The public ledger. [volume] (Maysville, Ky.) 1913-1968, 1920-09-02

might now be confronted by such
situation, II the senate had ratified
the league covenant requires no
stretch Of the Imagination. None can
deny that 1t is possible. To many
candid minds, as to my own, such
distressing situation will seem high
ly probable. Let us assume that the
ratification had taken place. Let us
assume, further, that the performance
of the allotted task required the wag-
ing Of war upon the Russian people,
as, of course, 1t would, what would
result; what would Of necessity have
to result? Nothing necessarily, we
are glibly informed, since only the
Congress can declare war, and the
Congress might reject the appeal of
the executive. But would the Congress
do that? Could the Congress do that
without staining indelibly the honor
Of the nation?
Answer 10 mo-"
II answer No. and I say It not on
my own authority alone. Back Of my
Judgment stands the President of the
United States. Upon that point there
is first-hand information. In the course
of the discussion which took place al
the meeting of the President and the
Senate Committee on Foreign Rela-
lions / raised the question by stating
a hypothetical case precisely analogous
to that which have depicted, and then
inquired whether we might not right
fully be regarded as a perfdlous peo-
pie II we should fail to contribute an
armed force, If called upon to do so.
The President first replied, as ]
thought somewhat evaslvely, that we
would be our own judges as to wheth-
er we were obliged in those circum-
stances to act In that way or not.
Pressed further, however, in response
to a query Incorporating the assump-
ton that the case provided for and
prescribed had arisen and that the
extraneous attack did exist precisely
as It does exist today In Poland the
President admitted specifically that we
would be untrue II we did not keep our
word
Replying further to question
which perhaps / ought not to have
considered necessary, the President
pronounced moral obligation of
course, superior to q legal obligation
and of a greater binding force
"What, then, becomes of the argu'
ment that Congress, not the President,
in this instance at any rate, might
keep us out of war; Technically. OF
course, It could do so. Morally, with
equal certainty, 1t could not do so nor
would It ever do SO. The American
people would never permit repudla-
tlon of a debt Of honor.
"Am / not right, my couDtrymen,
In saying that we needed only the
outbreak of war between Poland and
Russia to make US realize at least
one of the things which, In the words
of Secretary Lansing, we would have
been let In for but for the restrain
Ing hand Of the senate, and to fetch
home to US the danger Of commit
ting our country La advance to causes
that we know not Oft .y.
Not Our Purpose.
"One can have no quarrel with those
who have convinced themselves that
our underlying purpose In entering the
great conflict was to create league
of nations. The fact remains, how
ever, that no such intent was officially
acclaimed, no allusion, nor even sug
gestlon to that effect appeared In the
Joint resolution Of Congress which de-
clared the existence of state Of war
between this country and Germany.
For myself left no room for doubt
of the motives which led me to cast
my vote in favor Of that resolution.
1t so happened that made the con
Guiding speech upon the war resolu-
ton, from my place In the senate, on
the night of April 4, 1917. These were
my own words at that time:
az want It known to the people Of
my state and to the nation that ! am
voting for war tonight for the main
tenance Of just American rights, which
is the first essential to the preserya'
ton Of the soul Of this republic.
az vote for this Joint resolution to
make war, not war thrust upon U.s.,
II could choose the language Of the
resolution, but a war declared In re.
spouse to affronts; war that will
at least put soul Into our American
life; a war not for the cause Of the
allies Of Europe; war not for France,
beautiful az the sentiment may be In
revivlng at least our gratitude to the
French people not precisely war for
civilization, worthy and inspiring as