Perth Amboy evening news., 1919-02-27
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SURRENDER OF SOVEREIGNTY

aua fronlIv There a no restraint and no secrecy. 1t was
merely a body of men having the guidance of this great repuOnc III
their hands gathered about a table to give serious consideration u a
iaost important matter involving a departure from I'll in o'"'
lshed traditions of this country.
One of the senator's asked whether it was true that the formation
Of tbe Icapue Of Nations with the United States al one of its consitu-
ent members would involve any surrender of sovereignty on the part
of this nation. The President replied without hesitation that IN his
opinion this nation would relnquish some of its sovereignty but as
serted that every other nation in the league would make a similar sur
render. but for the good of the world, as he and the others with whom
he conferred at Paris, viewed it.
As far as sovereignty goes it is for the American people to decide
whether they would be willing to surrender a little along with every
other nation for the benefit of the whole world, or whether they VIII
insist upon retaining their full sovereignty with every other nation do
ing the same, thereby making necessary large standing armies anu
heavy burdens in taxes in order to maintain great ornaments so as to
be prepared to fight at the drop of the hat.
Civilization has advanced as far as it has today only through the
continued surrender of sovereignty. In the very beginning man lived
solely unto himself. He and his family hved III a cave LII ii" !" :"
prepared to fight all Corners alone.
AS civilization began to dawn man realized that it was better for
him If he had SOME friends who would fight with him should occasion
require, so little groups of families living IN the same vicinity Danue"
together for mutual protection. Thus the clan W formed. u J"
forming that elan the individual man and his family surrendered a
certain amount of sovereignty. The solitary man was no longer te
absolute dictator. lie had to conform to The rules OF the clan t. when
he belonged and had to sacrifice himself, if necessary, IN the defense
of his neighbor s home i'll order that he might be assured that his own
home would be protected through the assistance OF his nelghoofS
should he be attacked.
Thus the first surrender of sovereignty took place and civliza-
ton was advanced a step.
But other clans were formed also, and soon those clans having a
similar standard of living and seeing themselves threatened by nva-
sion from distant parts, banded themselves together into tribes cover.
ing a larger section of territory. But just as the Individual family had
10 surrender some of its indep1fHrsee IN Qrde9to l0 orr lhe cian, sc 'e
clans had to make sacrifices in order to meet other clans OF a = common
footing and thereby secure the greater advantage of a tribal organi
Sstion.
But here again there was a surrender of sovereignty; the elan gave
way to the tribe, but in S o doing another step forward was taken in
the advancement of civilization.
But before long the tribes developed into cities and the cities de-
veloped into states and finally the states into nations. With each adj
,ancenent there has been a surrender of some sovereignty for the
benefit of mankind. The city today is subject to the authority II the
state. Perth Amboy cannot do a IS it pleases even in local government
1t must comply TO state laws. Thus, we here in Perth Amboy, in com
m with the people of every other city in the state, surrender some of
our sovereignty in order that the state may exist for the benefit of all
the cities within its borders.
So each state, while a sovereign in itself, surrenders some of its
authority to the nation. The state is not an absolute authority in 1t
self. If it were we would have no nation. When this nation was
formed each colony in America surrendered some of its sovereignty
in order that the nation might be formed for the benefit of all the col
ones. That was a momentous step and it was debated just as seriously
BY the leaders in the respective colonies as the present subject of sur
rendering some of our nation authority for the benefit of a League OF
Nations is being debated today. 1t meant a new departure for the col
ones; they would no longer be a power unto themselves But they saw
the wisdom in the move and the nation was formed.
Now, the question is, has civilization advanced far enough to take
another stcpf Are we ready to link the nations together for the good
of the whole world, just as the individuals combined into clans and the
clans became tribes, the tribes cities, and the cities states and the
states became natons7 With each step there va a surrender of SOW
erGgnty. But the surrender was made for the common good and in
order that civilization might advance. Does 1t not follow that n next
stem in the surrender of some national sovereignty i'll order to form a
League of Nations of the whole world would be just as beneficial to
The human race as the surrenders that have already been made for the
sake of humanity
1t must be remembered that just as the family has not passed out
% existanee, but ON the contrary, has been greatly strengthened by the
surrenders of sovereignty and the combinations already made ST the
nations that make up the world league would continue their entity
fmetioning as before only held together closer for the welfare of all;
settling disputes by peaceful means and continuing in friendly rela-
lions.
The conference at the White House last night is typical of a great
republic. There were gathered together the leaders of the respective
parties and around the table they threshed out the various features OF
a new plan the details of which were not quite clear to them. 1t was
a body of men earnestly trying to serve their country and seeking the
greatest light before any vital step was taken.
The whole question devolves itself into whether or not our civil
cation has advanced far enough at the present time to take another
step that viii bind the nations of the world together just as the various
units of society have been drawn closer together through sacrifice and