Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1919-01-15
LEAGUE OF NATIONS
In FIRST THOUGHTS
IContinucd from First Page.l

be police control but the weight of
public opinion. Public opinion, how
ever, would be sufficient to insure
at least that any future war would
be reduced to single disputes-that
is, there would never be another
war like the present one"
Lord Robert would not go so far
as to say there would be no more
wars, but he expressed confidence
that they would be confined to the
immediate disputants.
Public Opinion First
''In the daily life of any country"
Lord Robert Cecil continued, 'it is
public opinion and not the police
man which controls the conduct of
the people. You have yourselves seen
that even in cases where law and
public opinion clash public opinion
wins"
As to the machinery of a league
of nations, Lord Robert said there
should be an international secretar-
lat operating permanently to carry
on the routine business between
meetings of the main international
tribunal. The main tribunal would
meet periodically, perhaps every
month or six weeks, to handle mat
ters of moment.
Lord Robert Cecil also said the
league should do away with all
treaties inconsistent with its tenets,
including compacts providing for a
balance of power.
Monroe Doctrine Safe
Asked what effect the formation of
a league of nations would have upon
the Monroe Doctrine, Lord Rob
ert asserted he could see no conflict
with the doctrine. Asked what would
happen If Mexico or a South Ameri-
can country did something that
caused trouble with the league, he
replied:
"Then, 1 think, an agreement
could be made by which America
Regarding the admission of the
Central Powers and their allies to
the league, Lord Roberts said they
should be admitted, "if they showed
an inclination to do the right'thing."
Speaking of Germany, he said:
Huns Must Make Good
1--WE must await events. If she
turns over a new leaf and tries to re-
pair the damage she has done, there
is no reason why she should not join.
The league is for the good of hu-
manity, and not for any select group.
1t will benefit her il she comes in"
With the resumption to-day of the
meetings preliminary to the peace
| conference, it is apparent that the
movement to create a league of ma
tions is being carried on by two
forces, having the same object but
e.. II
effective the decisions of the pro-
posed world society. One of these
represents the contention that the
decisions of the league must be back
ed by its combined physical forces,
while the other represents the view
that its findings can be enforced
without the aid of common world
police force.
Move Toward Common Ground
Diplonatists seem impressed with
the view that both these ideas are
moving toward a common ground
which. for example, might provide
that the nations could reserve for
each individual case their decision
whether they would utilize armed
force or avail themselves of other
means.
There is reason to believe that
such an arrangement would be sup
ported by some of the European
statesm en- and there is nothing to
indicate that it would be rejected
by the American representatives.
The work before to-day's session of
the Supreme Council comprised COM
pletion of the allotment of represen-
tation of the various nations, and
further consideration as to whether
Russia should have delegates In the
larger body. These matters arc ex-
pected to be entirely disposed of by
Saturday. when the first sitting of the
peace congress will be held.
League Has First Call
The program commonly agreed
upon calls for primary consideration
of the forming of league of nations,
and the congress will work on this
to the exclusion OF oil other subjects.
The effort gems to be to bend all en-
ergies to the laying of the foundations
of the league, so that the conference
may proceed to tho actual making of
the peace treaty in the early spring,
even II 1t be only q preliminary one
which Will dispose of the pressing
question of rehabilitation and the
return of the warning countries as
nearly as possible to the economic
conditions Of peace. This Is recog-