The sun., 1919-05-11
T.. s. AID READY,
SAYS WILSON
Will Back Any Whose Liberty
Is in Peril, He Tells
Frenchmen.
TWO SPEECHES IN PARIS
Asserts National Law Is
Played Out in Address Full
of Epigrams.
TWO SPEECHES IN PARIS

PARIS. May 1o.-rresident Wilson.
speaking at the session to-day Of the
Academy Of Moral and Political Sci
ences. Of which he was elected a for
eign associate last year, said that the
United States came into the war in the
cause Of liberty.
Whenever we see the cause Of lib
erty imperilled." the President added.
I'VE are ready to cast our lot In COM
mon with the lot Of those whose lib
erty is threatened. That Is the spirit
Of the people of the United States"
The occasion Of the Presidents
speech was the presentation to him
Of a specially struck gold medal. The
rules of the Academy. require that
each member must spend one hour
in the building OF the Academy to
perfect his membership. President
Wilson. therefore, decided to 60 to
the Academy to-day between 1:45 and
2:45 o'clock this afternoon.
President Wilson spoke also last
night at a dinner given by the inter-
national Law Association, Of which
Sir Thomas Barclay is president. In
an epigrammatic address the Presi-
dent touched upon the future role Of
international law In the development
OF the new order of things.
Address of the President.
The address In full follows:
"Sir Thomas and Gentlemen: esteem
It a very great pleasure to ind myself
in this distinguished company and in
this companionship OF letters. Sir
Thomas has been peculiarly generous as
have the gentlemen at the other end of
the table. in what they have said OF me.
bur they have given me too high q role
to play up to. 1t Is particularly difii-
cult to believe ones self to be what has
been described in SO small a company
as this. When a great body of people
is present one can assume a pose which
is impossible when there Is so small
number OF critical eyes looking directly
at you.
And yet there was one part Of Sir
Thomas's generous Interpretation which
was true. What have tried to do and
what have said in speaking for Amer
lea was to speak the mind OF America,
to speak the impulse and the principles
Of America. And the only proof I have
of my success Is that the spirit Of Amer
lea responded-responded without stint
or limit. and proved that 1t was ready
to do that thing which was privileged
to call upon It to do.
And we have illustrated In this spirit
of America something which perhaps
may serve as a partial guide for the
future. May I say that one Of the things
that has disturbed me In recent months
Is the unqualified hope that men have
entertained everywhere Of immediate
emancipation from the things that have
hampered them and oppressed them.
Takes Time for Big Changes.
You cannot in human experience rush
into the light. You have to go through
the twilight into the broadening day be-
fore the noon comes and the full sun Is
on the landscape; and we must see to
pointed by showing them the processes
by which hope must be realized. process
es of law. processes OF slow disentansle-
ment from the many things that have
bound US in the past.
You cannot throw of the habits OF
society Immediately any moro than you
can throw OF the habits OF the individ-
ual Immediately. They must be slowly
got rid of. or, rather, they must be
slowly altered. They must be slowly
adapted, they must be slowly shaped to
the new ends for which we would use
them. That rs the process OF law II
law is intelligently conceived.
'T thought II q privilege to come here
tonight. because your studies were de-
voted to ono OF the things which will
be Of most consequence to men In the
future-the Intelligent development Of
International law. In one sense this
great unprecedented war was fought to
give validity to international law. to
prove that 1t has a reality which no
nation could AFFORD TO disregard that.
while II did not have the ordinary sane
lions. while there was not international
authority as yet to enforce II, II CSTa-