The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1918-02-23

many parts of the world, that scarcity is passing into famine, and famine is rassing into pestilence, and we can draw for ourselves the kind O. pie ture of what the condition )f the world will be two or three years hence if we cannot obtain "a peace before that time. And it is no con- solation I believe, to any of us to reflect that all these things are be- falling not only ourselves, but our enemies also.
 l submit that it is not either un- patriotic or unchristian to think of these things. I say, then, let us en- i deavor for all we are worth to get our clean peace in good time. By a clean peace, I mean a peace which shall be honorable, and which shall De durable.
 A Pact of Nations
 How are we going to get a durable peace?
 To my mind there is only one way 1 of getting it, and that is by bringing about a combination of the Great d one group of powers; I mean a com bination of all the powers-under
 which they will hold themselves bound to refer international disputes to some kind of international tribun- al, and under whcih they will bind themselves, as MT. Balfour put it the other day, to use coercion against any l criminal or unruly member of the combination. It seems to me full of hope that the idea of pact of this kind has been in principle accepted | both by neutrals and belligerents. And
 would it not be true to add that if
 we could obtain the adhesion of Ger
 many to such pact it would mean the negotiation of Prussian militar-
 ism?
 There would be no room for Prus. sian militarism inside of such a com
 bination. The world would be free from the incubus under which it has
 suffered so much during recent years
 And there would be what I think General Shuts called the other day
 an irrevocable break with militarism A peace of this kind would mean much; but it would not be, by itself
 sufficient.
 It will want something besides.
 A peace of this kind presupposes as
 a preliminary that there has been a
 reasonable adjustment of the nair
 territorial difficulties by which the
 Great Powers are divided. It means think, certainly this, that an agree. ment has been arrived at as to the principles upon which those difficul. ties, those questions, shall be adjust , ed. We must, as MT. Balfour put i ; very well at Edinburgh-we mus start with an arrangement which shall not grossly violate equity ant freedom. The international system must be in a condition of natura stability to begin with. Now we can not, we could not, desire to discus! in detail the manner in which these . territorial questions might be settled between the powers concerned.
 National SeIf-Determination 5 And here again turn to the Prim, Minister, and I say that accepted 3 wholeheartedly his suggestion tha l they should be settled on the basis O r national self-determination or, ir s other words, to govern by the con 3 sent of the governed.
 I might even better the phrase il !, which President Wilson expressed S what seemed to me the same idea = which runs thus: He suggested tha y we should proceed on the double line @ of allegiance and nationality. I ven e ture to think that a peace conferenc h and MT. Lloyd George tells us ther e is to be a peace conference at the en, t of the war-assembled for the pur y pose of dealing with these outstand e ing question upon those principles e would be a peace conference whicI t we might regard with the highes
 possible hopes.
 But I may be told that am cryin
 for the moon, and that all thes u things are a long way beyond ou e reach. may be referred to a speec l. delivered the other day by Coun 5 Hertling, the German Chancellor. J. grant freely that that speech was on -o which has led to great disappoint n ment. It seems. to me minatory i V tone and uncompromising in sub '' stance. But may we not, after al perhaps little discount an utteranc d of this kind. aIn disposed to dis le count Count Hertling a little. w 1T know in the first place that thes II great diplomatists very often sa rather more than they mean. d. Hertling and Gibraltar nt think nobody would be more SUI S. prised than Count Hertling if + r. thought we were going to hand ovt ,n Gibraltar and Hong Kong, and son ne other little quarters of the cart Id Then we all known, suppose, tn; be simultaneously with Count Hertling d. speech there was a speech by Coul UT Czernin, the Austrian chancellor, 70 partner in the firm, whose preci! he position is a little obscure, in whic le certainly language of a very muc u- more hopeful character was used. il- But I own frankly that I attach
 great deal more importance not Is the language of these distinguishe en continental ministers, but to tl he views of the peoples who are behir
 them, and with whom, in that la