The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1920-07-23
THE OWOSSO TIMES
EDMUND 0. DEWEY, PROF.
OWOSSO. MICH. JULY %, 1920.
EDITORIAL COMMENT

Tile iedSue VI HdtlOHS DIS Tie luedl SET
Element of the war that Mr.. Cum
mings makes out a poor case, both
for Mr.. Wilson and the league. The
party chairman should have dele.
gated this task to some one better
qualified to perform it, for it is 9
most difficult task. Mr.. Cummings
was looking down upon an audience
composed in part of Democratic sen.
ators who had spent months of anx.
ious study in the endeavor to recon.
cile their loyalty to their party lead
er with their sense of patriotic duty
These senators had gone far deeper
into the questions raised by the lea
que covenant than Mr.. Cummings
could be expected to go, and 81 of
them had voted for reservations which
President Wilson described as "nul-
lifying." The senators are strong
party men, well knowing the ad-
vantage of unity in party policies
and actions. The political lives of
many of them depend largely upon
the degree of their support of Presi-
dent Wilson. 1t had been said that
the Republicans had made opposition
to the league a partisan matter. This,
if true, would have gone far to justi-
fly the Democratic senators in sup
porting the league, even if they priv
ately disapproved of it. Therefore
the action of these Democratic sem
ators in voting against President Will
sons version of the covenant must
have been based upon the most COM
polling reasons.
Imagine, then, the feelings of
these thorough students of the cove
nant to hear Mr.. Cummings describe
it as "the Monroe doctrine of the
worldw 1t would be difficult to utter
phrase more inaccurate and mis-
leading than that. President Wilson
could not have read Mr.. Cummings
speech very attentively, or he would
have stricken out that unfortunate
phrase. The covenant is not only
not the Monroe doctrine of the world,
but it contains an article which pur-
ports to exempt the Monroe doctrine
from it's jurisdiction. Democratic
senators to the number of seventeen
were not satisfied with this ambigu-
Gus exemption and voted for a reser-
walton retaining in the United States
full liberty of action in constituting
and applying the Monroe doctrine.
There was no anti-Democratic par
tisanship in their action, even if Re-
publican senator's were inspired solely
by partisanship.
Mr.. Cummings attempted to ex-
plain away the inequality of voting
power between the British empire
and the u. S. 1t was an unfortunate
repetition of arguments which were
long ago disposed of in the Senate,
and the Democratic senators who
voted in favor of the equal voting
power of the United States must
have been made very uncomfortable
as they listened to Mr.. Cummings.
Are these senators to be defeated for
the votes they cast? If so, the Re-
publican party will fasten its grip
upon the Senate. In that case, how
will the Democratic party be benefit
ed? How will the cause of the lea
que covenant be advanced?
"The simple, impartial truth is
that the Democratic party and the
Democratic nominee are placed in an
extremely awkward predicament by
the insistence of Mr.. Wilson upon &C
ceptance of the treaty as it was
framed at Paris. The party is split
by this uncompromising stand.
Democratic senators who stood by
President Wilson through thick and
thin on all other questions were un-
able to support him in this demand.
They did everything possible to dis
suade him from taking stand which
could mean nothing else than dis
aster from party viewpoint. Finally,
unable to find compromise, they
cast their votes for reservations
which they deemed essential to the
security and welfare of the United
States.
"These senators are now compelled
to defend the position they assumed.
They cannot evade the responsibility
for the votes they cast, and they
are not afraid to face the conse-
ouences. In every State represented
by these senators there is to be fight
against the covenant as written at
Paris. Every one of these Democratic
senators has a strong following in
his own State. In the heat and bit
terness of the campaign in which the
political lives of all these senators
are at stake, it is inevitable that
Democrats should quarrel over this
distracting and descriptive issue. The
candidate will be placed in most
embarrassing position in many
states. - Washington Post.