The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1916-1920, 1919-04-29
For the Senate.


The text of the revised scheme
of the League Of Nations Is now
before the public. 1t has been &C.
cepted by the Peace Conference. The
changes from the earlier draft are In
some instances notifications of the
original proposal, In many instances
mere variations Of arrangement and
verbal expression. 1t will be noted
that instead of being styled consti-
tuition. following q brief covenant as
preamble to the several articles, the
entire document IL now described as
covenant" that is, preamble, arh-
cles and annex, The change Is non
essential. The covenant Is a treaty
just the same. and 1t must go in the
constitutional way to the Senate Of
the United States for ratification, re-
lection or amendment as the Senate
may in its wisdom determine.
In the main the revised league is
the same old league which the Amer
can people have been considering for
two months and a half, and which
THE SUN has been discussing from
time to time with reference to fea-
lures in our opinion Objectionable and
impossible of acceptance.
This is still, thank heaven! a repub-
lie bound by its traditional policy and
by the spirit Of our institutions and
by the provisions of our Constitution
itself to avoid any such entanglements
in European affairs, any such involve
ment in q quagmire Of unreckoned
responsibilities as President WILSON
had in mind when he first went
aboard the George Washington and
steamed away from his post of con-
stltutional duty. We do not believe
that the verbal attempts in the re-
vised version to evade the manifest
dangers Of the proposed enterprise,
even at the expense Of the working
efficiency of the league for its avowed
purposes, have succeeded in making
the document satisfactory to Ameri-
can sentiment. We are very sure that
when the covenant reaches the United
States Senate the process of scrutiny
will be not less careful and critical,
the resistance to unconstitutional and
dangerous engagements not less reso-
lutely independent of President VIII
soN's Individual will In the matter,
than it would have been II the league
had gone to the final Judge Of It's
merits in the form In which 1t was
first published hast February. Fur
thermore, we are confident that Amer
lean sentiment will support the Sen
ate In taking all the time necessary
for deliberate action concerning pro.
posal of surprising Importance to the
future of our country, which has re-
quired so many months for the pro-
ponent thereof to formulate for sub
mission at Washington to the supreme
authority in treaty making.
One interesting and important Ques-
ton, however, is suggested by the pub
Iication of this covenant in separate
form apart from the general treaty
The whole treaty must 90 to the Sen
nte for the same constitutional proc
ess of examination, ratification with
or without amendments or reserva
lions. or rejection outright if it can
rot be brought into consonance with
the national interests of America first
last and chiefly. The people are thus
reminded of the soundness and fore
sight of the proposal contained in the
resolution offered by Senator KNo,
when Congress met last December
The Knox resolution separated thu
making of peace from the making o.
any sort Of league of nations.
The treaty of peace terminating tn
war and war conditions and war ex
penditures was to be concluded, &C
cording to the terms Of the Kno,
resolution, as speedily rs possible ant
strictly in accordance with the de
clared aims for which the Unitet
States entered the war. On the Othe
hand, any project for general leagu
of nations was to be treated as sep
arate proposition and disposed OF sep
arately. This proper division Of sub
tects was stubbornly resisted by Pres
ident WILSON and his spokesman ant
political agents In the then Demo
cratic Committee on Foreign Rela
tons in a then Democratic Senat
and Congress. The sequel. involvin
months and months Of delay in clos
inc the war and cost incalculable t
the American people-the long posi-
ponement which has brought us
nothing more satisfactory than tn
present illustration, In the Adriati
situation, Of the futiiity Of an attemr