Evening journal. [volume] (Wilmington, Del.) 1888-1932, 1917-01-22
Wilson OUTLINES PLAN
FOR WORLD Peace.


Continued from First Page.
force OF any nation now engaged or
any allegiance hitherto formed or pro
jected that no nation, no probable
combination Of nations. could face or
withstand it,
III the peace presently TO be made is
10 endure, II must be peace made Sc
cure by the organized major force OF
mankind.
"The terms OF the immediate peace
agreed upon will determine whether
II IS peace for which such a guaran-
tee can be secured
The question upon which the whole
future peace and policy OF the world
depends is this Is the present war a
struggle for a just and secure peace,
or only for new balance OF power?
If IL be only a struggle for new bal
ance OF power, who will guarantee,
who can guarantee the stable eQuill-
brium OF the new arrangement? Only
a tranquil Europe can be a stable Eu-
rope There must be. not a balance
OF power, but a community OF power;
not organized rivalries, but an organ
lied common peace.
Fortunately, we have received very
explicit assurances on this point. The
statesmen OF both of the groups Of
nations now arrayed against one an
other have said. I'm terms that could
not be mis.nterpreted that IL was no
part OF the purpose they had IN mind
TO crush their antagonists. But the
implications of these assurances may
not be equally clear 10 all-may not be
the same on both sides Of the water.
/ think IL will be serviceable II I at
tempt to set forth what we understand
them 10 be.
"They imply, first Of all. that it
must be a peace without victory. Il
4 is not pleasant TO say this. / beg
that l may be permitted to put my
own Interpretation upon IL and that
it may be understood that no other
/ Interpretation was in my thought /
am seeking only TO face realities and
to face them without soft conceal
ments. Victory would mean peace
forced upon the loser. a yictor's terms
imposed upon the vanqulshed
1T would be accepted in humili-
alton under duress. at an intolerable
sacrifice and would leave a sting, a
/ resentment. a bitter memory upon
which the terms of peace would rest,
not permanently, but only as upon
the quicksand Only a peace be-
tween equals can last The very
princ'p pie which is equality and COM
mon participation in a common bene-
fit The right state Of mind, the
right feeling between nations is as
necessary for lasting peace as is the
just settlement of vexed questions of
territory or OF racial and national
allegiance.
"The quality of nations upon which
peace must be founded If II is to last
must be an equality of rights the
guarantees exchanged must neither
recognize nor imply a difference be-
tween big nations and small; betN cen
those that are powerful and those
that are weak.
Fright must be based upon tn,
common strength. not upon the indi
vidual strength, OF the nations upor
whose concert peace will depend
Equality of territory or of resources
there Of course cannot be; nor an,
other sort of equality not gained il
the ordinary peaceful and legitimat
development OF the peoples them
. selves.
But no one asks OF expects any
thing more than an equality of right.
Mankind is looking now for freedom
?, Of life. not for equipoises Of power.
d And there is a deeper thing involy
ed than even equality Of right anon
organized nations. No peace can last
or ought TO last, which does nc
. recognize and accept the principl
that governments derived all thei
, just powers from the consent Of tn
governed, and that no right anywher
exists to hand peoples about fror
sovereignty to sovereignty as il the
were property.
81 take II for granted for instanc
if / may venture upon a single ex
ample. that statesmen everywher
are agreed that there should be
united, independent and autonomou
. Poland and that henceforth inviolabl
/ security of life, of worship. and q
industrial and social development
should be guaranteed to all people
2 who have lived hitherto under tn
power of governments devoted to
faith and purpose histile to thei
faith and purpose histile to thei
own.
D Il speak OF this, not because OF an
- desire to exalt an abstract polite;
3 principle which has always been hel
very dear by those who have sOugl
e 10 build up liberty in America, but Il
n the same reason that J have spoken .
the other conditions Of peace whic
e seem to me clearly Indispensable
: cause ] wish frankly TO uncover rea
tiles Any peace which does not re-
Il ognize and accept this principle wi
b inevitably be upset.
r at will not rest upon the affection
/. or the convictions Of mankind. I'll
e ferment Of spirit OF whole populatio
d will fight subtly and constant
b against It, and all the world will syn
f pathize. The world can be at pea'
l. only II its life is stable, and there ca
It be no stability where the will Is
T. rebellion, where there is not trai
e quality OF spirit and a sense of iustic
e Of freedom and Of right.
so far as practicable, moreove
h every great people now strugglln
q towards a full development OF its n
IS sources and Of its powers should
&c assured a direct outlet to the gre;
o highways of the sea. Where IN
L cannot be done by the cession Of te
o ritory. il can no doubt be done |
the naturalization of direct rights
way under the general guarant
which will assure the peace itse
II With a right comfy OF arrangemel
C. no nation need be shut away fro
r free access to the open paths Of Il
10 worlds commerce.
u e Wand fha Mans OF the sea mn