The Washington herald., 1919-04-23
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LsIy COnIcrenCe OF the poWcfo. aF
may have to be done all over again.
Eesnemies.
The committee on economies Is one of |
the most important committees named |
by the conference. It will consider
freedom Of commercial opportunities
that Is to say. Il will overlook matters !
concerned with the freedom of eco /,
nomic opportunity among the allies |
and neutrals. And after :. II will
have to pass upon the new con sercial
treaties which must begin to be Hnade
in the world, before business can be-
gin. It Is hard to realize that every
commercial treaty N the world has
been abrogated. there are no CONNER
cial treaties. The covenant Of peace
wiped out the treaties between the al
lied governments, and the war wiped
out the treaties between Germany and
the rest Of the world The new> trea-
are barred. and no treaty between any
two nations shall give either nation an
advantage which other nations out
side the treaty may Justly object to;
and 1t Is the Job of the committee on
economics to examine these new trea-
ties. to hear complaints from nations
possibly aggrieved. and to rewrite the
treaties and readjust the provisions SO
that Justice will be done in the world.
The work Is stupendous. and II Of
fers the best guarantee for peace that
may be devised. And whether we
have a quadruple alliance or a league
Of nations this committee Is sure to be
a considerable part OF the legislative
body of the new world federation,
whatever 1t Is called.
Finance.
Co-relative with the committee on
economics Is the committee on finance.
1t Is bound to have joint interlocking
subcommittee with the committee on
economics. The finance committee will
consider (a) problems of international
exchange and will prevent so far as
possible unnatural movements of gold
in the world and stop such specious
financial operations as tend to unstab-
ilize the value Of money. And the
committee will also (b) adjust the
worlds war debt, see that nations
needing and deserving credit receive 1t.
and (c) as the financial section OF the
league Of nations, or of the quadruple
alliance. the committee will look after
the collection and disbursement of the
war indemnjties. II will also prob
ably be Cd) a great international ad-
visory board OF directors OF the
worlds banking interests. The French
are asking that an actual bank of
the league OF nations. or the alliance
be created under the supervision of
the finance committee.
Labor.
The committee on labor has ar
EAw NraNA nj
ence on labor to meetin Washington
In October. That conference will draw
up bills for the various parliaments
Of the world dealing with the hours.
wages and shop conditions of labor.
These bills will provide for uniform
conditions all over the world. in hours
of labor, night work for women and
children, a flexible living wage. based
in each country upon living costs and
living standards. Thus. Of course,
the same living wage would not be
established for China, for instance,
that would be required for America;
nor would hours Of work be the same
in the tropics that they would In
the temperate zones. But the bill
drafted will endeavor to equalize
labor conditions the world over so
that the laborer in the more civilized
parts of the world will not be subject
to barbarous competition from under
paid, underfed and badly housed
laborers in other countries. These
bills will be presented to the various
parliaments, assemblies and con-
crosses, with the sanction of the
leaders of labor all over the world.
This provision brings the labor COM
mittee OF the league. when 1t is
formed. under the provisions of the
Constitution of the United States.
The committee on labor will be a con-
tinuing committee and will bind Amer
lea to the great social movements of
the world as nothing else has ever
done.
This committee will be virtually the
committee on international tTanspor-
tation. 1t will supervise the moving
commerce Of the world. For over fifty
years a similar committee has had
charge of the Danube, licensing
pilots, controlling courts and enforc-
ing its DEGREES providing for equal
rights for the commerce Of Europe
along the Danube. 1t is now pro-
posed to have similar commissions in
scores of the great international ports
and along international rivers, which
will give the commerce of the world
free and equitable access to these
arteries of trade. The Rhine will be
internationally controlled. likewise the
Schcldt. the Elbe, the Oder, the Wis
tula and minor European waterways
Ports like Danzig will be more or
less denationalized. and railroads I'm
Europe leading to great ports will be
equipped with internationally SUPER
vised car coupling. so that carload
rather than trainload lots Of goods
can pass in bond through one nation
from the billing point to a third.
All this will have to be internation-
ally supervised. and its supervision
will be an agency for peace. For if
commerce moves freely across the
world. war will not arise from the
grievances of shut-in peoples. Amer
ica's interest in this question lies in
the fact that our commerce must have
rights in Europe. For there, during
the next ten years at least, will be
the great need for American products
Of the mine and soil and the forest.
And unless America Is represented on
the international commission for mov-
ing commerce. America Is sure to be
handicapped. II we pull out of Eu-
rope with our soldiers and statesmen
we may as well pull out also with our
commercial travellers. Orders will fol-
low the flag in Europe and out of It.
OF course commerce is by no means
the most importan thing in the world,
but after all commerce does carry the
PHILOSOPHERS of the world to distant
places. just as the pollen of flowers
is carried on the wings of birds
through wide areas. and we cannot
put a Chinese wall about ourselves