New-York tribune., 1919-09-16
Confusing the Issue

The u 0rtd strains common sense and
the rules of punctuation in the remark
able Interpretation which it puts on the
Senate committees second reservation
to the covenant of the league of nations
Summarizing this reservation The
Tribune said the other day:
"The United States declines to accept
legal or moral obligations imposed under
Articles X, II or XIV to engage in
war in which foreign powers are en-
gagged, or to accept the mandatory obli-
cations of Article NXII, except with the
explicit consent Of Congress"
To this The World retorts:
"Tho Tribune has not read the reser-
walton, which declares that the United
States refuses to assume any obligations
whatsoever. Nothing is said about the
consent of Congress except in relation
to the mandatory"
In the same issue CAST Sundays) our
neighbor prints the reservation and
adds: 1T is an out-and-out reputation
of all obligations Of any kind or nature
whatsoever, with or without the consent
of Congress, as the reader can see for
himself from the official text"
Here is the text:
The United States declines to assume
under tho provisions Of Article or
under any other article, any obligation
to preserve the territorial integrity or
political independence of any other coun-
try or 10 Interfere in controversies be
tween other nations, members Of the
league or not, or to employ the military
and naval forces OF the United States in
such controversies, to adopt economic
measures for the protection of any other
country, whether q member Of the league
or not, against external aggression, or
for the purpose Of coercng any other
country or for the purpose Of inter
vcntion in the internal conflicts or other
controversies which may arise in any
other country. and mandate shall be
accepted by the United States under
Article XXII. Part l. Of the treaty of
peace with Germany, except by the ac-
tion of the Congress of tho United
States"
In order to support its contention The
World is obliged to hold that the final
clause, except by the action Of the Con-
only the next preceding clause-that re-
latlng to the acceptance of mandates.
But this is an obvious misinterpretation.
1t 1T were the purpose of the reservation
to repudiate all obligations to preserve
the territorial integrity Of other mem
bers of the league by military or econou
action, and to leave to Congress merely
the option of accepting or reiectlny
mandates, the single sentence quoted
would have to be broken in two. A
period or at least a colon would have
to be inserted after the phrase ssarse
IN any country" Moreover in the re-
naming sentence, or disjonted part of
a sentence, the comma between Ger
many" and Except" would have to be
stricken out.
The reservation, as it stands. IL a
single, continuous sentence, with the last
clause qualifying all the preceding ones.
The need of a reservation was indicated
by the great uncertainty existing as to
the scope and character of the obliga-
tons imposed on the United States bv
Article \. Would recommendation bv
the council of the league be morally
binding on Congress, which under our
constitution has the sole right to de-
clare war?
There was long discussion of this
point IN the conference between the
President and the members of the For
elgn Relations Committee on August 10
last. And the President finally admitted
that Congress would be morally free to
ignore recommendation from the coun-
cil. If 1t saw fit to do so. He said: II