New-York tribune., 1919-02-18

any international civil and military
establishment, to be controlled bv
an international authority, that may
be required by the treaty or treaties
as sanction for the execution of
the DEGREES and the fulflment of
the demands of the said inter-
national organisms when such de-
crees or demands are made in con-
formity with the agreements insti-
tuting said organism, and engaging
the United States to recognize the
authority OF said international or
ganlsms Cor one or more of them)
to make final interpretations of the
powers conferred upon them"
Wadsworth Has Doubts
In discussing the constitutionalitv
OF an action binding the United States
INTO sucA League Of nations as has
been proposed, Senator James w.
Nadsworth. Of New York, to-day die
tated the Following statements:
There is grave doubt of the power
OF the President and the Senate to
agree, as is proposed in Article 10. to
Joln other powers at any time in pre-
serving the territorial integrity of
states which arc members of the
league. Article 10 proceeds to vest the
executive council with the right to
advise as to the means by which such
obligations should be fulfilled. Should
such advice involve the United States
IN making war, the United States could
not act under It's own Constitution,
which provides that Congress must de
clare war. If this is so, the promise
at this time to do something in the
future which we would have no right
10 do, IS Of no value unless indeed
We change our Constitution.
Much has been said about surrcn-
derlng sovereignty on the part of mem
bcrs of the proposed league 1t may
be contended that there is no direct
and absolute surrender of sovereignty
IN the covenant but that it is a po-
tential surrender Of sovereignty is very
certain. The trouble is we cannot fore
see conditions under which we would
be called upon to surrender our SOW
erelgnty. A foreign power might in
sist on course of action affecting the
Western Hemisphere which would CON
stitute dire threat to our safety and
complete overthrow of our national
policy that is, the Monroe Doctrine.
The decision of the tribunal might
very well be unfavorable to our con
tentlons and place us in an impossible
position. In that event, were we to
resist what we believe the threat
against our safety, we would thereby
be declared under the terms of the
covenant an outlaw All diplomatic,
commercial and trade relations with
other countries would be cut off from
us, and to that extent our very right
20 iive-the highest attribute of SOW
crcignty would be jcopardized.
The danger Of the whole situation
IS that we are endcavoring to write
rules to govern our conduct cor gen
erations to come, and while writing
we have no comprehension of what fut-
ure conditions Will bring about"
"Somc of these things are so i'm
portant that one hesitates to discuss
the league at length at this time. But
the American people viii be very wise
if they Will avoid being carried off
their feet by the glamour Of a league
Of nations that would cure the world
Of all it's Ills"
In discussing the Presidents point
Of view, az expressed in his letter
to Senator Shafroth, constitional
lawyers here tonight said that while
the President and the Senate might
negotiate any treaty they pleased, act
ually it would not be an efYcctual
guarantee, for the reason that at any
I time Congress might pass bill which
would abroRate some very important
part Of the treaty under which this
country entered the league
la this connection one Senator called
attention TO the decision Of the Su-
premc Court Of the United States in
the case Of Fong Yuc Ting agt the
United Statcs (149 q. S. 698), handed
down in 1893 This was n case where q
Chinese had been excluded from the
United States By Federal officials in
compliance with the Chinese exclusion
act. The Chinese appealed to The
courts, holding the exclusion act war
upconstitptiona in that it was in vio-
lation Of a treaty between the United
Statcs and China, under which there
was TO be no exclusion.
Power Of Congress Upheld
"Tbe proyitiong of an act Of Con
grcSs," said Justice Gray, in handing