The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1919-05-22
TAFT ADDRESSES
GREAT MEETING
Advocates Consideration of
League Covenant With
Treaty of Peace
LEAGUE ADVANTAGES
STRONGLY ADVOCATED
State Meeting Held in Bur-
lington One Of Series Of
Is in as Many States

Burlington, May %. Argument
against the separation of the league of
nations covenant from the treaty of
peace with Germany was advanced by
ex-President William Howard Taft in
an address here last night at the league
of nations convention, the first of Sc
ries of Is conventions to be held in as
many states. Other speakers were Presi-
dent Lowell Of Harvard university, Her
bert $. Houston, publisher of Worlds
Work Captain Thomas G.. Chamberlain
and John Fl, Walker, formerly president
of the Illinois State Federation of Labor.
The meetings were held in the Strong
theatre and the city hall and were at.
tended by large crowds.
In his address ex President Taft said:
"The covenant of the league as en-
bodied in the treaty, and the various
provisions Of the treaty, are dependent
for their execution upon the machinery
provided by the covenant. If, and when,
the Germans sign the treaty, the presi,
dent viii bring it back home and submit
il to the Senate as a single document,
the constitutional function of the Senate
is to consider the treaty and TO ratify it
or reject it. 1t may ratify it condition
ally, stating the conditions upon which
it does ratify it, These conditions are
called amendments to the treaty.
"The ratification, however, can only
become absolute and effective upon the
acceptance by other countries of the
amendments contained in these condi.
tions. Treaties have been ratified with
reservations as TO construction which,
not objected to by other countries, have
created binding treaty; but such reser-
vations cannot be a substantial amend
ment Of the treaty, eliminating any ar
tiele or changing its evident meaning,
without requiring, in order TO make a
binding treaty that the other countries
signing the treaty shall consent formally
to the amendments.
1T. therefore. follows that if any sub.
stantial amendment is to be made to the
treaty submitted by the president, it
must 60 back to the other powers who
signed it for their acceptance and ap-
prevail. This includes not only the Ia
allied powers which formulated the
treaty, but it includes Germany also.
Upon those who insist that substantial
amendments must be made to the treaty,
will, therefore, fall the responsibility for
the indefinite postponement Of peace
which the unconditional ratification of
the treaty will at once bring about II
has been proposed to separate the cove.
nant from the treaty and To ratify the
treaty, thus truncated or dissected, with
the idea that peace will follow such ac-
tion by the Senate.
"Ihe suggestion has been made that
peace thus might be reached through a
protocol embodying the treaty and leay-
ing the question of The league to further
consideration. II should be promised
that no one can initiate peace except the
president Of the United States, who is
vested by the constitution with this
power. No one can make a protocol of
peace except the president. If, therefore,
the president deems it essential that the
Senate should act upon the treaty as he
submits it, there can be no protocol as
long as he maintains that attitude, nor,
indeed, could the protocol be concluded
without the consent Of the II allied ma.
tions signing the treaty, and with Ger
many's consent as well. In other words,
all these propositions are nothing but
conditional ratification on the basis Of
radical amendments, and they all will
postpone indefinitely the coming Of peace
Meantime the other great powers, UNI
der the terms Of the treaty as they are
now reported can ratify the treaty and
establish peace with Germany so far as
they are concerned In this way the
anomalous condition viii be presented OF
state of war between Germany and
ourselves, while peace prevails between
Germany and Great Britain, Germany