Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1919-07-24
ARTICLE X: ITS OBLIGATIONS And DANGERS
Dr. Morton Prince Who Has Just Returned from Abroad
An Interesting View of That the Pending Treaty
Which Has Provoked Most Controversy

tlngulsh between external agrees
sion and internal revolution and re-
bellion. Surely the senator from the
Golden State krt ws better than this,
though he may hope that few of his
hearers or readers will take the trou-
BILE to read and study Article 10. And
surely he must know when he COM
pares the guarantees and the prin-
ciples underlying Article 10 with
those of the Holy Alliance Of 1915,
he misrepresents both.
But let us have the exact words Of
Article 10 before us before discussing
it further. 1t reads as follows:
The Exact Text
Article 10-The members of the
league undertake to respect and pre-
serve as against external aggression
the territorial integrity and existing
political independence Of all mem
bers Of the league. In case Of any
such aggression or in case Of any
threat or danger Of such aggression.
the council shall advise upon the
means by which this obligation shall
be fulfilled.
Now. the contention Of Senator
Johnson-and the contention Of many
others with his Viewpoints that:
This article makes the men of
today write the history Of tomorrow.
1t arrogates to the present genera
ton wisdom for all eternity"
Pit will require neither astute
lawyer nor cunning diplomat to ap-
ply external aggression to any form
of internal revolution which it was
feared might be communicated to
neighboring states" mo man can
tell and none define" external ag-
gression.
3-"Art. 10 was not intended to
prevent war" or ito promote peace
it was intended to protect power and
power alone" Indeed. the purpose
of the league" he contends. lis not
to prevent war;
Art. 10 will compel us to send
our sons. whether we want to or not,
to fight the battles of Europe, to send
them to Finland. CORTLAND, Estho-
MIA, Iivonia, the Ukraine. Jugo- Sla-
via, Czecho- Slovakia, and the He'd
JAZZ in Arabia" and other countries.
DO you want" he asked. American
blood to settle every squabble and
every war and every controversy in
Europe. in Asia and in Africa" And
Immediately there was chorus Of mo"
from the audience-quite naturally.
Now. let us dispa ssionately examine
Art. 10 and see for ourselves how mucn
there is Of truth and how much there In
of error and l was going to say-of
buncombe in all this.
l. The first objection is one which
has occurred to every one and the one
which Is most obviously sound. Every
one must agree. it seems to me. that 1t
is the one weighty objection to article
10. and so serious that this article as
written ought never to have been in
corporated in the covenant Yet we can
sympathize with the chief reason, as
conceive it. for doing so. 1t was to
protect France. so far as possible. from
another aggression by Germany on tina
west and the new state of Poland or
the east In going further than this
guaranteeing 1.-The territorial integrity
and the existing political Independence"
Of all the old and new nations OF Europe
and Asia for all time we are presum-
ing to have a wisdom and foresight
which is not given to any set Of men.
or any man. to possess We are under.
taking a task. too. which America. at
least. even IL we had the wisdom and
foresight. should not be called upon 20
undertake. The men Of the peace con-
ference undoubtedly built the best they
knew how and according to their lights,
but to imagine that they have built for
all time, that nothing they have built
has been done in error. that nothing
will fall down, but that their work can
be propped up forever by league Of
nations is to disregard history and the
fsllibility of the human mind.
But even II 1t were otherwise few
Americans will agree that. If. for *.
ample. Poland and csecho-slovakia fall