South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1919-03-05


opera house Pres't Wilson said.
Ny fellow citizens. I accept the
invitation Of the air just played.
viii not come back till it's over, over
there. And yet pray God. in the
interests Of peace and Of the world
that may be soon.
The first thing ] am going TO tell
the people on the other side Of the
water Is that an Overwhelming ma
1ority OF the American people Is in
favor OF the league OF nations.
know that that Is true ] have had
unmistakeable limitations OF il from
all parts OF the country and the
voice rings true IN every case. I
count myself fortunate 10 speak here
under the unusual circumstances Of
this evening / am happy TO asso-
ciate myself with Mr.. Taft in this
cause. He has displayed an eleva-
ton OF view. and "a devotion to pub
tic duty, which Is beyond praise.
Not a Party Issue.
And 7 am the more happy be-
cause this means that this is not a
party issue No party mas the right
70 appropriate this issue and no
party viii. in the long run oppose it,
We have listened 20 so clear and
admirable an exposition of many OF
the main features Of the proposed
covenant OF the league of nations.
that IL is perhaps not necessary for
me TO discuss in any particular way
the contents OF the document j
viii seek rather TO give YOU it's set
ting. l do not know when / have
been more impressed than by the
conferences OF the commission SCI up
by the conference of peace TO draw
up a covenant for the league OF ma
tions. The representatives Of IA ma
tiOns sat around that board-not
young men, not men inexperienced
IN the affairs Of their own coun-
tries. not men inexperienced in the
politics OF the world; and the in
spring influence Of every meeting
was the concurrence Of purpose or
the part OF all those men TO come 60
an agreement and an effective work
ing agreement with regard to this
league Of the civilized world.
There was a conviction in the
whole impulse: there was cOnvic-
ton OF more than one sort: there
was the conviction that this thing
ought to be done and there was also
the conviction that not a man there
would venture to go horne and say
that he had not tried 10 do it.
Taft Set the Picture.
Mr.. Taft has set the picture for
YOU OF what a failure Of this great
purpose would mean. We have been
hearing for all these weary months
that this agony Of war has lasted
because OF the sinister purpose of
the central empires, and we have
made maps OF the course that they
meant their conquests TO take
Where did the lines of that man
lie OF that central line that we used
20 call from Bremen TO Bagdad?
They lay through these very re-
gions TO which Mr.. Taft has called
YOUR attention. but they lay then
through a united empire, the Aus
tro-Hungarian empire whose i'm
tegrity Germany was bound TO re-
spect as her ally Law i'm the path Of
that line of conquest: the Turkish
empire whose interests she profess
ed TO make her own lay in the di-
rect path that she intended to tread
And now what has happened
The AustrO- Hungarian empire has
zone 10 pieces and the Turkish en-
pire has disappeared. and the ma
lions that effected that great result
FOR II was a result of liberation
are now responsible as the trustees
II these assets OF these great M.
uons. You not only would have
weak nations lying in this path. but
you would have nations in which
that old poisonous seed Of intrigue
could be planted with the certaint,
that the crop would be abundant.
and one Of the things that the
league of nations is Intended 70
watch is the course OF intrigue
intrigue cannot stand publicity. AND
u the league OF nations were moth.
ing but n great debating society Il
would kill intrigue.
One of the Agreements.
lt IS one Of the agreements OF
his covenant that it is the friendly
hat It thinks viii disturb the peac,
n the world. no matter where tina,
hing is occurring.
There is no subject that ma,
touch the I''lce of the world wbicl
exempt from inquiry and discus
sion and 7 think everybody her,
present viii agree with me that Ger
many would never have gone 20 Wal
she had permitted the world Z,
discuss the aggression upon Serbis
Tor single week.
The British foreign Office s,q
sested. it pleaded that there Nigh
be a day or two delay so that IN,
representatives OF the nations Of En-
rope could set together and discus.
The possibilities OF settlement. Ger
many did not dare permit a day'.
discussion. You know what happen.
ed- So soon as the world realized
that an outlaw was at large. the ma.
tions began one by one 10 draw TO
gether against IT,
Had Germany Thought.
We know for q certainty that /
Germany had thought for a momen
that Great Britain would so in Will
France and with Russia she never
would have uudarsa L-of, 4h. e-to-