Mexico Missouri message., 1918-10-17

IF II be I'm deed and In truth the
common object of the governments as
ISOLATED against Germany and Of the
nations whom they govern, as believe
1t to be, TO achieve by the coming set
Elements a secure and lasting peace 1t
will be necessary that all who sit down
at the peace table shall come ready
and willing to pay the price, the only
price that will procure It; and ready
and willing also to create in some
virlle fashion the only instrumentality
by which 1t can be made certain that
the agreements of the peace will be
honored and fulfilled.
"That price is impartial justice In
every item of settlement, no matter
whose interest Is crossed; not only i'm
partial justice, but also the satisfac-
ton Of the several peoples whose for
tunes are dealt with. That indispen'
sable instrumentallty is a league of
nations formed under covenants that
will be efiicaciods.
without such instrumentallty, by
which the peace of the world can be
guaranteed, peace will rest in part
upon the word of outlaws and only
upon that word. For Germany Will
have TO redeem her character, not only
by what happens at the peace table
but what follows.
"And, as ! see it, the constitution Of
that league of nations and the clear
definition Of its objects must be part,
is In a sense the most essential part,
of the peace settlement itself. 1t can
not be formed now. If formed now, 1t
would be merely a new alliance con-
fined to the nations associated against
a common enemy. 1t is not likely that
It could be formed after that settle
ment.
1T Is necessary to guarantee the
peace, and the peace cannot be guar
anteed as an afterthought. The rea-
son, to speak in plain terms again,
why 1t must be guaranteed, Is that
there will be parties to the peace
whose promises have proved untrust-
worthy, and means must be found In
connection with the peace settlement
itself to remove that source of inse-
curity.
ut would be folly to leave the guar
antee to the subsequent voluntary ac-
tion of the government we have seen
destroy Russia and deceive Roumania.
Particulars of Terms.
"These, then, are some Of the par
ticulars, and l state them with the
greater confidence because I can state
them authoritatively as representing
this governments Interpretation of its
own duty with regard to peace:
"FIRST-The impartial justice
meted out must involve no discrimina-
tiOn between those to whom we wish to
be just and those TO whom we do not
wish to be Just. 1t must be justice
that plays no favorites and knows no
standard but the equal rights of the
several peoples.
"SECOND-No special or separate
interest of any single nation or any
group of nations can be made the
basis of any part of the settlement
which is not consistent with the COM
mon interest of all.
"THIRD-There can be no leagues
or alliances or special covenants and
understandings within the general and
common family of the league Of ma
tions.
"FOURTH-And more specifically,
there can be no special, selfish, ecOnO-
mic combinations within the league
and no employment of any force of
economic boycott for exclusion except
as the power of economic penalty by
exclusion from the markets of the
world may be vested in the league OF
nations itself as a means of discipline
and control.
"FIFTH-All international agree
ments and treaties of every kind must
be made known in their entirety to
the rest of the world.
Special alliances and economic
rivalries and hostilities have been
the prolific sources in the modern
world of the plans and passions that
produce war. 1t would be an insin
cere rs well as insecure peace thai
did not exclude them in definite and
binding terms.
"Plain wOrkaday people have demand.
ed almost every time they came to-
gether, and are still demanding, that
the leaders of their governments de-
clare to them plainly what it is-ex.
actly what it is-that they We're seek
ing In this war and what they think
the items of the final settlement
should be.
'They are not yet satisfied with
what they have been told They still
seem to fear that they are getting what
they ask for only in statesmen's terms
only in the terms of territorial ar
rangements and the divisions of DOW
er and not In terms of broad vision,
justice and mercy and peace and the
satisfaction of those deep-seated long
ings of oppressed and distracted men
and women and enslaved peoples that
% -,