Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1919-12-18
PEACE IRE TREATY
 FIGHT MAY BE
 RESUMED SOON
Politics Ought to be Forgot. ten, Symposium of Fac
 tiOnal Views
KNOX MAKES PLEA
 FOR A SETTLEMENT
Principal Activity for Compro- mise Action Seems to Come From Democratic Side
 of the Senate

Washington, Dec. 17.-Expres j slons that seemed to point toward a re-opening of the peace treaty
 fight within a few weeks were
 voiced on the senate floor today
 when the subject bobbed up in the
 midst of consideration of the rail
 road bill.
 The symposium of views that
 went into the record during the
 brief debate included opinions
 from virtually all factions of the
 divided senate membership, but they all struck a note of concilia-
 tion. Differing widely in thei1
 suggestions for solution, they stood together on the general proposition that politics ought to
 be forgotten, and that the senate, acting independently of executive
 opinion, ought to do something promptly to end suspense and es- tablish state of peace.
 The discussion effected the trend of negotiations which have been in progress privately among sena- tors for an agreement that would get the question finally out of the way. There was increased ac- tivity in that direction during the day and some of the leaders pre- dicted some formal action early in the new year.
 Knox Makes Overtime.
 Senator Knox of Pennsylvania, leader in the irreconcilable repub- lican group of treaty opponents, and a member of the foreign rela- tions committee, brought the sub- ject to the floor by another at- tempt to get before the senate his two resolutions to establish a state of peace. The effort was blocked but he obtained unanimous consent to send the measures to the com where he expects to renew his request for action.
 A plea made by Senator Knox, for some form of a settlement, was seconded by Senator Smith of Ge- orgia, reservation democrat, who declared the time had come to stop academic discussion of who held up the treaty and get together in a give-and-take effort for com- promise. Action also was urged by Senator Nelson of. Minnesota, one of the mild reservation repub- licans, and by Senator Myers of a democrat, who voted last session for some reservations and also for unreserved ratifica- tion.
 In the compromise negotiations discussed in private conferences the principal activity seemed to be among the democrats, the re- publican reservationists indicating that they awaited some concrete from the other side of he aisle. The democratic mana gers were hopeful that such an agreement soon would be report ,d, but they predicted it would not ;ake tangible form until after the holidays.
 Both Parties Blamed.
 Among the democrats there was much discussion of the possible effect of the compromise negotia- ions on the contest between Sena- tor Hitchcock of Nebraska and Senator Underwood of Alabama 'or election as democratic leader ,f the senate. The negotiations started yesterday with the mild republicans were con- lucted by Senator Underwood's but he declared tonight hat while he stood for some sort If compromise, he was not in re- yo!t against President Wilson nor eading any sort of opposition to he treaty.
 Consideration of the first of Senator Knox's resolutions, which would ratify the treaty insofar as of a state of peace S concerned, was blocked by Sena- or McKellar of Tennessee, while Senator Nelson stopped the second ,ne, proposing merely to declare tate of peace exists.
 In view of the attitude of Pres dent Wilson, Senator Knox de- 1 Jared the senate would proceed n it's own way to secure a formal ,eace status. working out the best olution it could at once.
 Responsibility for the delay was :. leclared by Senator Smith to be about 50-5O between the two : ,arties." It was only a waste of ime to try to fix the blame, he as- 1 erted, adding that in his opinion nore than two-thirds of the sen- 1 .te favored ratification with res rvations of a certain kind the of which could easily ,e worked out if the real friends if the treaty were to come to- ,ether in conference.