Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1919-08-28

1 uW uiliple 10 understand why Sucn
doubts should be entertained. You will
recall that when l had the pleasure of
a conference with your committee and
with the committee of the house of
representatives on foreign 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 to their imme-
date satisfaction. The covenant Of
the league was then in its first draft
and subject to revision. 1t was pointed
out that no express recognition was
given to the Monroe Doctrine, that it
was not expressly provided that the
league should have no authority to act
or to express a judgment on matters
of domestic policy, that the fight to
withdraw from the league was not ex-
pressly Recognized, and that the on
stitutional rights of the congress to
determine all questions of peace and
war was not sufficiently safeguarded.
On my return to Paris all these mat
tiers were taken up again by the COM
mission of the league of nations and
every suggestion of the United States
was accepted.
THE views of the United States
with regard to the questions l have
mentioned had. in fact, already been
accepted by the commission, and there
was supposed to be nothing ~inconsis-
tent with them in the draft Of the
covenant fist adopted, the draft which
was the subject of cur discussion in
March, but no objection was made to
saying explicitly in the text what all
had supposed to be implicit in it.
"The Monroe Doctrine is expressly
mentioned as an understanding which
is in no way to be impaired or inter-
'fered with by anything contained in
the covenant, and the expression,
regional understanding like the Mon
roe Doctrine was used, not because
anyone of the conference thought there
was any comparable agreement any
where else in existence or in con-
temptation, but only because 1t was
thought business to avoid the appear
,ance of dealing in such a document
with the policy of a single nation.
with regard to domestic questions,
Article XVIV of the covenant express
ly provides that, if in case of any dis
pute arising between members of the
league the matter involved is claimed
by one of the parties and is found by
the 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
n shall make no recommendation as
to it's settlements. The United States
wa by no means the only government
interested in the explicit adoption of
this provision, and there is no doubt
in the mind of any authoritative stu
dent of international law that such
matters as immigration, tariffs, and
naturalization are incontestably do
nestle questions with which no inter.
national body could deal.
1.-THE right of any state to withdraw
had been taken for granted but no
objection was made to making it ex-
plicit. Indeed so soon as the views ex-
pressed at the White House conference
were laid before the committee it was
at once conceded that it was business
not to leave the answer to so impor-
tant q question to inference. No pro-
posal was made to set up any tribunal
to pass judgment upon the question
where a withdrawing nation has in
fact fulfilled ,'all it's international
obligations and all its obligations un-
der the covenant 1t was recognized
that the question must be left to be
resolved by the conscience of the
nation proposing to withdraw, and
must say that it did not seem to me
worth while to propose that the article
be made more explicit because l know
that the United States would never
itself propose to withdraw from the
league if its conscience was not en-.
tirely clear as to the fulfllment of all
its international obligations. 1t has
never failed to fulfill them and never
will.
"Article x is in no respect of doubt.
full meaning when read in the light OF
the covenant as a whole. The council
of the league can only advise Upon the
LiCdllS ny WHICH tIc ODllSdClOLS u
that great article are to be giveI
effect to. Unless the United States is
q party to the policy or action in ques
ton her own affirmative vote in the
council is necessary before any advice
a be given, for a unanimous vote o.
the council is required. If she is {
party, the trouble is here anyhow, ant
the unanimous vote of the council /.
only advice in any case. Each govern
ment is free to reject it if it pleases
Nothing could have been more cleal
to the conference than the right of oul
congress, under the constitution, t,
exercise its Independent judgment ii
all matters Of peace and war. No at
tempt was made to question or limi
that right. The United States will
indeed, undertake under Article x tt
respect and preserve as against ex
ternal aggression the territorial in
tegrity and existing political independ
ence Of all members of the league an
that engagement constitutes a yer,
grave and solemn moral obligation
But 1t is a moral, not a legal obliga
Il ton. and lpayes orr congress- ahSo