Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1919-11-21
SENATE FAILS TO
RATIFY TREATY
AND ADJOURNS
Continued FROM Page u

ardent supporters of the treaty be
lieve it would be possible to take
it UP again at the outset of the next
session. The Christmas recess was
expected to intervene before much
could be accomplished, with the re-
suit that clear field for treaty con-
sideration would not be opened be-
fore January at the earliest.
Once the other great powers have
gone ahead with their establishment;
of full trade and diplomatic rela~
tions with Germany, officials say new
arrangements will have to be made
by the United States to fit into the
canine Cial scaeme thus created
whatever trade the United States
has with the central powers.
Senator Knox's View
At present the war. arran gemeu.
by which Spain is taking care OF
American interests in Germany con
tinues in force, and that is not ex
pected to be disturbed. The ration
ing IF supplies Of various sorts to
Germany must begin under the treaty
terms, however, and the powerful
repara tions commission will be set up
to determine all the details Of Ger.
many's commercial intercourse with
other nations.
President to Fight
Various other senators have taken
a similar view and Senator Fall, Re
publican, New Mexico, has declared
repeatedly in the senate that the
United States already is trading with
Germany in the full sense Of the
term and that American consular
agents could be installed without
over-stepping international law.
There seems little prospect, how
ever, that the state department will
accept such a construction and Of
ficials there say American trade will
have to accommodate itself to the
facilities of the Spanish agents in
Germany until a state of peace has
been defined directly between that
country and the United States.
AS matter of fact, the lack OF
American consular representation is
declared by the administration OF
f:cials to be the greatest present
handicap to resumption of trade.
With the president authorization
of blanket licenses under the trading
with the enemy act last July, COM
mercial intercourse with Germany
practically was freed from legal re-
strictions and it continues in that
situation. There are some prohibited
articles, such as drugs, chemicals and
dyestuffs, but the bars are down to
most of the ordinary articles of COM
merce.
On this commission the United
States will have no representation,
though it is hoped to work out plan
by which this country can keep in
close touch with the body's work in
order to protect American interests.
The administration officials were not
prepared today to predict just what
form this unofficial connection would
take nor to outline just what could
be accomplished by such a connec-
ton.
The state department is emphatic
in it's stand that no American con-
suls can be sent into Germany un-
til peace has been definitely estab-
lished between the United States and
that country and they declare only
an imperfect trade relation can be
built up without the consular Off
GERS who are in charge of the legal
end of international trade.
A contrary view is held, however,
by some of the senators who opposed
ratification Of the treaty. Notable
m that connection is the stand TAX
EN- by Senator Knox, Republican,
Pennsylvania, q former secretary of
state, who holds that by the Ian
guage of the treaty full commercial
and diplomatic intercourse can be re-
sumed with Germany by all of her
late enemies as soon as the process
verbale is exchanged.
Friends of President Wilson, who
remembered his fighting characteris-
tics before he fell i'll, could not be-
lieve he would swallow defeat on the
peace treaty and the League of Ma
lions, in the interests of which he
has already sacrificed his health. The
presidents friends would not listen
for minute to any talk of him hoist
ing the white flag and admitting
that the League of Nations was dead,
that his promises to the national
leaders of foreign powers at the
peace conference had been finally
repudiated by the representatives of
the American people.
No "Wet Christmas"
Failure of the treaty knocked the
ground from under hopes that there
would be a wet Christmas" Peace
through treaty ratification is fur
Their away than ever before, it SEEM
ed. The only chance Of the vets was
that the president, in disgust at the
treaty failure, would issue a procla-
nation of peace and lift the war
time prohibition ban, regardless of
consequences, but this seemed hardly
probable
The administration today was
anxiously awaiting the worlds re-
action to the treaty defeat.
Separate Peace Move
Pressing reconstruction questions
on which congress failed to act in
clude: Return of the railroads, reor-