The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1919-08-12
LODGE ATTACKED
LEAGUE PLAN
Called 1t "Deformed Expert
ment Upon a Noble
Purpose"
SAYS 1T WOULD KILL
MONROE DOCTRINE
And Nulify Any Possibility
of Withdrawal from
Membership

Washington, ID. G., Aug. l2.--Describ-
ing the league Of nations as "deformed
experiment upon noble purpose" Sem
ator Lodge of Massachusetts,, chairman
of the foreign relations committee and
Republican leader of the Senate, declared
in Senate speech to-day that there
were features of the league covenant
which, 'as an American" he never could
accept
!. Creating, not league of peace but an
alliance embracing many provisions for
war;" the covenant in its present form,
he asserted, would kill the Monroe doe
trine, nulify any possibility of with
drawal from membership, impair the
sovereign power of deciding domestic
questions, and plunge the United States
into every controversy and conflict on the
face of the globe"
LET us beware" he said, show we
palter with our independence. We have
not reached the great position from
which we were able to come down into
the field of battle and help to save the
world from tyranny, by being guided by
Others. Our vast power has all been
built up and gathered together by our
selves alone.
eve forced our way upward from the
days of the Revolution, through world
often hostile and always indifferent. We
owe no debt to anyone except to France
in our revolution and those policies and
those rights on which our power has been
founded should never be lessened or
weakened. 1t will be no service to the
world to do so and it will be of intoler-
able injury to the United States We
will do our share. We are ready and
anxious to help in all ways to preserve
the worlds peace. But we can do it best
by not crippling ourselves.
II am as anxious as any human being
can be to have the United States render
every possible service to the civilization
and the peace of mankind, but am GER
tain we can do it best by not putting
ourselves in leading strings or subjecting
our policies and our sovereignty to other
nations. will 90 as far as anyone in
world service, but the first step to world
service is the maintenance of the United
States. You may call me selfish, if you
will, conservative or reactionary, but an
American | was born, an American
have remained all my life.
81 can never be anything else but an
American, and must think of the Unit
ed States first, and when ! think of the
United States first in an arrangement
like this ! am thinking of what is best
for the world, for if the United States
fails, the best hopes of mankind fail
with it. / have never had but one al
legiance-I cannot divide it now.
The United States is the worlds best
hope, but if you fetter her in the inter
ests and quarrels Of other nations if you
tangle her in the intrigues of Europe,
you will destroy her power for good and
endanger her very existence.
I'VE are told that we shall break the
heart of the world if we do not take this
league as it stands | fear that the
hearts of the vast majority of mankind
would beat on strongly and steadily and
without any quickening if the league
were to perish altogether. If it should
be effectively and benefcently changed
the people who would lie awake in sor-
row for a single night could be easily
gathered in one not very large room but
those who would draw a long breath of
relief would reach to millions
Ideals have been thrust upon us as
an argument for the league until the
healthy mind which rejects cant re-
volts from them. Are ideals confined
to this deformed experiment upon a
noble purpose, tainted as it is with bar
gains, and tied to peace treaty which
might have been disposed of long ago to
the great benefit of the world if it had
not been compelled to carry this rider
on its back?
mo doubt many excellent and patriot
ic people see a coming fulfillment OF
noble ideals in the words league for
peace We all respect and share these
aspirations and desires, but some of us
see no hope, but rather defeat, for them
in this murky covenant For we, too
have our ideals, even if we differ from
those who have tried to establish mo-
nopoly of idealism. Our first ideal is our
country. We would have our country
strong TO resist a peril from the West
as she has flung back the German men.
ace from the East. We would not have
our politics distracted and embittered by
the discussions of other lands
$50 far as the question of isolation
goes, it is impossible to isolate the Unit.
ed States. We may set aside all this
empty talk about isolation Nobody ex.
poets to isolate the United States or to
make it a hermit nation, which is a sheer
absurdity. But there is wide difference
between taking a suitable part and bear.
ing due responsibility in world affairs
and plunging the United States into
every controversy and conflict on thf
face of the globe"
Likens League 70 Holy Alliance.
Likening the league to the ill-famed
Holy alliance, Mr.. Lodge quoted the cove
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