Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1920-03-10
Probable Death to tho Treaty

T 1NYIEDING by SO much as hairs
-, breadth in the arbitrary attitude he as
sumed on his return from Paris, that the
treaty OF Versailles with its covenant of tho
league OF nations must be ratified without
the alteration of Il sentence, President Will
son has voiced the final word, which with
out doubt. spells death to the peace pact so
far as the United States is concerned That
death sentence is read in his letter to Sena-
tor Hitchcock in which he maintains his
position that to weaken Article X, which has
been the stumbling-block through a weary
year OF acrimonious debate, would be to cut
the heart out OF the treaty and so nullify it.
While he does not say SO directly, he has
said it before and he intimates it now; he
would refuse 10 accept any of the reserva-
lions or interpretations on the basis Of which
supporters Of the administration and the
bitter-endcrs in the Senate have seemed on
the point of getting together.
Effect of the Presidents latest letter prob
ably viii be to hasten action in the Senate
and bring about ratification with the COM
promise reservations SO Objectionable to the
President. So long as there was believed to
be chance that the President would give
ear TO reason and, failing to get all he
wanted, accept the best he could get, the
administration Senators Loyalty stood by him.
Now that he finally and obstinately refuses
TO bulge from his original determination
they see that their position is hopeless, that
the treaty never will go through in it's I'M
amended form. and that they must take their
choice between continued stand with the
President, thus blocking ratification, or
abandon him, and accept the most favorable
compromise they can get from the Senate
majority. The latter course unQuestionably
is the one they will pursue, and in it they
will have the approval OF the country. They
feel that Wilson'S letter has released them
from further obligation to support his I'M
frna Mt
last to follow their best Judgment.
This unexpected development will hasten
ratification, and then the question of life or
death for the pact will be squarely up to
the President Those who have felt that the
President would fight to the last ditch and
then accept the treaty as the Senate sent it
to him, do not understand the man, or real
izc his obstinacy. There is every reason to
believe, judging by his course since he re-
turned from abroad, that his logged deter
minaton will not waver. and that he will
refuse TO deposit the treaty with the other
ratifying nations. In brief, he will prefer
to kill it outright rather than accept it in
its altered form, regardless OF how meri-
torious some OF those alterations may be.
Then he will go before the people and en-
deavor to make the treaty the one great
issue in the coming presidential campaign
Results OF such a political move are prob
lematical, to say the least With the Repub-
lcan senate FORCING ratification and Demo-
cratic President pocketing the treaty the
administration will have been adroity
Unanswered into defensive position which
it will be difficult to justify before the peo-
pie, worn out and disguised over the long
wrangle no matter how able or how popular
may be the candidate selected to head the
ticket And it may be stated frankly that
many thousands Of loyal Democrats are not
in sympathy with and do not approve of the
Presidents tenacious adherence to an ideal
for which, however beautiful it may be aud
however desirable it's ultimate attainment,
the world is not yet prepared. They would
prefer practical working out OF this ma
tion'n pressing problems and a restoration
OF normal conditions, contingent upon re-
turn to peace, as a prerequisite to the ideal
istic international brotherhood which the
President has made his fetch. In brief,
Americans want to safeguard America first,
and that policy is not endangered by the
amended treaty. With that accomplished,
they will be ready to work with the Presi-
dent on the broader plane of humanity,
rather than in the light Of any special ma
tional interest,".