The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1919-09-03
HITCHCOCK
OPENS FIGHT
Says Amendments Will Not Only Kill
Peace Treaty, But involve
Us in Losses and
Dangers.

/ that senators who demand amendment
| of the peace treaty propose an "insane
International policy" In which pol
| toonery and fallacy'' is SO mixed it is
difficult to see which predominates,
Senator Hitchcock, administration
spokesman today in a speech in the
senate opened the fight for unquali-
/ fled ratification of the pact.
4 Amendment will not only kill the
| treaty, but will involve the United
! States in enormous losses and dangers.
Hitchcock declared. Those demand
| ing amendments, he declared, appear
not to realize the advantages derived
by the United States from, the peace
settlement.
Suppose the senate should vote in
favor of the Shantung amendment or
I any other, what would happen?'' asked
/ Hitchcock Inevitably. one of two
! things would happen-either the presi-
dent would refuse to go further With
/ the treaty and put it in one of the
pigeon holes of the state department
occupied by other treaties that have
/ been abandoned, or he would submit
the amendment to the nations asso-
ciated with the United States in the
war for consideration.
/ Does anyone believe they would ac-
| cept it? Does anyone suppose that
/ Japan herself would submit TO this
/ humiliation before the eyes Of the
world? | cannot conceive that any in
telligent and candid man would as
sumo any such thing as a possibility.
Japan is now in control of German
rights and possessions in Skantung.
She has held them for five years anu 1t
/ is preposterous to assume either that
(! Japan would knuckle down to a major
ity of the United States senate m
this matter just as it is preposterous
to assume that France, Great Britain
OF Italy would ask her to do so.
1T is therefore evident that If such
proposition were submitted to the
nations associated with us in this war
we would be met by an instant refusal
to accept the amendment, and tren
where would the United States tlnd
itself in this international settlement?
The answer is simple. We would find
ourselves out in the cold, isolated from
the rest of the world The work of
ratifying the treaty would proceed
without us and within period OF a
few weeks after France and Japan had
ratified the treaty that would be IN
working order; it would become an
established settlement and operations
under 1t would be commenced.
st is easy for anyone to see the
enormous benefits which Great Britain
and France will derive from tnis
treaty l think no one VIII dispute
that there are two nations at least
that will do nothing to imperil This
treaty They will not take any
chances. Japan is in more indepea-
dent, possibly more indifferent, posi-
ton, but it is preposterous to suppose
that Japan will either delay the ra,,fi-
cation of this treaty or yield I'D the
provisions relating to which this treaty
contains.
Il think therefore the result is be-
yond all question: that those three
countries at least will put the treaty
into operation at the earliest possfbie
date
What then will the United States
do? What will those American states
men propose who stand for this
method of killing the treaty? Son s,
say the United States can negotiate a
separate and independent treaty of
peace with Germany. Those who talk
this way evidently have no concop-
ton Of the enormous benefits and ad. /
vantages which the United States de-
rives from this treaty. which we
wrung from Germany at the cannon's
mouth. Neither have they any concep-
ton of the difficulties involved in
negotiating a new treaty with Ger
many to establish the terms of peace /
and settle the controversies of the
war.
Take the matter of private prop
erty owned by German nationals In the
United States when the war broke odt.
Under acts Of congress that property
was seized, much of it has been sold i
and liquidated. In the aggregate it's
value runs into not less than $780,.
100000 and possibly over a billion. |
Under this treaty all acts of the United
States and of the alien property Gus
todian, with regard to that property
are validated, unless Germany can
show actual fraud. Is anyone insane
enough to suppose that Germany will