The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1919-08-30
AMENDMENTSA ARE
ADDED To TREATY
BY COMMITTEE
Make Vote of United States
&c Equal to Britain's
FIRST BLOW AT COyENAN'
Knox Says Truce of Versailles Lays
the Foundation for Centuries of
BIood-Lettlng

Washington, Aug. 29.-The Foreign
Relations Committee today added
three amendments to its string of tex
tual changes in the Peace Treaty, and
oil but cleared the way for work en-
the program OF reservations. After to-
days executive session, only one am
endment remained on the committees
calendar-Senator Falls proposal to
strike from the treaty the whole of
Part XIII, the labor section.
Amendments adopted today were the
johnson proposal giving the United
States a vote equal to that of Great
Britain in the Council and Assembly
OF the League of Nations; that of Sem
ator Moses to prohibit any self gov
erning colony CT dependency of an
empire voting in any dispute to which
the mother country is party; that of
Senator Fall limiting the powers of
the American member of the Repara-
tion Commission.
The to s alignment which marked
the adoption of previous amendments
prevailed again today. Senator Nc
Cumber voting with the Democrats
against every proposal to alter the
text.
Today's action marked the first in
road into the League Covenant. Sen
ator johnson of California called up
his amendment soon after the commit
tee met in executive session-its sec
ond meeting of the day-and an hours
discussion ensued, during which Sen
ator McCumber offered substitute
amendment This was defeated, and
then by the to 5 vote the Johnson
amendment wa sadopted.
The amendment adds the following
language at the end of Article III. of
the League covenant.
Provided that when any member of
the League has or possesses self gov
eriiing ti0minions or colonies or parts
Of empire which are also members of
the League, the United States shall
have votes in the assembly or council
or the League numerically equal to
the aggregate vote of such member of
the League and its self-governing do
Ininions and colonies and parts OF
empire in the council or assembly OF
the League.
The effect of this amendment is to
give the United tates six votes in the
astembly as at present constituted un-
der the covenant, equaling the vote
given the British Empire with its self
goyerning colonies and India, which In
the committees opinion is part CT
tho Empire
The words part of empire" were
added to the johnson proposal to cover
the case of India Senator Lodge point
ed out that India had been made a
signatory OF the treaty and given a
vote in the assembly "by sheer force
as she is neither colony nor a terri
tory, but simply part of the empire
Discussing this amendment follow
ing its adoption, Senator Lodge said
he would like to see any man go out
OH the stump in the United States and
say the United States should not have
as many votes in the League as Great
Britain has. II would be difficult
thing to defend"
The provision for an equal vote in
the council was included, committee
members explained, because the Lea
que covenant provides means for
changing the membership of the coun-
ell, either by increasing its size or by
replacing members. Under this pro-
vision, Canada or some other British
colony might become a member Of the
council as we'll as of the assembly
and in such an event the Johnson am
endment would protect the United
States being outvoted in the body
which admittedly is to be the active
force of the League, if it is to have
active force.