The Madison journal. (Tallulah, Madison Parish, La.) 1888-current, 1919-06-14
HOW The SENATE
WILL handle PACT
RESIDENT WILSON PROBABLY
WILL DELIVER THE TREATY
TO IT IN PERSON.
LODGES COMMITTEE GETS 1T
There the Document win Be objected
to Careful S,udy and OebE se-New
Peace Conference May Ee Found
Necessary.
BY EDWARD 3. CLARK.

BY EDWARD 3. CLARK.
Westinghouse * believed Jo ice he
intention of President Wilson, to- stick
10 the precedent which he established
and I" deliver in person The treaty nf
peace and the covenant az the league
Of nations Ia the United States SCH
ate. and 10 accompany The pre>cnla-
ton with Il speech of clucidatiun and
Endorsement.
Already Il SUMMARY of the covenant
Of thc league al nations and the peace
terms have been gwen Ia the American
people. hui the pactS "S they have been
written in eNtenSo probably VIII be
made public only when tie president
appears before the senate.
The means OF making and nj Secur-
ing ratification OF lpaCe treaties AMI
international pactS of all kinds is of
particular interest today. In fact. il
is of greater Interest. 81 some of the
senators seem Ia think. than anything
in connection with foreign affairs has
been since President Monroe put forth
the doctrine which has become his
tOric.
A. soon aS the president has eX-
planned from his point of view all the
sections of the treaty. and of the cove
nant which really has been made Il
part of the treaty, senator Henry
Cabo1 Lodge, Republican chairman of
the committee on foreign relations.
will make motion Ia have The treaty
referred In The committee over which
he preSides This motion will be- agreed
TO unanimously. hocause such is the
regular procedure.
Lodges Committee to Pass on It.
In the committee there will be hours
of study and debate given Ia the sub
jet in hand. II j. expected that in II
large measure the committee proceed
ingS will take on the scmblance of Il
court. Experts on International af-
| fairs and ON constitutional law will he
| summoned tn bear testimony. Ii is
even possible that tho president of the
| United States may he called into con
| ference to- give further explanation Of
some parts Of ;hp document in cOntro-
versy. The sessions of the foreign re-
atiOnS committee will be executive.
| and not until Il report Is made To the
senate will the public have full knowl-
edge Of what is going on.
There has been much discussion as
| 10 whether or not the senate has the
power to amend the treaty. There is
also IL question as Ia whether or not
The senate has the power Ia separate
the treaty from the covenant of the
league of nations and to consider the
two things separately.
When the report f the committee is
laid before the senate the first tests
will come which will tend To show
what the final fate of the document is
to be. Party lines will he ignored. be-
cause there are Democratic as well as
Republican opponents of The treaty
and covenant as they stand. Ii may he
that the majority report of the foreign
relations committee will contain
amendments to the treaty. If the mi
nority report contains no amendments
hut accepts the documents as they are
the senate could sanction the treat,
and the covenant by the acceptance O
the minority report.
Ii takes two-thirds majority Of tn,
United States senate to ratify treaty
but so far as the proceedings on TIT
floor are concerned q majority is suffi
cient To amend. 1t Is for this reason
that amendments will be fought fo
and against just ms hard as for o
against the treaty itself.
"As Soon as Possible"
There Is i'm the Constitution of tn
United States specification that nj
peace treaties must be ratified "a
soon as possible" Just how long "a
, soon as possible" will mean in tn
: present case il Is hard to forecast. Gel
, tain it is that 1t will take consit
cradle time for the senate to &c
through with the business in hand.
: must be remembered that the treaty
: long one. $4,000 words i'm length. /
5 fact. The limitations of human el
durance and mental acumen therefor
will prevent a quick consideration an
| dUoIliOU UT TeJeClloH W lnt uoCullleii
: An authority has said this concern
$ ing possible senate procedure:
q IF the senate should determine |
q amend the treaty and If, also. otht
= nations parties To the treaty shoul
/ fail to concur. the result would be Il
n treaty at all and new peace confe
@ ence would have to be called. In cas-
y no amendments are made, the treat
h fnaily will come up for ratification
- the form in which it is presented"
a Senators Themselves in Doubt.
10 The fog which enveloped two Unite
n States aviators on their approach
The coast of the Azores was no thick,
than that which envelopes the Unit,
States senate to cover up the detail
NJ IF prospective action concerning Il
treaty of peace and covenant of Il
. league Of nations.
., Literally thousands Of sheets ha'
=, been covered with writings concerns
:, the intentions of the senate in the
two high matters. and yet cOnfesse
=, " today on the part of many senate
= nothing has been written. right. unle
perchance developments should she
TO FILL FLOOR CRACKS.
II. Co an