The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1918-10-31
ONLY TWO LIVING Elk
PRESIDENTS ISSUE REPLY
CONTINUED from page one.)

| treasure and exercising more abso-
| lutte power than any administration
| in our history must give an account
| of its stewardship. -
Fourth, the change from war con-
ditions to peace must be brought
about with the least disturbance
and the work Of reconstruction
must be broadly begun.
Republicans Needed
"a Republican congress will be
much better qualified than one con-
trolled by Democrats to aid the
! country in adopting the measures
needed for these four great tasks.
First, even as a minority party the
the war possible by passing the or
| iginal draft bill. without this we
| could not have trained and landed
the two millionss of men now in
France. AS a minority party the
Republicans forced upon a reluctant
president and secretary of state aft
er an injurious delay Of four months,
the amended draft act without
which we could not put two more
millions of men at the front next
July. The speaker the leader, and
| thels chairman of the military COM
mittee OF the Democratic house OPP
| posed the original draft with all
the vigor possible. 1t was saved
and so our country's cause was saw
ed by the Republican minority.
Senate Must Approve Peace
Second. the new senate must ap-
prove by two thirds vote the terms
| of peace. Those terms should be
settled not by one man alone. It is
one man control we are fighting in
this war to suppress. If the peace
| treaty is to be useful in the future,
it must be approved by the great
body of the American people. The
President has indicated a willing
He has not, as he might have done,
in three lines, expressed that which
the American people demand. an I'M
conditional surrender. His ex-
! change of notes with Germany has
caused a deep concern among our
people lest he may by his parleying
with her, concede her peace
around a council table instead of a
sentence from the court.
THE fourteen points which the
President and Germany assume they
already are agreed upon are so gen.
eral and vague that such peace
would be no treaty at all but only a
protocol to an interminable discus
sion. The President is without fin
al power to bind the United States
to those II points. although his lam
guage does not suggest it. Still less
| has he power to bind our noble al
lies. We do not know that these
| points include all that our allies
may justly demand. or do not con-
cede something they may Justly
Withhold. For what they have done
for us we owe our allies the highest
good faith. It is of capital import
ance that we should now elect a
senate which. shall be Independent
enough to interpret and enforce the
will Of the American people in the
matter of this world peace and not
merely submit to the uncontrolled
will Of Mr.. Wilson.
Nor can the attitude of the
house of representatives be ignor-
| ed In this peace. Very affirmative
obligation binding the United States
in that treaty must be performed
| by the house as part of the con-
gress. The present Democratic ma
| jority in the house has been sub
servient to- the will of the President
in every respect except when criti-
cal issues in the conduct Of the war
have been involved. The President
has not hesitated publicly to disci-
pine those of his party who have
| disagreed with him and the lesson
| has had its effect. A new Democrat
ic congress with it's old leaders thus
| chastened, will after no opposition
to his will. They will INT be con-