Great Falls daily tribune., 1919-09-17
THEN AND NOW

Others were very doubtful about their meaning
and propriety. Some of the states were known
to be opposed strongly to some Of its provisions.
If that convention had been cursed with few
statesmen Of the Henry Cabot Lodge and Borah
stripe we would in all human probability never
have had any United States Of America. For
tunatey the men Of that day were patriotic and
less stubborn in their personal opinions and
desire for domination.
BENJAMIN Franklin, more than so years Of
age, was delegate to the constitutional con-
vention Of 1887 He was SO frail and his voice
was so weak that he could not speak on the floor,
but when the question of approving the new
constitution arose he wrote short address to
his colleagues which one Of the younger mem
bers read aloud to the assembly:
II confess that there are several parts Of this
constitution which / do not at present approve
But having lived long, | have experienced many
instances Of being obliged, by better information
or fuller consideration, to change opinions even
on important subjects, which | once thought
right, but found to be otherwise. 1t is therefore
that the older grow the more apt am to doubt
my own judgment and to pay more respect to the
judgment of others.
Il doubt, too, whether any other convention
we can obtain may be able to make better
constitution For when you assemble a number
Of men to have the advantage Of their joint
wisdom, you inevitably assemble with those men
all their prejudices, their passions, their errors
of opinion their local interests and their selfish
views From such an assembly can a perfect
production be expected? 1t therefore astonishes
me, sir, to find this system approaching so near
to perfection as it does, and think it will aston
ish our enemies who are waiting with confidence
to hear that our councils are confounded like
those of the Babel and that our states are on
the point of separation only to meet hereafter
for the purpose of cutting one another's throats.
Thus I consent, sir, to this constitution because
/ expect no better, and because | am not sure
that it is not the best. The opinions have had
of it's errors | sacrifice to the public good.
have never whispered syllable of them abroad.
Within these walls they were born, and here
they shall die. If everyone of us in returning
to our constituents were to report the objections
he has had to it and endeavor to gain partisans
in support Of them, we might prevent its being
generally received and thereby lose all the salu-
tary effects and great advantages resulting
naturally in our favor among foreign nations as
well as among ourselves from our real or appar-
ent unanimity.
"On the whole, sir, / cannot help expressing
a wish that every member Of the convention who
may still have objections to it would with me,
on this occasion, doubt little his own infalli-
blllty, and to make manifest our unanlrnlty, put
his name to this instrument"
Compare the spirit Of Benjamin Franklin with
that Of Senator Borah who declared in the senate
that he would fight the Savior Of the world
himself if he came again to earth advocating
world peace through means of league of
nations. The comparison is rather startling.
Have we deteriorated so much in patriotism and
common sense since the days of Ben Franklin
as the comparison would suggest? We do not
think so. Benjamin Franklin was statesman
and patriot. Borah and the other opponents
of the president and the league Of nations are
politicians, most of them with personal axe
to grind, for nearly everyone Of the leaders Of
the bunch are out as candidates for republican
nomination for president and deluded with the
idea that if they can defeat the treaty made by
a democratic president it will give their candi-
dacy boost in the coming convention. In that
conviction we believe they are in error, but they
do not.
Meantime the peace treaty is up in the senate
for formal debate. For months past Senator
Lodge and his associates have been making
speeches in denunciation of the treaty. They
commenced making such speeches before they
or anyone else knew what the treaty contained,
for it was still in the making when they COM
menced their speeches in opposition to it. Now
Senator Lodge makes announcement that it will
take not less than five weeks of additional
speech-making before the senate will be ready
to take a vote on it. And meantime a weary
and disorganized world waits to learn what this
great republic is going to do about it, and pro-