New-York tribune., 1920-02-28
implications

implications
The contents Of the Adriatic notes
speak for themselves and need little
elucidation. The President urges his
compromise plan against the COM
promise plan Of the premiers. There
is no difference in principle. One
plan about as much as the other
recognizes self-determination. Pos
sibly the Presidents plan is the best,
although there is an adverse con-
sensus of opinion.
But more important than what
the notes say is what they imply.
Consider some of the implications
and the light they throw on the hor-
rors of peacemaking among those
whose favorite pursuit is argument,
and who would wrangle year
rather than yield a single premise.
The President, to speak of a do
mestic matter first, is still under
that delusion of grandeur which
leads him to believe he Is the whole
Of our government. He assumes
that his is the only voice Of America.
He does not deem himself merely an
agent with powers limited by a
constitution. He talks as poten-
tate or as a vicegerent of heaven,
with authority to bind and loose.
The language Of his threat to with
draw is amazing. If his personal
views are not accepted there Is
raised, he says, "the fundamental
question of whether the American
government can on any terms CO.
operate with it's European associ-
ates in the great work of maintain
ing the peace of the world by remov-
ing the primary causes Of war;"
God and one, it has been said, con-
stitute majority. Now one man
is a majority. "Me und Gott!" ex-
claimed the Kaiser, but Gott is now
left out.
An implication almost as extraor-
dinary is the one that only one
among the agents at Paris had any
sense of right. The new diplomacy
apparently begins by insulting the
assembled company. So Italy is &C.
cused Of being animated by no mo-
tives except those Of territorial
greed and the other powers of con-
doning her crimes. Don't carry oil
to conference.-the along vinegar
and cayenne pepper. This shows
sympathy with the new spirit and
the new order.
Not only is there monopoly of
morality, but there is but one flaw
less mind in the world-only one
unerring intelligence that knows
how to mix the ingredients of COM
promise when compromise is neces-
sary-only one that can be trusted
to say Eyes" to Japan with respect
to Shantung and "no" to Italy with
respect to Fiume, though to less en-
llghtened mortals the Italian case
seems stronger than the Japanese
one.
Not only is their inerrancy In
words and in mind, but in physical
cognition. Only one pair Of eye
balls can see exactly where the Adri-
attic frontier should run. To others
the population is racially bit
minced. Not so to one who is a
better surgeon than Shylock thought
he could be and who trusts his knife
to cut out an exact pound of Italian
flesh, no more, no less, without
touching fiber Of Jugo-Slav tissue.
With respect to the great CUES
ton of Americas world relations, it
VIII not be and should not be de-
| cided according to where exactlv
runs the frontier between italy and
Jugo-Slavia. A failure to have
strict justice in particular case is
surely no reason for putting an
angry foot through a project which
concerns the whole of mankind. The
president can scarcely be unaware
that he mocks all of his high pro-
LESSONS when he, in effect. declares
that ne values them so lightly as to
give them all up rather than to con-
cede to others the slightest part in
their application.