The Powder River County examiner and the Broadus independent. [volume] (Broadus, Mont.) 1919-1935, 1919-08-01
Mr.. Taft's Plan Of Interpretive
Reservations May So.ve the
Treaty Problem.
LIKED BY MANY SENATORS
President Wilson Rebuffed by Foreign
Relations Committee-Austria Gets
Her Peace Terms - News
From Russia Not Cheerful
More Trouble With
Mexico.
BY EDWARD w. PIckARD.

William H. Taft, actuated by the two
worthy motives Of trying ia. aid in the
speedy stabilizing of world peace and
of averting possible disaster to his par.
ty in the next presidential elections
made notable contribution last week
toward the ratification Of the peace
| treaty and League of Nations covenant
by the senate. In letters to Republican
National Chairman Hays he suggested
| a way in which he thought this might
be brought about with the votes of
those Republican senators who are
friendly to the league hut are doubtful
concerning certain Of its articles. Mr..
| Taft'S plan is that the treaty be rati.
fed with interpretive reservations"
that would satisfy the consciences OF
those senator's and that would be &C.
ceptable to the administration. These.
not being amendments or fiat reserva.
| tons, would not necessitate the recon-
| initial Of the pact to a peace confer
| ence.
Making it clear that he favOrS rati.
fication of the treaty as it stands. to be
amended later by the league if neces.
sary. Mr.. Taft declares it to be 1.-The
part of statesmen to recognize the ext.
gencieS. personal. partisan and pOlA.
ical. of a situation in seeking to achieve
real progress and reform" He admits
that there are reasonable and sincere
criticisms made against the league and
believes these must be satisfied in
order to obtain the nineteen Republican
votes necessary to ratification. This he
seeks to do with his suggested reSer.
vatiOnS. which cover most of the ar
ticles criticised hut ignore the Shan
tung feature This latter. he asserts.
has been deliberately exaggerated.
Mr.. Hays locke! with favor on Mr.
Taft'S plan. and in Washington many
| Republican senators We're said to be
| so impressed with its value that they
| already We're at work on Il program
of interpretive reservations. President
Wilson had been aware of the Taft
| suggestions for several days. hut his at.
titude toward them was not stated.
The administration senators however,
We're said to be still determined to at
tempt to force unreScrved ratification.
Mr.. Wilson, though suffering from q
slight attack of illness. kept up his
work in behalf of the treaty. calm"
into conference at the White House
a number of the opposing senators,
Most Of these asserted that the preSi.
| l,n.J nh 81, -, 4.
views or intentions by his arguments
and explanations. and the debate in
the senate did NOT indicate that he
had converted any Of them. 1t is only
fair to assume that few of these sen:
tors are governed by anything bu,
patriotism aud honesty in taking the
attitude they do, but it is hard to see
anything but partisan>hip in such nt-
ton as that of the majority Of the
committee on foreign relations the
other day. The president. in the in
terest of business. asked for authorit!
to appoint professionally an American
member of the interallied commission
on Preparations pending action on tn.
treaty. This the committee refused
adopting instead Senator Knox's reso
luton declaring:
'That 1t is the judgment Of the com
mittee that until the treaty Is ratified
no power exists. either in the presi
dent or congress. to execute any prOvi
sion of the proposed treaty. either pro
vfsiOnally or otherwise"
l. And yet. only three weeks ago Sen
atOr Knox declared that the treaty o
peace will apply to the United State
~hen ratified BY three other powers