The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1919-07-15

les alone, but the accepted principles
of international laws as well, the act
ual rule of conduct among the gov
ernments of the world, had been one
of the agreements accepted from the
|: first as the basis of peace with the
central powers. The statesmen Of
all the belligerent countries were
agreed that such league must be
created to sustain the settlements
that were to be effected. But at first
| think there was feeling among
some of them that, while it must be
attempted, the formation of such a
league was perhaps counsel OF per-
lection which practical men, long eX-
perienced in the world CT affairs,
must agree to very cautiously and
with many n1isgivings. 1t was Only
as the difficult work Of arranging an
all but universal adjustment OF the
worlds affairs advanced from day TO
day from one stage OF conference TO
another that it became evident TO
ther? that what they were seeking
would be little more than something
written upon paper. to be interpreted
and applied by such methods as the
chances CT politics might make avail
able il they did not provide a means
Of common counsel whica az were
obliged to accept, a common author
ity whose decisions would be re@og-
1ize as decisions which all must
respect.
And so the most practical, the
most skeptical among them turn
ed more and more to the league as
the authority through which interna-
tional action was to be secured, the
authority without which, as they had
come to see it, it would be difficult
to give assured effect either to this
treaty or to any other international
understanding upon which they were
to depend for the maintenance OF
peace. The fact that the covenant
of the league was the first substan-
tive part Of the treaty to be worked
out and agreed upon, while al else
was in solution, helped to make the
foundations of the rest easier. The
conference was, after all, not to be
ephemeral. The concert Of nations
was to continue, under definite
covenant which had been agreed up
on and which all were convinced was
workable. They could go forward
with confidence to make arrange
ments intended to be permanent. The
most practical of the conferees were
at last the most ready to refer to the
league of nations the superintend-
ence of all interests which did not ad-
nit of immediate determination, Of
all administrative problems which
were to require continuing over
sight. What had seemed counsel OF
perfection had come to seem plain
counsel of necessity. The league OF
nations was the practical statesman's
hope of success in many of the most
difficult things he was attempting.
Demand of People.
"And it had validated itself in the
thought of every member of the con-
ference as something much bigger,
much greater every way, than mere
instrument for carrying out the pro-
visions of particular treaty. It was
universally recognized that all the
peoples of the world demand of the
conference that it should create such
a continuing concert of free nations
as would make wars of aggression
and spoilation such as this that has
just ended forever impossible. A
cry had gone out from every home in
every stricken land whose brothers
and fathers had gone forth to the
great sacrifice that such sacrifice
should never again be exacted. 1t
was manifest why it had been exact
ed. It had been exacted because one
nation desired dominion and other
nations had known no means of de-
fense except ornaments and alll-
ances. War had lain at the hearts
of every arrangemnt of the Europe
of every arrangement of the world
that preceded the war. Restive peo-
pies had been told that fleets and
armies which they toiled to sustain,
meant peace; and they now know
that they had been lied to; that fleets
and armies had been maintained to
promote national ambitions and
meant war. They knew that no old
,,ol;o,, rooont onvtbinU cleo hT1t force