El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1919-07-10

: sprung as a natural growth. 1t hal
been our privilege to formulate the
principles which were accepted as the
basis of the peace. but they had been
accomplished. not because VIC had
I come in TO hasten and assure the vic
tory and insisted upon them. but be.
cause they were readily acceded to as
! the principles TO which hOnorab bic and
: enlightened minds everywhere had
] been bred They spoke the conscience
! Of the world as well as the conscience
3 Of America. and l am happy to nav
I my tribute OF respect and gratitude to
I the able, forward looking men with
I whom il was my privilege TO coon
{ crate Tor their unfailing shirt of CO.
/ operation, their constant effort TO ac-
eommodate the interests they repre-
sented TO the principles we were all
( agreed upon.
Difficulties Not in Men.
The difficulties, which were many
lay in the circumstances, not often in
me men. Almost without exception
the men who led had caught the true
anQ lull vision OF the problem of
peace as an indivisibie whole. a prob
.Sin, not OF mere adjustments Of in
terest. but Of justice and right action
Inc atmosphere in which the con-
ference worked seemed created. NOT by-
tAe ainpltions OF strong governments.
out by the hopes and aspirations of
s1nsI nations and Of peoples hitherto
4
tory mad shattered and DESTROYED. Two
great empires had been forced into
polltlcai bankruptcy and we were the
receivers Our task was not only to
MAKE peace with the central empires
ana remedy the wrongs their armies
nAd done The central empires
nad hVed IN open violation of many of
the very rights for which the war had
been fought dominating alien peo-
pies over whom they had no natural
I4ghl 10 rule, enforcing, not obedf-
ence' put Yerltable bOnczge, exploit
ing nose who were weak for the
/ oenetlt Of those who were rnastersand
overlords only by force OF arms There
could be no peace until the whole or
DER OF central Europe was set right.
New Nations Inevitable.
mat meant that new nations were
10 be created-Poland. Czecho-Slo-
Vakia, Hungary itself. No part OF an
eient Poland had ever in any true
sense become q part of Germany. or
OF austria, or OF Russia Bohemia
was alien in every thought and hope
10 the monarchy OF which she had SO
long been an artificial part: and the
uneasy partnership between Austria
and Hungary had been one rather OF
interest than OF kinship or SvmDafhv
The Slavs. whom Austria had chosen
10 force into her empire on the south,
were kept to their obedience bv moth
ing but fear Their hearts were with
their kinsmen in the Balkans. These
we're all arrangements Of power. not
arran ge1ents OF natural union or as
ISOLATION Il was the imperative task
Of those who would make peace and
make It intelligently to establish a
new order which would rest upon the
Tree choice OF peoples rather than
upon the arbitrary authority Of Haps-
burgs or Hohenzollerns.
- L.
bound by sympathy and actual kin 20
Rumania. were also linked. against
their viii. to the conglomerste Austro-
Hungarian monarchy OF to other
alien soverei gnties. and il was part
OF the task OF peace to make a new
Rumania as well as a new Slavic state
clustering about Servia-
German Colonies only Exploited.
And no natural frontiers could be
found to these new fields of adjust
ment and redemption It was neees-
sary TO look constantly forward to
other related tasks. The German
colonies were TO be disposed of. They
had not been governed: they had been
exploited merely, without thought Of
the interest or even the ordinary hu-
man rights Of their inha bitants.
The Turkish empire, moreover. had
fallen apart, as the AustrO-Hungaria
had 1t had never had any real unity
less, inhuman force. Its peoples cried
aloud for release, for succor from IN
spsakable distress, for all that the
new day Of hope seemed al least to
bring within its dawn Peoples hith--
ertO IN utter darkness were 10 be led
out into the same light and given at
least a helping hand. Undeveloped
peoples and peoples ready for recogni-
ton. but not yet ready 10 assume the
full responsibilities Of statehood. were
n En - = Of
friendly protection. guidance and as
sistance-
4And out of the execution of
these great enterprises Of liberty
sprang opportunities to attempt
what statesmen had never found
the way before to dot an opRor-
funfty to throw safeguards about
the rights OF racial, national and
religious minOrifics by solemn in
lernaflOnal covenants an oPpOrfu-
nifty to limit and regulate milf
fa-y establishments where they
were most likely TO be misehiey-
Gus; an opportunity 10 effect n
complete and systematic Internal
liberalization of waterways and
railways which were necessary 10
the free economic life of more
than one nation and TO clear many
Of the normal channels OF COM
merce of unfair distractions OF
law or OF privilege; and the very
welcome opportunity TO seeure for
labor the concerted protection Of
definite international pledges OF
principle and practice.
These were not tasks which the
conference looked about it TO find and I
went out Of its way to perform They 1
were inseparable from the Settle /
ments Of peace They were thrust
upon it by circumstances which could !
not be overlooked The war had ere !
ated them In all quarters OF the /
world old fashioned relationship had 4
been disturbed or broken and affairs !
were at loose ends, needing 10 be /
rot be made what they were before. /
They had to be set right by applying I
some Uniform principle Of justice or 4
enlightened expediency- And they /
could not be adjusted by merely pre- I
scribinE in a treaty what should be 4
which could not hope to live through 4
their first period of weakness without /
assured support by the great nations /
that had consented 10 their creation 4
and won for them their independence. I
III governed colonies could not be put /
IN the hands OF governments which I
were TO act as trustees for their peo-
pie and not as their masters If there /
was to be no common authority |
among the nations to which they were !
their trusts. Future international
conventions with regard TO the control /
OF waterways. with regard to illicit ]
traffic Of many kinds. in arms or in
deadly drugs. or with regard to the
adjustment Of many varying interna-
tional administrative arrangements
could not be assured II, the treaty
were to provide no permanent COM
mon international agency. II its exc
cutiOn in such matters we're TO be left /
70 the slow and uncertain processes
Of cooperation BY ordinary methods Of
negotiation.