The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1919-08-25
PRESENT FORM DANGEROUS
Member of Mr.. Mills Parish Dis
agrees with Domino.

|
much interested in the statements of
yourself and Rev. Mr.. Mills in the
Evening Banner regarding the pro-
posed League OF Nations and | trust
! that as believer in some such
League even before it's concrete idea
was formulated by Ex-Pres. Taft, you
will allow me space for few COM
ments on the opposition to approval
of the League. in its present form.
To my mind approval of any
League of Nations in which the Brit
ish Empire is given six votes while
each of the others is given but one is
not only preposterous but would
cause danger to the world only
secondary to that recently caused by
Germany and might readily enable
England W hich has already extended
hts dominion over one third of the
population OF the world to extend fur
ther that dominion until for all prae-
teal purposes it would dominate the
earth.
| 1t IS no answer TO this to argue that
the rule OF England is beneficial.
That is analogous to the argument
adduced by Germany when it GAINED
that German kultur should rule the
world.
| Nor can this Republic with its ideas
OF freedom enter compact whlcn
binds us to protect the RUE of Eng
land over ireland or of Japan over
Shantung and Corea.
Only secondary to the danger be-
lore alluded TO Is the danger tnat py
strengthening the power OF Japan on
| the Aslatic Continent we may enable
lner 10 dominate, eventually, the Yel
low Race, which embraces more than
naf the population OF the globe, and,
tho the attention OF the word may
have been first called to the Yellow
reril by Wnnam ii, IT'S existence as
periai is recognized by every far
seeing statesman OF the present day.
The argument OF President Wilson
| that because we entered the war
tand incidentally saved the worlaJ
We are now IN honor bound to ap-
prove any terms of peace dictated 70
us by the allies is based on fallacies
and is an argument mat because We
entered a war to save the world from
vIrtuai slavery we are now bound u
enter every other world war and even
every other war in the world If oehef
nations see mt to call upon us SO TO
dI.
We are not obligated TO fight the
wars OF the world nor do | Delieye II
TO be the sentiment OF our people
mat we should De pound Dy any al
liances which may force us to fight
them.
Despite the high moral ground that
we have taken, the real reason for
our entering the late war was one of
SELF protecuon and preference that
other lands should be the scene OF
battle rather than that our own ma
/ tion should later be compeiied "
meet an all conquering Germany up
on our own shores.
The Monroe Doctrine, which thus
far has been the salvation of our two
| American Continents and the protec-
tion of which caused Cleveland to de-
| fly the British Empire in the Vene-
zuela matter is not to be lightly sac
riticed by entering upon such an
agreement; nor should we endanger
our rights to regulate our immigra-
ton and our tariffs as we ourselves
may determine wise.
We cannot wisely submit our future
to the determination of different
races having different habits, differ
ent morals, different education and
different religions.
The very right of self determine
tion, regarding which so much has
been said by the advocates of the
League in its present form, is en-
dangered or done away with when we
submit the right to govern ourselves
and to determine our own policy and
our own future to nations whose am
bitions and interests are or may be-
come antagonistic to ours; or when
we attempt to exercise such powers
over other nations.
From the first | have believed in a
League of Nations whose object
should be to conserve the peace of
the world but visionaries rush in
where angels fear to tread" and an
attempt to have a central body die
tating the affairs of the world is like
lily to have as disastrous a termination
as the theories of communism which
led to the excesses of the French
Revolution and of the Bolsheyiki.
Yours very sincerely,
Edward j. Hall.
| Auo oAth 1910