The news scimitar. (Memphis, Tenn.) 1907-1926, 1919-08-19
Holds Up Plans.

case. our tull, normal profitable pro-
ductiou waits on peace.
Holds Up Plans.
our military plans, Of course, wait
upon it.. We can not intelligently or
wisely decide how large a naval or
military force we shall maintain or
what our policy with regard to military
training is to be until we have peace
not only, but also until we know how
peace Is to be sustained, whether by
the arms of a single nation or by the
concert of all the great peoples. 7
And there Is more than that diff
Guilty Involved, The vast surplus prop
critics Of the army include, not food and
clothing merely, whose sale will affect
normal production. but great manufac-
turing establishments also which should
be restored to their former uses, great
stores OF machine tools, and all sorts of
merchandise which must lie idle until
peace and military policy are definitely
determined, BY the same token there
can be no properly studied national bud
get until then.
THE nations that ratify the treaty,
such AS Great Britain, Belgium and
France, will be in a position to lay their
plans for controlling the markets Of
Central Europe without cooperation
from us If we do not presently act. We
have no consular agents, no trade rep
resentatives there to look after our In
terests.
There are large areas OF Europe
whose future will lie uncertain and
questionable until their people know the
final settlements OF peace and the forces
which are to administer n sustain
it. Without determinate markets our
production cannot proceed with intelll-
gence or confidence. There can be no
stabiiization of wages because there
can be no settled conditions of employ
lnent. There can be no easy or nor
NAL Industrial credits, because there
a be no confident or permanent re-
viyal OF business.
Delays Dangerous.
But / will not weary you with OBJ
vious examples. | will only venture to
repeat that every elemen of normal
life amongst us depends upon and
awaits the ratification Of the treaty
81 peace; and also that w cannot af-
ford TO lose a single summers day by
not doing all that we can 10 mitigate
the winters suffering, which, unless we
find means to prevent II, may prove
disastrous to q large portion of the
world, and may, at its worst, bring
upon Europe conditions even more ter
rible. thai those wrought by the war
itself.
Nothing | am led to believe, stands
In the way Of the ratification of the
treaty except certain doubts with re-
49, " NAH bANNAAAlAk biN AlAlIlltdNlNt
OF certain articles OF tho covenant Of
the league of nations; and must
FRANKLY say that ! am unable to under
stand why such doubts should be en-
tertained, You will recall that when |
had the pleasure of "A conference with
your committee and with the committee
OF the house OF representatives, on for
elgn affairs at the White House In
March last the questions now most
frequently asked about the league OF
nations were all c%anvassed, with a view
10 their immediate Qualification. The
covenant of the league was then In It's
first draft and subject to revision. 1t
was pointed out that no express recog-
nltton was given to the Monroe doc
Trim that II was not expressly provided
That the league should have no author
ity 70 act or to express a Judgment on
matters OF domestic policy, that the
right TO withdraw from the league was
not expressly recognized, and that the
constitutional right of the congress to
determine all questions OF peace and
war was not sufficiently s~Afeguarded.
on my return to Paris all these mat
ters were taken III again by the COM
mission on the league Of nations and
every suggestion OF the United States
was accepted.
THE view OF the United States with
regard to the question ! have mem
Toned had. In fact, already been ac-
eepted by the commission and there was
supposed to be nothing inconsistent
with them In the draft of the covenant
first adopted-the draft which was the
subject OF our discussion In March, but
no objection was made Ito saying ex-
puettly in the text what all had sup-
posed TO he implicit in II. There was
absolutely no doubt as to the meaning
oi any one OF the resulting provisions
or the covenant in the minds of those
who participated IN drafting them, and
j respectfully submit that there Is moth
ing agu or doubtful in their wording,
Expressly Stated.
THE Monroe doctrine is expressly
mentioned as an understandings which
Is ~ no way to be impaired or inter-
Tered with by anything contained In the
covenant and the expression regional
Understandings like the Monroe doc
trine' was used, not because any one
of the conferees thought there was any
comparable agreement anywhere else IN
existence or In contemplation, but only
because II was thought best to avoid
the appearance OF dealing in such a
document with the policy OF a single
nation. Absolutely nothing is concealed
IN the phrase.
with regard to domestic questions,
article XVI of the covenant expressly
provides that. IL In case OF any DISPUTE
arising between members OF the league
the matter involved Is claimed by one
49, tNaAA - l'hlAh u AUH
council to arise out of a matter which
by International law Is solely within
the domestic jurisdiction OF that party,
the. council shall so report, and shall
make no recommendation as TO It's set
tlement." The United states was by
no means the only government inter-
ested In the explicit adoption of this
provision, and there is no doubt in the
lnlnu OF any authoritative student of
International law that such matters of
Immigration, tariffs and naturalization
are incontestibly domestic questions
with which no international body could
deat without express authority to do
So NO enumeration Of domestic cues
ions was undertaken because TO un-
uertake II, even by sample, would have
involved the danger OF seeming TO ex-
clude those not mentioned.
THE right of my sovereign state to
withdraw had been taken for granted.
4ut no objection was made to making
~ explicit. Indeed, so soon as the
Views expressed at the White House
conference were laid before he com.
mission 1t was at once conceded tina,
II was best not to leave the answer 10
50 important q question TO inference.
no proposal was made TO set up any
TRIBUNAL TO pass judgment upon the
question whether a withdrawing ma
tlon had in fact fulfilled ''all It's inter-
sational obligations md all its obllga-
lions under the covenant" II was rec.
ognized that the question must be left
1otne resolved by the conscience of the
nation proposing 10 withdraw: and /
must say that It did not seem TO me
worth while to propose that the article
pc made more explicit because | knew
mat the United States would never Il.
Sci pFopose To withdraw from the