The news scimitar. (Memphis, Tenn.) 1907-1926, 1918-12-31
Why Postpone?

OF record Why should we receive a
part Of the fruits Of victory now and
postpone the remainder until some
other time? l can understand always
why the lawyer for a defendant desires
to enter a partial decree, but | can
not understand why the representative
OF the complainant Is unwilling to take
a tull decree after he has obtained a
decision in his favor. II can not be
explained by the statement that the
relief sought Is too complicated. II
America was strong enough. was able
enough to win the fight, she has got
men strong enough and able enough
To secure in a decree the objects and
purposes for which she fought, and il
TX lmmateTial whether the fruition Of
these objects and purposes is to be
called an entente, as named by the
senator from Pennsylvania, or a league
OF nations, as named by the president
of the United States.
Address of Lodge.
And then comes the learned SEN
ator from Massachusetts and comedies
with the position taken by Senator
Knox and Celebrates upon it and says
ne Is willing for "A Judgment to be en-
tered upon nine Of the presidents is
sues. but that he positively objects
to a Judgment upon the five main is
sues at this time. The issues which
the learned senator from Massachu-
sets objects to a judgment upon now
are the following demands Of President
Wilson:
40. Open covenants of peace. open
~ arrived at, after which there shall
he no private internatiOna understand
ings of any kind, but diplomacy shall
proceed always frankly and in the pub
lie view;
"'2. Absolute freedom of navigation
upon the seas, outside territorial wa
ters, ahks~1n peace and in war, except
as the seas may be closed in whole
or In part by international action for
the enforcement Of international cove
nants.
80. The removal, so far as possible,
OF all economic barriers and the estab-
llshment of an equality Of trade con-
ditloHs among all the nations consent
ing to the peace and associating them
selves for its maintenance,
q. Adequate guarantees given and
taken that national ornaments will be
reduced to the lowest point consistent
with domestic safety
And then the fourteenth point.
which is as follows.
"A general association of nations
must be formed under specific cove
nants for the purpose OF affording mu-
lual guarantees Of political %independ-
enGe q territorial integrity to great
and small states alike
The learned senator then proceeds
TO take these five points up and dis
cusS them and declare thai their con
sideration ought to be entirely post
poned at this time.
Such a Peace Worthless.
There are the questions that the
Senator from Massachusetts admits
must be determined by the ensuing
peace council, What a strange post
tion, We must do all these things; we
must readtust the map Of Europe and
or ASIA and OF Africa, but we must take
no united step to guarantee that the
decree Will be carried out. For instance,
we must set apart II new Poland, hut
mako no International guaranty that
the new Poland Will remain as we have
ordained We must make a Jugo-Slav
state, nut we must make no agreement
to see that the Jugo-Slav nation is per-
mltted to live and work out it's W des-
tlhy, We must make a CZecho- Sloyak
state, but we must take no allied pre-
caution TO see that the Czecho- Slovak
state might be permitted to work out
It's own destiny. We must mark out
new boundaries for Rumania, but we
must make no lasting agreement that
VIII be binding alike upon all the ma
tions to uphold the boundaries that we
nave made. We must even make a new
agreement TO uphold the new Russia
to which we give life, and so on all
down the line.
IT is truN that Senator Lodge says:
1--WE are Us much bound, not merely
by interest and every consideration for
a safe future but by honor n self
respect, to see that the terms of peace
are carried out as we were to fulfil
our great determination that the armies
of Germany should be defeated in the
field, We can not halt or turn back
now, We must do our share to carry
| ANT the nAnaA Aa .sa Ia.r- H. ..
share to win the war, of which the
peace is an integral part.
we can not leave the Jugo-Slavs,
the Czecho-Slovaks and the Poles, the
L|tthuantans and the other states which
we hope To see formed and marching
upon the path Of progress and develop.
ment unaided and alone
The distinguished senator says that
we, the United States, must protect all
of these states, that we must uphold
them in their territorial boundaries,
that we must see that they work out
their destintes In their own way. but
We must have no International agree
nent for this purpose, The other ma
tons must not help us, we must make
no contract with them TO help us, How
can we help them, how car we uphold
them, how can we maintain them unless
we enter into a formal agreement with
the nations of the world setting forth
the terms and the obligations thereof?
III we follow out the doctrines Of
these two distinguished senators, we
give to these new nations a paper de-
cree that anybody may break at win,
for America by herself can not protect
them all, We will be doing for them
bust what these senator's know has been
done to many others-to Bulgaria, to
Turkey, to Greece. to Serbia and Mon
tenegro and other small nations, -
The League of Nations.
"Mr. President, in my humble judg-
ment the great mistake that is being
made by these distinguished senators,
and by those who follow their lead, Is
that they are giving to the term league
Of nations n meaning that they should
not give to It, y meaning that the pres
ident OF the United States has never
given to it, n meaning that no other
representative Of n great nation has
ever given to II. Apparently they as
n supergoNernnent established for the
world, and that the various nations Of
the earth are TO be merely subject
states to that government, Apparently
they regard a league Of nations as n
government with the power to tax. q
government with the only army and
navy on earth, and a government with
jurisdiction over the earth and sea and
air and aver all other governments now
in existence.
MI. President. IT " was desired by
anybody to form such a supergovern-
ment, for one would never agree to It.
! for would never he willing TO
give up American sovereignty, 49,
Mr.. President. there Is no such
purpose, as ! believe, upon the part OF
anyone believing in n league of nations
70 secure peace; but what Is desired Is
that this peace conference about to
convene at Versailles shall, for the
purpose of enforcing the results of this
war, OF bringing about n lasting peace,
Of securing to the peoples of each ma
ton, great and small, the right to work
out its own destiny In Its own way, OF
securing for all nations the right &c
trade freely with each other and I'M
malested upon the high seas. of cutting
down armameuts 70 say taxes upon
the people, OF providing for open and
ahoveboard International agreements
these are the objects which We ask ia
he secured by this great peace confer
ence, The whole question has been
argued from time i~Nmemorfal. The