Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1919-07-11
CONCLUSIONS



Article xXVI, the last in the cove
nant, deals with amendments; and il
is singularly free from detail. 1t does
not prescribe any procedure whatever,
but merely that amendments shall
take effect when ratified by the mem
bers Of the league whose representa-
tives compose the council and by a
majority of. the members of the
league whose representatives, compose
the assembly. No doubt proposed
amendments would be discussed by the
council, and probably also by the as
sembly, but this is not obligatory, the
only essential thing being that they
should be ratified by the nations them
selves as stated.
Two facts about this method st
amendment may be observed. One of
them is that the unanimous assent is
required not only Of the five large
states, but also Of the smaller states
associated with them on the council,
these last having, 50 long as they re-
tain their seats on that body all the
privileges of the five large nations.
The other fact to be noted is that the
independent sovereignty of each mem
Der Of the league is wholly preserved
because it is not bound by any amend
ment to which il does not freely con
sent, no matter how overwhelming thu
majority by which it is adopted. Ye'
the difficulty met with at the Hague
whereby a few small objeetors eoult
block the plan, is avoided by provid
ing that a state which is unwilling Il
leonsent to an amendment duly adopte,
ceases to be member of the league
1t cannot be a party to covenant tha
does not bind all equally, and hence i
goes out. This is in accord with tn
general principle which runs all thr
:. the covenant; that the members as in
dependent sovereign states assume eel
: tain definite obligations specifieall.
described, and further concert Of az
tion is wholly voluntary on their part
Plan Basically Sound
!, Probably no two nations. and pei
: haps no two men, would have drafte
/. the articles for a league of nation
precisely alike, and any such documen
must in the nature of things involy
much compromise. There is abundan
evidence of this in the covenant Q
Paris, not least in the amendment
made to meet objections raised in An
= erica, after the draft agreed upon b
the representatives of fourteen eoul
tries had been presented to the peac
I conference. Those objections seem [
have been fully covered by provision
(. whose meaning cannot reasonably b
doubted by any one that believes sin
cerely in such league. The principle
on which the league is based are soun
= and impose the least obligations eol
sistent with the prevention of futuI
wars. The question for citizen Of ii
), United States is not whether the COW
4 nant represents his views precisel,
but whether on the whole it is good {
: not, and whether this country had be
: ter accept it or not.
= Covenant Basis of Treaty
v 1t has been argued that peace wit
. Germany ought to have been mac
!, first, and league Of free nations o
y ganized afterwards. But, quite apat
from the fact that a league must |
made at the close of this war or Il
!. one great opportunity of centuri
!. would be lost, what shrewd observe
a had foreseen, that the terms of Il
a treaty depend for their maintenan,
: upon a league strong enough to enfor'