The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1917-02-23

The President in his great appeal to
the belligerent nations stated four es-
-sentials to peace-four stones, so to
speak, which will serve as founda-
ton. "First of all, there must be a
peace without victory" This propo-
sition struck the belligerent nations
on both sides as an impossibility.
Since the war began they have had
the same idea about RESTORING
peace that they had about MAIN
TANNING it before the war began,
namely, by force, the excitement Of
fear, or, if you please, terrorism.
Each side has felt that 1T ALONE
could maintain peace in Europe and
that it could maintain it only by the
exercise of SUPERIOR FORCE. This
is a fatal defect in their philosophy,
and the President has pierced it TO
the core with the statement, that there
should be peace without victory.
If the war goes on until one side
vanquishes the other, it will be fol-
lowed by over-confidence, if not AFRO
gance, on the part of the victor, and
cultivation of the spirit of revenge
on the part of the vanquished. The
President well states it, when he says,
at would be accepted in humiliation,
under duress, at an intolerable sac
rifice, and would leave sting, re-
sentiment, bitter memory upon which
terms of peace would rest, not perma-
nently, but only as upon quicksand.
Only peace between equals can last"
Second: "The quality of nations up
on which peace must be founded, if
it is to last, must be an equality of
rights"
There is no more reason why ne
ton should be respected because OF
its geographical area, its population
or its wealth, than that the individual
man should be respected because OF
his size or wealth. If the individual
has inalienable rights which it is the
duty of his government to protect
so nations have their inalienablt
rights which it is the duty of Other
nations to respect.
Third: "And there is deeper thing
involved than even equality of RICH
among organized nations. No peace
can last, or ought to last, which does
not RECOGNIZE and accept the principle
that governments derive all their JUS
powers from the consent of the gov
erned, and that no right anywhere ex
lists to hand peoples about from SOW
ereignty to sovereignty as if the!
We're property"
This is far-reaching proposition
it relates to the very basis of gov
eminent. He says that it has beef
customary to transfer human being
with the land which they occupy. In
animate matter has thus been place.
above living souls. The President ha
performed signal service in bringing
to the attention of the old world tn
fundamental doctrine that the peopl
are the source of power.
Fourth: The President concludes
''And the paths of the sea must, alik
in law and in fact, be free. The free
dom of the seas is the sine qua no.
of peace, equality, and cooperation.
Nearly all the suffering which ha
come to neutral nations since this wa
began has come because the worl,
has net yet secured the freedom o
the seas.
When sduelling was in vogue, tn
duelers were considerable enough t.
retire to some quiet place and shoe
at each other without injury to others
War is nothing but duelling between
nations and the belligerent nations
ought to be considerate enough to re
tire from the oceans-the highways O.
the woodland fight out their quar-
rels without disturbing the lives, thu
property and the commerce OF neu
trail nations.