The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1917-01-22

principle Of which IL equality
and common participation In .
common benefit. Tho right state
of mind, the right feeling be-
tween nations Is as necessary
for lasting peace as II the Just
settlement Of ve1ed questions OF
territory or of racial and national
allegiance.
1.-THE equality Of nations upon
which peace must be founded II It
is TO last. must be an equality OF
rights: the guarantees exchanged
must neither recognize nor imply
a difference between big nations
and small, between those that afe
powerful and those that are weak.
Freedom o. Life.
fright must be based upon
common strength. not upon fndi-
v1dual strength, Of the nations up
on whose concert peace will de-
pend. Equality OF territory or Of
research there Of course cannot
be; nor any other sort Of equality
not gained in the ordinary peace
ful and legitimate development OF
the peoples themselves. ! But no
one asks or expects anything more
than equality or rights. Mankind
Is looking now for freedom of life.
not for equipoises Of power.
"And there is deeper thing IN
volved than even equality Of
right among organized nations.
No peace can last, or ought to
last which does not recognize and
accept the principle that govern
ments derived all ther Just powers
from the consent Of the governed
and that no right anywhere exists
to hand peoples about from sov-
ereignty to sovereignty as II they
were property. It take It for
granted, for instance If may ven
ture upon a single example that
statesmen everywhere are agreed
that there should be a united inde-
pendent, autonomous Poland, and
that henceforth 1nviolable secur-
ity of life, Of worship and Of indus
trial and social development
should be guaranteed to all peo-
pies who have lived hitherto un-
der the power of governments de-
voted to a faith and purpose hos
tile to their own.
II speak of this, not because
of any desire to exalt an ab-
stract political principle which
has always been held very dear
by those who have sought to
build up liberty. in America, but
for the same reason that l have
spoken of the other conditions of
peace which seem to me clearly
indispensible-beca / wish
frankly to uncover realities. Any
peace which does not recognize
and accept . this principle will
inevitably be upset. 1t will not
rest upon affections or the con-
victions of mankind. The fer
ment of spirit Of whole popula-
tions will fight subtly and con-
stantly against it. and all the
world will sympathize. The world
can be at peace only II its life
is stable, and there can be no
stability where the will Is in re-
bellion, where there Is not tran
guilty of spirit and a sense Of
Justice, of freedom and Of right.
So far as practicable, moreover,
every great people now strug-
Cling toward a full development
of it's resources and Of its pow
ers should be assured direct
outlet to the great highways Of
the sea. Where this cannot be
done by the cession of territory
it can no doubt be done by the
naturalization of direct rights of
way under the general guarantee
which will assure the peace it.
self. With a right comfy of ar
rangements no nation need be
shut away from free access to
the open paths Of the worlds
commerce
Paths Of the Sea.
"And the paths of the sea must
alike in law and in fact be free.
The freedom of the seas is the
sine qua non Of peace, equality
and cooperation. No doubt
somewhat radical reconsideration
of many Of the rules of tnterna-
tional practice hitherto thought
to be established, may be neces-
sary in order to make the seas
indeed free and common in prac-
tically all circumstances, for the
use Of mankind, but the motive
for such changes is convincing
and compelling. There can be
no trust or intimacy between
the peoples Of the world without