Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1919-05-28
WILSON PLEASED
TO Think Term
IS NEARING END
President Expresses His
Thoughts About Position at
Banquet In Honor Of
Brazilian Executive.

Paris, May 27.-"It is very de-
Ightful. for one thing, if I may say
so, to know that my presidency is
not ahead of me and that his presi-
dency is ahead of him." said Presi-
dent Wilson in referring to DR..
Epitacio Pessoa, president-elect of
Brazil, at the dinner given DR.. Pes
soa by the Pan-American peace
delegation last night.
The honor has been accorded
me-" President Wilson said in be-
ginning his speech, "of making the
first speech tonight. and ] am very
glad to avail myself of that privi-
legc. | want to say that | feel very
much at home in this company,
though after all | suppose no one
Of us feels thoroughly at home ex-
cept:on the other side of the water.
We all feel in very real sense
that we have a common home be-
cause we live in the atmosphere of
he same conceptions, and think
With the same political ambitions
md principles.
Glad Term About Over.
81 am particularly glad to have the
opportunity of paying my respects
to Mr.. Pessoa. 1t is very delightful
for one thing, if I may say so, to
know that my presidency is not
ahead of me and that his presidency
is ahead of him. I wish him every
happiness and every success with the
greatest earnestness and yet l cam
not. if I may judge by my own ex-
serience, expect for him very great
.xhilaration in the performance of
he duties of his Office, because, after
Ill, to be the head of an American
state is a task OF unrelieved re-
possibility.
81 suppose no more delicate task
s given any man than to interpret
the feelings and purposes of great
people. l know that if | may speak
Tor myself, the chief anxiety I have
had has been to be the true inter-
,reter of national spirit, expressing
10 private and peculiar views, but
ryingt to express the general spirit
f a nation.
Closer Relationship Urged.
II will recall here to some of you
IN effort that / myself made some
years ago, soon after l assumed the
presidency of the United States, in
urging that other states of America
unite with the United States in do
ing something which very closely re-
sepibled the formation of the present
league of nations. l was ambitious
to have the Americans do the thing
first and set the example to the
world of what we are now about to
realize. l had a double object in
it, not only my pride that the Ameri-
cas- should set the example and show
the genuineness of their principles,
but that the United States should
have a new relation to the other
Americas.
The United States upon IA
nous occasion warned the govern
ments of Europe that it would, re-
gard it as an unfriendly act if they
tried to overturn free institutions in
the western hemisphere and to sub
sti. tie their own systems of gov
eminent, which at that time were
inimical to those of free institu-
tons; but While the United States
thus undertook of its own motion
to be the champion of America
against such aggression from
Europe, it did not give any con-
elusive assurance that it would never
itself be the aggressor. What |
wanted to do in the proposals to
which I have just referred was to
offer to the other American states
our own bond that they were safe
against US and any illicit ambitious
we might entertain, as we'll as safe,
50 far as the power Of the United
States could make them safe, against
other nations"