New-York tribune., 1919-06-12
Ez1Nu RooZ @2s%;%sszzSSst2ssge @2%szS%ssglez
cations, but which am getting too oil
to read easily"
Fall Questions Hitchcock


~ want to ask question to clear
the record" said Senator Fall. II
want to know what the Senator from
Nebraska means by Legitimate and
illegitimate' interests having possess
ion Of this treaty or considering it?
What are illegitimate interests? I
would like to know what the Senator
from Nebraska means by his ques-
ton"
Senator Hitchcock would consider
the interest of the Red Cross a per-
fectly legitimate interest
Senator Brandegee-I want to ask
the Senator if he thinks there is any
thing wrong, or any scandal about a
banker taking copy of the treaty
if he saw one, or if he was in a posi-
tion to procure one, in order to in
form himself about what probably
would be the financial terms of the
treaty Is there anything reasonable
or scandalous or corrupt about that?
Mr. Root-A banker has no more
or less right to steal paper than any
body else, but when a paper has be-
come public property banker has no
less right than anybody else. OF
course this treaty deals with vast
ly important and difficult financial
questions. Right at the fore is
the question between Germany
who says she cannot live if the fnan-
cial requirements of the treaty are i'm
posed, and France, who says she cam
not live unless they are imposed, and
the whole financial movement of Eu-
rope upon which depends all American
foreign trade and the markets for
American productions is involved in
the terms of this treaty, and nobody
but a lunatic would undertake to make
treaty without calling in experts who
are familiar with the finances of the
world; and they have there as experts
Mr.. Lamont, representing the Treasury
Department Of the United States; they
have Mr.. Baruch, and they have a lot
of others. Perhaps these are the best
known, but they have great numoers of
them. They have Professor Shotwell,
the leading economist of this country
who is engaged there for the United
States, with big corps of people under
him, solely upon these financial ques-
tions. And it is impossible that the
people VINO are called in in that way
should not be people who are going to
continue for years to come to carry on
the business which has qualified them
as expert advisers. Would you go and
get farmer or a manufacturer to ad-
wise on such subject? You have got
to get banker, you have got to get a
man who knows about that particular
ht1ci Nd x,,bo, Il. I.
going on with his banking, of course
Now you may find that you can infer
some suspicious about sucn men, that
they may have private ideas in their
minds, but what misfortune it would
be if our country is to be denied the
benefit of the experience and the abil-
ity of the men who are familiar with
the' business Of the world, because
every time man answers the call of
his country to render service to it he
is going to be subject to suspicion
without proof!
Rights Of Senate Upheld
Senator New-Would you regard 1t
as equally legitimate for the Foreign
Relations Committee of the United
States Senate to have had a copy of
the treaty?
Mr.. Root should.
Senator Brandegee-Did you say you
would regard it as legitimate for US to
have had a copy?
Mr.. Root-Undoubtedly.
Senator Borah-That is the precise
question involved here. Nobody was
objecting to these gentlemen in New