El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1919-07-02

. indemnities." so the mass Of French
people, big and little, said
Yet. since this is the case. II is
plain to perceive how unjustiy the
/ president is criticised by those who
l denounce the terms OF the treaty II
] self and assert that. had he chosen 70
I insist upon more liberal terms the
! plain people OF Europe would nave
/ supported him against their own
! statesmen What happened when the
! president did appeal TO the people OF
! Italy over the heads Of their dlplo-
mats IS a final example of the inaccu-
racv of this assertion But the French
case is quite as illuminatins- To pre-
serve his mental balance-so his
| friends asserted=the president stayed
away from the devastated districts,
but this single course was as fatal
to his popularity in France as was
his Italian gesture destructive OF mis-
support in Italy
The truth. which certain glib
commentators do not seem to ap-
ureeiate yet. Is that Mr.. Wilson
was never master OF the Paris
conference and exercised n stead
lily declining influence as the de-
bate shifted from general ques-
tons. like the league Of nations,
to specific problems concerning
Europeans directly.
He came TO Europe with a very
clear idea in his own mind that by
applying his Il points quite literally
and following them up with a league
Of nations he could put world peace
on a solid foundation He discovered
very promptly that his II points were
really no points at all. since they
could be used effectively by both sides
in any real controversy he discovered
that the millions who cheered the idea
Of permanent peace turned from him
with cold hostility when he demanded
OF them sacrifices which 10 him
seemed essential to obtaining such
peace
The fact. Of course. is that Nr VIII
son. like every other American who
went to the peace conference, discov-
cred Europe as a thing totally differ
eut from that Europe he had mag
ined- He discovered that problems
which have provoked centuries OF war
and remained insoluble from genera
ton TO generation. cannot be solved
by any merely academic formula
Take Fiume, for example. and you see
an Italian town in Slav land. neces-
sary 10 the JugO-Slavs. il they are 10
have adequate commercial outlet. an
ineffaceable wound TO Italian pride,
il assigned to the Slavs, who would
be certain to expel the Italians
Expected Support of II Points.
Mr.. Wilson believed when he ar
rived in Europe that the people Of ali
the allied countries would support him
and his Il points against their gov
erHments. He discovered that the
British would support the "A points
at the expense of the French, on
occasion. and the French and British
at the expense OF the Italian. but even
here he found such support strictly
limited by a series Of secret treaties,
which bound all three countries to
bargains which were not only in con-
flict with bis Il points, but with ele-
mental justice.
There came a tine. then, when lIr.
Wilson had TO choose between doing
the best he could and coming home
and leaving Europe to fight Il out.
He IS gravely criticised by. socalled
liberals for eiecting TO remain in Eu-
rope, but in the main this criticism
is accompanied by the assertion that
had he actually started for home the
governments which existed would
have come crashing down and new
governments would have replaced
them and done as he advised Here
again is the familiar argument that
Mr. Wilson was in fact master Of the
situation, II he chose TO use his pow
er, But the fact is quite different
Might Have Been BoiShevism.
#. for example. Mr.. Wilson had
Quit France, because he was dis
pleased with the French demands in
the matter Of the Saar, it IS conceiv-
able that Cfemenceau might have
fallen. not because Of the opposition
Of the mass OF the French people to
the Saar claims. quite the contrary,
It would have fallen because in the
difficult months OF the winter and
early spring all conditions in France
were extremely bad and the people
who suffered from the inescapable
consequences Of the war held the min
istry- responsible But II Clemenceau
had fallen. then there would have
been A prompt drift to the radical left.
Boishevism all over Europe would
have received an instant stimulus and
heaven knows that in that time It
needed no stimulus.
ConeefvnbIy. probably, Mr.. VII
SON could have wrecked the peace
conference, had he chosen to Quit
II. as he threatened on one lannon's
occasion publicly and on several
occasions privately. But the re-
suit would almost inevitably have
been chaos. which could not have
failed to affect his own country.
Moreover. and this point Is can't
tai. had the governments with
which he WINS dealing yielded to
his Demands. they would just as
fnfai1fbly have fallen. Neither
LLOYD George nor Clemenceau
could face their pub1ics and con-
Tess that the Germans would e.