The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1919-10-23
TREATY PASS
WITH COMPROMISE
INDICATIONS POINT TO SHOW
DOWN IN FIGHT ON RATi.
FiCATION VOTE
OPPOSITION UNITE ON FINAL AGREEMENT
Majority Program Said to Include
Series Of Nine Reservations is Up
To Administration Forces.

The news from Washington on the
situation in the senate on the fight
over the ratification Of the peace
treaty is summarized as follows by
the Associated Press dispatches.
The question of accepting peace
treaty reservations without further
opposition was earnestly considered
by democratic senators under the pres
sure of developments pointing to an
early show down in the ratification
fight. The treaty opposition forces
announced at last a complete agree
on a reservation program by the
senate majority, brought the situation
to an unexpected issue by serving no
tice that their proposal would go be-
fore the foreign relations committee
today, when the administration lead
ers would be asked to go on record,
definitely, as accepting or rejecting it.
Described by the majority spokesman
as in the nature of an ultimatum, the
announcement vas followed by a con-
ference on the administration side, but
resulted in no final decision. The res
ervation program, as agreed upon, was
not made public but it is understood
to embrace nine reservations. The
subjects said to be covered were Oh
the following:
"The right Of this country to Judge
whether its obligations had been full
filed in case of withdrawal from the
league of nations; the unimpaired
power of congress to decide questions
of n or more. under Article X.
Domestic decision of all domestic
questions; preservation unaffected OF
the Monroe doctrine; refusal to be a
party to the Shantung settlement;
e~qualizations of voting power in the
league; congressional selection of
American representatives in the
league; limitation of the powers OF
representatives and those on in
ternational commissions; and nullif-
cation of the right of the international
labor conference to challenge the eli.
gibility of American representatives
in international labor bodies"
Behind the reservation proposals, il
was decided by their sponsors, will
stand all of the forty nine republi-
cans and at least six democrats, leav-
ing as a maximum Al democrats in
opposition. In these circumstances
the administration managers were told
their only hope of defeating the pro-
gram was to vote against ratification,
after the reservations had been put
in the ratification resolution. Posi-
bility of a camplete compromise be-
tween senate advocates and opponents
of reservations to the German peace
treaty is said to have received serious
consideration at a conference of demo-
cratic leaders after Chairman Lodge
had called a meeting tomorrow of the
foreign relations committee to con-
slider new reservations and modifca-
tons of those reported out by the
committee September 10. Later, Sen
ator McCumber. republican, North Da-
kota, leader of the so-called mild"
reservation group, introduced in the
senate a number of resolutions which
he termed compromise" reservations.
He said they represented the efforts
of republicans desiring to reach an
agreement on reservations. Seven
reservations were proposed by Sena-
tor McCumber. They dealt with the
questions of withdrawal, Article 10,
the Monroe doctrine, Shantung, and
the inequality of the voting strength i
the league assembly.