The Chattanooga news. [volume] (Chattanooga, Tenn.) 1891-1939, 1919-09-22
Wilson AbologiSeS for
W-Fated Party Appeal
Sheer Force Of Wilson's Argu-
ments Caused Deep Reaction
on Part of Electorate.
PUZZLED OVER JOHNSON
President Declares He Does
Not Want to See Advan-
tage Reaped by Party.
(BY DAVID LAWRENCE.)

Enroute to Reno, New, Sept. 23.---
copyrighted for The Chattanooga
News Wilson leaves the 4
Pacific coast triumphant. That Is an X
extreme statement to make and will n
be disputed by those who look at the \
league of nations as a political ques- "A
ton, or rs somehow akin to the pres 4
tige or political fortunes of Wood \
. row Wilson. But the idea, notf
necessarily the man, has triumphed. \
Such demonstrations of enthusiasm
not only but such quick per-
ception of the logic of the argument. 4
such readiness to accept the plain X
language of the treaty of peace
rather than the differences and im-
plicatious read into the document by
men who seek not it's revision orr
perfection. but its absolute defeat,
such spontaneous acclaim as the
Pacific coast has given editorially.
vocally politically and otherwise, cam
have but one meaning to anyone who#
forget: the hypocricies of both the
democratic and republican parties and 4
their respective demagogues and OBJ
serves the mass impulse. mass
reasoning and mass demand In5
many respects the speech which
President Wilson made at the audi
torium in Los Angeles was the best
of his whole tour. Not because SO
many Johnson men stood with him
and cheered, not because republicans
predomnated in the meeting. not be- \
cause California felt proud that She
had cast the deciding. electoral votes
which made Woodrow Wilson presi-
1AYa 1V.t l.. -. @.H1i
his explanations on Shantung. on the
question OF six votes for Britain to. I.
Americas one. and the policy Of iso-
lation or partnership caused a deep
reaction against the men who are.
now believed to have misrepresenteds. !.
the contents of the treaty itself an
unforgivable thing to an intelligent
electorate like California. Senator
Hiram Johnson Is the strongest po-
lltical figure in the state. Were there
an election tomorrow and domestic
issues involved, he would carry the
state, but his own friends have told
me tbs bthey feared he would not be
!. sslJl on the league issue II ii
weft@ put To n vote and they were
not altogether sure some permanent
damage had not been done to his re
| markable prestige by his tactics In
the league of nations controversy.
One Argument Unanswered.
Practically every argument which
Senator johnson has made, but one.
was answered by the president while
he was in California Mr.. Wilson
failed to explain why American
troops stayed in Siberia, and why
more of them were still sailing for
Russia The nDtjIaa
papers are offering that concrete faGt
of the present as against the presto
dents promises of the future and the
president has not yet given an idea
of what the United States govern
ment is driving at in the Siberian
policy.
But as for the other points made by
Mr. Johnson, while the president did
not mention the junior senator from
California by name, nevertheless his
audiences seemed familiar with the
senator's arguments and were In
tensely eager to hear Mr.. Wilson'S
answer
Mckinley Handicapped.
He told how the United States un-
der William Mckinley and Secretary
John Hay did not make a protest
and he said that it was not because
Messrs. Mckinley and Hay would not
have done so if they could, but that
under international law they could
only express their interest with re-
spect to American trade and equality
of commercial opportunity.
He explained. too, how Japan
forced Russia out of Port Arthur in
the Russo japanese war and how
Russia ceded the territory to Japan
while America, though President
Roosevelt helped bring about the
peace negotiations of that war at
Portsmouth, N. f., felt powcrless to
Continued on PAGE EIeven.l