Norwich bulletin., 1919-08-20

could not go into the negotiations ove, . the French frontier or give the com mittee copy of the record of Japan Shantung prnlfSe. ~A
 Early action on the treaty was urg. } ed in statement by the president al
 the outset of the conference. This
 was necessary, he E,iid. so that a peace : oasis might be reached and the other
 treaties Under negotiation now al Versailles were being delayed until the world learned what would happen to the treaty with Germany. He said he saw no reasonable objection to sem ate reservation but thought it unwise
 to incorporate them in the ratification itself.
 In replying to a long series of ques-
 tons by Senator Brandegee. republi- can, Connecticut. the president was led into exhaustive discussion of the CO., -mingling of moral and legal obligations in treaties.
 t A moral obligation. said MT. Will son, lis, of course, superior to a legal
 obligation and if l may say so, has a
 greater binding fosce. In every moral
 obligation there is element of
 judgment; in a legal obligation there | is no element of judgment" | Senator Brandegee suggested there
 was no important distinction because we are obligated in any event. T think it is of the greatest im- p5rtance," replied the president. "be-
 
 into it."
 But I am assuming" returned MT. Brandegee, If the council should ad- wise us to do certain thing. and con- greSS refused to do it. and if every other nations representative assemb- ly can do the same thing, it seems to me like rope of sand and not an ef- fective tribunal which would result in promoting peace"
 "The reason I do not agree with you" Mir. Wilson replied. lis that I do not think such a refusal would likely often occur. I believe it would and in case congress is right. I am in different to foreign criticism " Senator Harding. republican. Ohio, |! suggested there was no necessity of | to fulfill it's normal obligations to civilization" to which the president | rejoined:
 'sBut it steadies the whole world by it's promise beforehand that it will stand with other. nations of similar judgment to maintain right in the | world"
 When Senator Brandegee asked the presidents opinion the concrete case of the present trouble betweenl said he could not answer because that would involve passing judgment on a foreign political question in a way he considered inadvisable.
 Senator Brandegec also called at tentien that many authorities on in law had differed as to the of various provisions of the treaty and that Charles E. Hughes, Taft and Ellen Root had sug- gested reservations. but the president insisted that he thought it perfectly safe to leave the present language to the interpretation of future states States would suffer by their construc- ton.
 When Senator Fall. republican. New Mexico, suggested that any amend nents to the league covenant would not require Germany's assent as she was not a member of the league. the president replied he never had thought ,f that feature. He disagreed with , Brandegee and Knox. re- Pennsylvania, who asserted j, hat the treaty would come into force lmong all the signatories as soon as hree had ratified it.
 Fore more than three hours the ] committee members questioned the f president, and afterward they stayed ; or lunch at the White House. When ( he recess was taken there had been 10 discussion whether the meeting was ( o be resumed during the afternoon { nut later. it was decided not to do ( 0. There was no intimation tonight whether the committee would seek a g urther conference. Tomorrow it will 2 esume it's open hearings at the capi- ( ol. I
 The presidents declaration of ompelling moral obligation under the eague was emphasized in a statement ssued jointly tonight by Senators ;orah. Idako, and Johnson. California, epublican members of the committee \ nd two of the bitterest opponents to f ae treaty in its present form. They f eclared the days testimony had i orne out their claim that the league l. rould lead to interminable foreign 1 2 They also pointed out h aat Senator Johnson had developed a the days meeting that a good part T 2 the territorial settlement resulting 2 .om the war was yet to be deter V lined. c After the committee had departed g went to the White House basement V here the newspaper correspondents ere waiting for the last of the report. and asked whe- Ter everything there was going r noothly. c 'I came down" he said to the cor s .spondents, ito inquire of you gent g men if the report of the conference II as handled the way you wanted" e