New Britain herald., 1919-08-12
SAYS LEAGUE WOULD PLUNGE US. IN WARS Senator Lodge Describes Pact
 as "Deformed Experiment"
 KILLS MONROE DOCTRINE
Republican Leader Asserts Covenant in Present Form Would Impair Sovereign Power of Deciding Do- mCstic Questions.

Sovereign Power of Deciding Do-
 mcstic Questions.
 Washington, Aug. 12.--Dcscribing the league of nations as d "detorme ed experiment upon d noble purpose,' Senator Lodge of Massachusetts, chairman of the foreign relations committee and republican leader of the senate, declared in d senate speech today that there were features of the league covenant which 'as an Amer ican" he never could accept. Would Kill Monroe Doctrine. Creating, not a league of peace but an alliance em bracing many "provi- sions for war; the covenant in it's present form, he asserted, would kill the Monroe Doctrine, nullify any pos sibility of withdrawal from member ship, impair the sovereign power of deciding domestic questions, and plunge the United States into every controversy and conflict on the face of the globe.
 Let us beWare,' he said, "how we palter with our independence. We have not reached the great pOsition from which we were able to come down into the field of battle and help to save the world from tyranny, by being guided by others Our vast pow CT has all been built up and gathered together by ourselves alone.
 Owes Debt to France. We forced our way upward from the days of the revolution, through d world often hostile and always indif- ferent. We owe no debt to anyone except to France in our revolution and those policies and those rights on which our power has been founded should never be lessened or weak ened. It will be no service to the world to do so and it will be of in tolerable injury to the United States. We will do our share. We are ready and anxious to help in all ways to preserve the worlds peace. But we can do it best by not crippling our selves.
 1T am as anxious as any human be- ing can be to have the United States render every possible service to the civilization and the peace of mankind, but I am certain we can do it best by not putting ourselves in leading strings or subjecting our policies and our sovereignty to other nations. I will go as far as anyone in world service, but the first step to world service is the maintenance of the United State. You may call me selfish, if you will, conservative or reaction but an American 1 was born, an American I have remained all my life.
 Always an American. T can never be anything else but an American, and I must think of the " I of the United States first in an ar rangement like this l am thinking of what is best for the world, for if the United States fails the best hopes of mankind fail with it. I have never had but one allegiance--I can not di- vide it now.
 U. s. Worlds Hope.
 "The United States is the worlds best hope, but if you letter her in the interests and quarreIs of other na- tions if you tangle her in the in trigues of Europe, you will destroy her power for good and endanger her very existence.
 We are told that we shall break the heart of the world if we do not take this league just as it stands. t fear that the hearts of the vast ma jority of mankind would beat on strongly and steadily and without any quickening if the league were to perish altogether. If it should be eff fectively and beneficiently changed the people who would lie awake in sorrow for a single night could be easily gathered in one not very large room but those who would draw a long breath of relief would reach to millions.
 Ideals Used As Arguments.
 Ideals have been thrust upon us as an argument for the league until the healthy mind which rejects theory revoIts from them. Are ideals con- fined to this deformed experiment up- on a noble purpose tainted as it is with bargains and tied to a peace treaty which might have been dis posed of long ago to the great bene fit of the world if it had not been back?
 No doubt many excellent and pa triotic people see a coming fulffllment of noble ideals in the words League for Peace.' We all respect and share thse aspirations and desires, but some of us see no hope, but rather defeat for them in this murky covenant. For we, too, have our ideals, even if we differ from those who have tried to first ideal is our country. We would
 (C0nfjDnaS on Third PQPeo