM
fortably in life usually have: but II he
hits me and l escape death and take a
OF two or three months,
have to have a good deal subtler brain
han I now have to reason out any way
0y which that result satisfied my honor
IN being insulted by him.