The Detroit times. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1903-1920, 1911-12-29
ROOSEVELT DENOUNCES
TAFT'S PEACE PLAN ON
EVE OF NEW YORK DINNER
To Ratify Arbitration Proposals
Would Put Us in Attitude
of Hypocrisy.
REFERS TO RUSS. TREATY
Approves Abrogation But Says
U. S. Cannot Now ''In Honor"
Adopt Worldwide Plan.

NEW YORK, Dec. 29.-On the eve
OF the widely heralded peace din
ner." to be held here tomorrow night
and at which President Taft will be
the guest of honor Col! Roosevelt to-
day emphasized his antagonism to
ward the general arbitration treaties
which are among the chief policies OF
the national administration by bitter.
ly denouncing them as being designed
TO Tell against peace and put US as
a nation In an attitude OF unctious
and odious hypocrisy" BY inference
at least, he severely criticises Presi-
dent Taft in regard TO the treaty mat
ter. Abrogation OF the Russian treaty,
he declares, puts this nation in po-
sitionT where il cannot lin honor"
adopt the proposed arbitration treat
les. In his editorial, the former pres
ident says:
BY THEODORE ROOSEVELT.
tFrom. the current issue OF the Out
look.)
| cordially approve the action taken
by congress in abrogating the Rus
sian treaty, because men must vote
and act on the situation that actually
confronts them; and in the actual
event congressman had only two al
ternatives, namely to abrogate the
treaty, or TO submit to the continu-
ance of conditions which have become
intolerable TO our national self-re-
spect, and which represent continu-
ing wrong, especially to American
citizens Of Jewish faith. | still be-
lieve that in so serious a matter il
would have been well first to endeav-
or TO secure a decision by The Hague
court on the Interpretation of the eX-
listing treaty. | am confident that
such a decision would Of necessity
have been In our favor: and, II SO, it
would have enabled Russia to have
retired from an untenable position
with good grace and no loss of self
respect--an object that should al
ways be held in view in dealing with
any foreign nation with which at any
time we have difficulties; while il
the decision as TO the Interpretation
of the clause In question had been
adverse to us. we-won1d tAen at once
have abrogated the treaty, and have
been clearly right in so doing.
This was the position held by that
distin guished diplomat, Mr.. Oscar
Strauss. But no movement has been
made by either nation looking toward
any other method of settling the mat
ter than the one actually adopted.
Congress was confronted by the sim
pie fact that unless the treaty were
abrogated conditions would remain
as they now are, and under the cir
cumstances congress acted wisely
and properly in declaring for abroga-
tion.
But this action was taken while the
universal arbitration treaties are
pending in the senate. These treaties
are avowedly championed as being of
the kind we are TO enter into with
all nations, including Russia as well
as England and F>rapce. These trea-
ties, IL ratified by the senate un-
amended, will explicitly pledge the
honor and good faith Of the Ameri-
can nation, to arbitrate precisely
such qestions as that which at this
very moment announce We will not
endeavor TO arbitrate in the case or
Russia.
Under these circumstances to rati-
fy the general arbitration treaties
would put the American people I'm an
attitude of peculiarly contemplate
hypocrisy and would rightly expose
us to the derision OF all mankind. We
would put ourselves in the position of
making sweeping and insincere prom
ises. impossible of performance, at
the very time, when by our own ac-
tions, we showed that We would cer-
tainly not keep such promises, nor
translate them into action. believe
that we can normally arbitrate the
question OF the Interpretation Of a
Continued ON Page Ten.