New-York tribune., 1918-12-17

present to you the Municipal Council
of Paris. whose interpreter am in
welcoming the chief of the great ma
ton whose aid arriving SO oppor-
tunely, brought US victory, and the
upright man whose conscience fash
ioned his policy and whose diplomacy
was made Of loyalty"
Turning to Mrs. Wilson, M. Mithou-
ard added:
Madam: Paris is infinitely happy,
and is touched, that you who have
accompanied the President have been
good enough to add to this occasion
the charm and the grace of your
presence. We have long been aware
of your devotion and of the wise and
beneficent activity you have shown
by the side of your illustrious hus
band. Yet nothing touches so.much
the heart of the people of Paris as
to be permitted to know those who
have already conquered by their
goodness. Thus Paris, by my voice,
acclaims you and lays at your feet,
madam, the homage of its gratitude
and its respect"
Welcomes President
Finally, speaking again to President
Wilson, NJ. Mithouard said:
"Mr. President: 1t is with deep
emotion that the capital welcomes
to-day the first President of the
17,,i+0J x,,l,N hoc orCccaH tho
ocean, and our City Hall, the cradle
Of French liberty, will mark in its
annals the day on which 1T was per-
mitted to receive the eminent states
man of the Union, the citizen Of the
world-dare we say the great Euro
pean-whose voice, heard before the
coming of victory, called to life the
oppressed among the nations.
During weary months our SOL
diers have fought with stole resolu-
tion in defence of the soil of their
forebears and the land of their chill
dren. So vast was the field of battle,
so great was the issue at stake, so
bitter and so hard was the struggle
that only after the passage of time
did it seem possible that the gran
clearly show forth. Yet your dis
tance from the theatre of war has
allowed you to see, while yet they
lived: the greatness Of the monument
they were building.
Voice Source of Strength
"From the other side of the world
YOU have spoken in advance of the
Judgment of history. What a source
of strength was it for these fighters
suddenly to hear your voice, in it's
distant authority resembling the
voice of posterity; what JOY. to well
come those new brothers in arms
Fastening with ardor to claim at the
critical hour their place upon r.
field of battle; what comfort fof
them to feel that they were hence
forth ayrayed with the glorious army
of General Pershing, the victor OF
the Argonne!
"Thus Paris, eager to see in the
flesh the man it had known only by
his written word and by his image,
to-day lives over again with poignant
intensity the history of Americas
decision as it was unfolded in your
conscience before the eyes of the
world.
"Profoundly moved by the mag
nificent generosity with which your
compatriots had set themselves to re-
lievc our sufferings, with what
anxious yet confident expectation
did we follow the progress of your
thought and of your feelings!
Justice and Force Unite
Beneath the deliberately meas
ured tone of your notes and mes
sages we felt little the mounting
of a righteous anger. What was
1ov1IoC or DIM irot Whpn
there burst upon us the message Of
April 2, 1917, which gave to the
ouestionings Of the American con-
science their supreme conclusion,
and, in Pascal's words, brought to-
gether justice and force to decide
for long centuries the fate Of all
humanity!
"We are proud, Mr. President, to
offer you welcome in the name Of
this capital.
"Our country is not alone that
well-loved land for whose liberation
the blood of sons of the Union is
mingled with that of the sons Of
France; our country to US means
also, and by right Of heritage, JUS
. tice, good sense and honor; and be-
cause you come to us in the name OF
these noble things, to-day we dare
W Gail YOU a ClllZSll VI L dllS.
Menace of Berthas Gone
"Take then, Mr.. President, the
sincere good wishes of our city,
yesterday under the menace of the
Berthas and the Gothas, citadel of
the liberties of the world, but to-
day open to all noble ard generous
ideas, and enthusiastically acclaim
ing in the great citizen she has the
honor to receive the embodiment of
a new ideal which comes to her"
Prefect of Seine Speaks
NJ Autrand, Prefect of the Sein'
speaking at the City Hall, said:
"Mr. President, day memorable
beyond all is that on which, for the
first time, a chief of the great
American Republic crosses the
threshold of our City Hall.
"None among your illustrous
deeply venerated for their genius
instant at the hearts of the people
Of Paris.
"rhus in mourning the death Of
George Washington and Abraham
Lincoln our fathers had left deep
regret that they could render but
posthumous homage to the great
men who had been the object OF
their enthusiastic veneration.
"The JOY which this visit gives ua
is of q rare and precious sort
After an interval of four centuries
the new world again exercises upon
us that same fascination which it
had for the contemporaries of Chris
topher Columbus. Those hardy pio-
neerS sOuCht to nenet rata tho rnur-