The Garland City globe. (Garland, Utah) 191?-1925, 1919-08-23
PRESIDENT THROWS
LIGHT ON TREATY
WILSON AND SENATORS DISCUSS
PACT PROVISIONS AT WHITE
HOUSE SESSION.
Minute Explanations Of Disputed
Points In League Of Nations Gov.
enant Are Brought Out, Presl-
dent Urging Early Action.

Washington.-Preside Wilson. in
terpreting the league Of nations GOV
enant for the senate foreign relation
committee, on Tuesday, declared It i'm
posed no legal obligation for the us,
of American military force in protect
Ing the territory or independence O.
any other nation.
But he added that the covenant
might involve, In certain circum
stances, an absolutely compelling
moral Obligation" which might bs
even stronger than legal promise.
Pressed for more exact definition
by committee members, who insisted
that the whole arrangement was q
rope of sand" he asserted that on the
contrary he considered IL as placing
the nations In "an attitude of comrade.
ship and protection" which would com.
pei respect for the principles of Jus
tice and liberty.
Meeting the committee I'm round.
table discussion In the east room of
the White House, In contradiction to
the precedents of more than GEN.
fury and with the whole nation listen
Ing through the medium Of relay
OF public stenographers, the presi-
dent went into many of the details OF
the peace negotiations and touched on
all the hotly debated questions which
have divided the senate In Its consid-
eration OF the peace treaty.
Atlcle Y of the covenant, guaran-
teelng the integrity OF league MEM
bers against aggression, he declared,
would leave TO each nation complete
freedom of choice as to the applica-
ton OF force" Even IL the American
representatives on the council Joined
In unanimous recommendation for
military action the final decision for
peace or war must rest so far as con-
cerned the United States with con-
gress, he said.
Whatever advice the council gave
under its authority TO take such action
as Is deemed appropriate" must also
be deemed appropriate by the United
States TO be binding on this govern
ment. he argued. though In the back
ground would be such potential moral
force that he doubted II the nation
would often decline to act.
The president revealed that Japan's
promise to return Shantung province
10 China was reduced TO written form
In the minutes Of the peace conference.
He asserted he had every confidence"
that the promise would be carried out,
and told the senators IL was ''the best
that could be got" out Of the negod-
atlons, Japan having given notice she
would withdraw from the conference
II her demands were refused.
The American delegates. he said, had
tried 70 keep the nation free from OBJ
,..gations In European affairs, ESQ far
as It was honorably possible to do so"
but he asserted that II might be neces-
sary TO keep some American troops In
the Rhine district under the treaty
for the next fifteen years.
He declared the nation would be Its
own sole Judge whether Its obligations
had been fulfilled under the disputed
clause of the league cove
nant; that purely domestic questions
were safe from the leagues interfg"-
ence; and that the Monroe doctrine
was clearly preserved.
The league, the president explained,
was built on the plan of General SHUTS
Of South Africa.
Mr.. Wilson revealed that he had
suggested the United States take no
part of the German reparations, but
had asked that the conference reserve
disposition of the German Pacific
island of zap on suggestion that
IL was needed for an American naval
station.
Early action on the treaty was urged
In a statement by the president at the
outset of the conference. This was
necessary, he held, so that a peace
basis might be reached, and the other
under negotiations now at Yer
sailles were being delayed until the
world learned what would happen to
the treaty with Germany. He said he
saw no reasonable objection TO senate
but thought 1t unwise TO
them In the ratification
Itself.