New-York tribune., 1919-01-22

been the hope of the leaders of thought
throughout the world in all ages. l
recently picked up my volume of
Shakespeare and happened to turn to
the tragedy of Antony and Cleo
ratra. In the fourth act, the sixth
scene. Agrippa, the great general of
Octavlus Cesar, announces to the lat
ter that Antony's power is destroyed
and that he (OctaviusD is now the
master cf the world. Whcreuuon the
latter grandiloquently exclaims: 'The
time of universal peace is near And
that was thirty-one years before
Christ was born.
During all the years that have in
tervcned men have discussed il. hoped
for it, prayed for it. We have just
gore through the greatest war the
world has ever known. 1t is only
natural that all mankind should be
longing for a peace that would be last
lng and universal. And so we hear
much about league Of nations.
Idea Is Ages Old
Let me remind you, however. that
many of the suggestions of to-day
upon this subject are but repctitions
OF those made hundreds of years ago
In 623 one Emeric Cruce, or De Lavoix,
wrote the 'Nouveau Cynee. This was
only three years after that celebrated
meeting between Henry VIII Of England
and Francis | of France at the Field
CT the Cloth Of Gold The two mon
archs embraced. kissed each other, and
vowed eternal friendship and peace 1t
WAS not very long before the treaty
became a scrap of paper
Hugo Grotius, the first great writer
on international law, published his
work in 1925. He recommended that
courts Of arbitration be organized so
as to constrain the parties to quarrel
to agree to reasonable conditions In
1884 the Duke of Sully gave to the
world programme under the title Of
the Great Design 1t was to be a
league OF nations. 1t proposed that
Europe be organized into fifteen states.
These were to constitute one great
Christian republic.
''ln 17l3 project for universal
peace was promulgated by Able Saint
Pierre. who had been the secretary to
one Of the commiss ssioners at the meet.
ing of the peace conference at
Utrecht, Holland. This plan was put
into practical effect by the so-caled
Holy Alliance, organized after the
Napoleonic wars, in 1915. The world
knows now miserably the plan failed
"The great philosopher Emmanuel
Kant in 1896 published an essay on
eternal peace. Under his plan all
countries should become republican in
form. This would enable them by some
kind of general federation to unite
their forces for the preservation Of
peace
Il doubt whether any plan that has
been discussed at the present time
varies very much from these more an
something concrete and definite it will
be better to defer judgment on this
subject for the present
Waving of Sovereignty Opposed
DO the proponents of league Of
nations propose that our country
surrender any of its sovereignty at the
behest of the other nations in the
league? To me such proposition is
absolutely repugnant. am opposed
TO the surrender of American rights
"The Pres dent has been wont to say
that we entered TO make the world safe
for democracy That is true only in 4
secondary sense. | say emphaticall ly
we entered the war to protect Amcri-
can rights. Everybody knows that.
when Germany served notice on Us
that she would sink our ships and
perchancc. drown our citizens, and
when she carried out her threat. there
was nothing left for us but to sur
render our sovereignty or fight And
thank the Lord, the American people
determined to fight.
"If we become a party to an effective
league that is to settle the great inter
national questions and quarrels that
will arise in the future through ambi-
ton, the lust for power. the greed anc
the covetousness of different nations in
Europe and elsewhere, we practically
bind ourselves to a system that might
involve the American people in prac-
tically .interminable war. so far as l