Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1918-01-08
[Continued from First Page.l

tSO1UI1uGu EfOm fIESG IdSC.I
independence and territory integrity
of the Balkan States.
Insecure sovereignty for Tur-
keys portion of the Ottoman empire
but with other. nationalities under
Turkish rule assured security of life
and opportunity for autonomous de-
Eelopment, with the Dardanelles
permanently opened to all nations.
establishment of an indepen-
dent Polish state, including territor-
les inhabited by indisputably Polish
populations with free access to the
sea and political economic indepen-
dence and territorial integrity guar
anteed by international covenant.
tions under specific covenants for
mutual guarantees of political inde-
pendence and territorial integrity to
large and small states alike.
VIII Fight 10 End
For such arrangements and cove
nants," said the President in con-
clusion, 1--WE are willing to fight and
continue TO fight until they are
achieved; but only because we wish
the right to prevail and desire a Just
and stable peace"
Such a program, he said, removed
provocations for war;
1.-THE moral climax of this, the
eliminating and final war for hu-
man liberty has come" said the
President in ending his address,
"and they (people of the United
own strength, their own highest pur-
pose, their integrity and devotion
to the test"
The Speech in Full
The President spoke as follows:
~"Gentlemen of the Congress: Once
more, as repeatedly before, the
spokesman of the central empires
have indicated their desire to dis
Fcuss the objects of the war and the
| Parleys have been Sn progress at
Brest- -Litovsk between Russians and
Representatives of the central pow
ers to which the attention of all the
| belligerents has been invited for the
purpose of ascertaining whether it
may be possible to extend these par
leys into a general conference with
regard to terms of peace and settle-
| ment.
THE Russian representatives pre-
sented not only a perfectly definite
statement of the principles upon
which they would be willing to con-
| clude peace, but also an equally
definite program of the concrete ap-
plication of those principles. The
! representative of the central pow
ers, on their part presented an out
line of settlement which, if much
less definite, seemed susceptible of
liberal Interpretation until their
specific program of practical terms
was added. That program proposed
no concessions at all, either to SOW
creignty of Russia or to the prefer
enceS of the population with whose
| fortunes it dealt but meant. in q
word, that the central empires were
to keep every foot of territory their
armed forces had occupied-every
province, every city, every point of
vantage-aS a permanent addition
to their territories and their power.
1t is reasonable conjecture that
the general principles of settlement
which they first suggested originated
with the more liberal statesmen of
Germany and Austria, the men who
have begun to feel the force of their
own peoples thought and purpose,
while the concrete Terms of actual
settlement came from the military
leaders who have no thought but to
keep what they have got The ne
gotiations have been broken off. The
Russian representatives were sim
cere and in earnest. They cannot
entertain such proposals of conquest
and domination.
Full of Significance
THE whole incident is full of sig
nificance. 1t is also full of perpleX-
ity. With whom are the Russian
representative dealing? 'For whom
are the representatives of the CEN
trail empires snealling? Are they
speaking for the majorities of their
respective parliaments, or for the
| minority parties, that military and
imperialistic minority which has so
far dominated their whole policy and
controlled the affairs of Turkey and
of the Balkan states, which have
felt obliged to become their associ-
I ates in this war? The Russian rep
resentatives have insisted very just
ly, very wisely and in the true spirit
of modern democracy that the con-
ferences they have been holding
with the Teutonic and Turkish
statesmen should be held within
open not closed doors, and all the
world has been audience, as was de-
sired.
ITO whom have we been listening,
then? To those who speak the spirit
and Intention of the resolutions of
the German Reichstag of the 9th
of July last, the spirit and intention
of the liberal leaders and parties of
Germany, or to those who resist and
defy that spirit and intention and
insist upon conquest and subjuga-
ton? Or are we listening, in fact,
to both, unreconciled and in open
and hopeless contradiction? These
are very serious and pregnant dues-
tions. Upon the answer to them de-
pends the peace of the world.
But whatever. the results of the
parleys at Brest-Litovsk, whatever
the confusions of counsel and OF
purpose in the utterances of the
spokesmen of the central empires
they have again attempted to ac-
quaint the world with their objects
in the war and have again chal.
lenged their adversaries to say what
their objects are and what sort oi
settlement they would deem just and
satisfactory. There is no good rea.
son why that challenge should moi
be responded to, and responded tc
with the utmost candor. We did moi
wait for it. Not once, but again an6
again we have laid our whole
thought and purpose before the
world, not in general terms only
but each time with sufficient de.
finition to make it clear what sort
of definitive terms of settlement
must necessarily spring out of them
within the last week, Mr.. Lloyd
/ George has spoken with admirable
candor and in admirable spirit fol