The daily commonwealth. (Greenwood, Leflore Co., Miss.) 1916-1919, 1917-03-16
JOHN SHARP WILLIAMS CHAM
PIONS PRESIDENT WILSON.
Answers Letter From German Citizen
of New York-The Reply is
Redh0t.


time past Senator John Sharp Viii
liams, member of the committee OF
foreign relations, has been receiving
letters from all parts of the Unitet
States with reference to the diploma
tic break with Germany and the con
duct of the Wilson administration il
the pursuance Of its policy as a nation
bent upon the maintenance Of an hon.
orable neutrality. To most Of these
letters Senator Williams replied as q
champion of the administration, as
well as a defender of his own act as
a member of the Senate. ~
Recently Senator Williams received
a letter from German citizen of
New York City, in which the writer
took exception to President Wilson's
criticism of those IL "willful senator's"
who by defeating the armed ship bill
in the closing hours of the last Con-
gress rendered the United States
helpless and contemplate" in the eyes
of the world.
To this letter Senator Williams has
replied with characteristic fearless
ness of statement and clearness of
analysis. His reply follows:
'There is nothing which 'justifies
the executive in impugning the honor
and probity of any senator except
a senator who is lacking in honor and
safety of the nation-then surely the
president is not verbally castrated
because he is president, and has as
much right to express his disapproval
as you or I.
"These men Of whom he expresses
his disapproval make me tired. Your
talk about their obeying their con-
sciences is wide of the mark Their
consciences could have been satisfied
by their speeches and by their votes,
but there is nothing in the world of !
conscience requiring them to deprive
The balance Of us Of the right to vote.
Filibustering Absolutely Intolerable.
"Filibustering upon small matters
s harmless and frequently an anus
ng game, but filibustering to prevent
he Senate Of the United States from
expressing it's opinion in connection
With a matter of public safety and
lational honor is absolutely intoler-
ble, and president would have been a
raven and fool both if he had not
aiken advantage of the occasion to
hame the Senate and make it do
that it partially has done, to-wit:
"Adopt a rule which enables at
East two-thirds to force vote and
ssert the fact that the Senate is a !
lw-making body. l wanted major {
y rule. l don't see much good done {
Y the two-thirds rule, because if the
orst comes to the worst, two-thirds
IN expel member without any rea-
IN.
"The situation does not require any t
.asons. Our forefathers were wise in a
leir day and generation when they t
mply said that either house could, i
, a two-thirds vote, expeLa member, s
ithout saying that it should be done b
cause of misdemeanor, crime or a
lything else simply because they
anted to-and as for myself, if this Y
rt Of situation ever faces me again, n
hereby the national honor or nation !
safety is involved, I shall move to il
pei the obstructionist. p
1.-THE north did that with several 0
rider members during the Civil War.
icy were expelled simply because b
cir course Of conduct was obstruct- S
8 and delayed the national defense, G
s what the north called them the n
tional defense. It was not quite G.
tional, becsusa part Of the nation v