The Prescott daily news., 1916-01-13
HOUSE WILL TELL
 EUROPE OUR VIEWS
Goes as Wilson's Voice to Pro- mote Better Understanding.
NOT ON MISSION OF PEACE


 Nor Will He Reprimand Any Diplomats
 or lntrude in Their Fields of Activity.
 Foreign Leaders Acquainted With
 Purpose of Hio Visit Eager to Meet
 Him.
 Colonel Edward Mandell House is off for Europe for a visit of six weeks or two months in London, Paris and Der lin. He goes as the representative of President Wilson, and as such he will visit both the American embassies in those cities and the statesmen at the head of affairs in all three nations.
 Many reports have been printed con- Cerning the object of his trip, but the following facts are said to be most au- thentic:
 Colonel Houses mission has only one purpose, and it is not to sound the na- tions on the subject of peace, to inter fere in whatever bickerings there may be among American diplomats, to stir up the LuSitania case or to do any of the various things with which he has been credited. His mission is the first step ill an attempt at better and clos CT understanding between the Euro pean nations and this country, to the end that misapprehension of our atti- tude and views and actions may be measurably avoided Ill the future.
 That the need for such a mission or for some other step to bring about such an understanding was felt in Berlin as well as in Washington was strikingly shown in a Berlin dispatch of Dec. 20, in which these expressions ap- peared:
 An American in Germany ts soon aware that the obstacles In the way of mutual understanding between the two nations are. in the first place. those Of feeling. and secondly. those of facts. >ss If the German government could speak directly to the American government alone. out of the hearing of the rest of the world. ''' much misconception on both sides could perhaps be avoided. =" It would be hard to say at this moment whether Germany misconceives the American mind more than the United States misconceives the German mind
 Conditions Same tn England.
 What is true of Germany is true in different way of the allied powers, in spite of the fact that they have greater freedom of communication than the fortune of war has given to Germany. Not from our ambassadors can they fnl 1i xyio tpt h.,
 use our ambassadors are themselves out of touch with what is going on here and with the fluctuations and changes in American sentiment neces- Sarily produced by the constantly shift ing events of the war
 In the dispatch already quoted the author spoke of what could be done if there could be S.'an exchange between the at once high and special powers" The mission of Colonel House comes as near being that as Is possible. There cannot very well be a conversation be- tween the president and the kaiser, but Colonel Houses visit to the German foreign office will be the next thing 10 it
 It is important. however. to keep clear from the idea that Germany is the special object of Colonel Houses journey It is nothing of the kind, and it would be we'll within bounds to say that his visit to London and to Paris is even more important in the presidents mind than that to Berlin in the way of giving needed information and setting 1he scenes right for future dealings.
 Not to Reprimand Diplomats.
 MI reports that Colonel House is go. ine abroad to reprimand ambassadors for alleged failings are made out of whole cloth. The president does not regard it as due to any fault of these diplomats that they are out of touch with feeling in their own country. It is he holds. the natural and inevitable result of their being away from the place where that feeling exists and due to no other cause. Even a months ab- Sence makes a man lose touch. and these ambassadors have been away from one to two years.
 Colonel House himself has been heard to say that when he last went abroad he stayed four mouths and was aston lshed Jn his return - find that he had himself grown out of touch with Amer 1can feeling. and this is the reason why he has determined to make q shorter stay this time. He intends to stay only six weeks and certainly will not stay longer than two months. If even he noticed this difference in himself in so short stay as four months the presi-