Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1920-11-04
HARDING EXPECTED
To TAKE SENATE'S
ADVICE ON LEAGUE
Lawrence Says He Will Re-
vert to "Round Robin"
Signed by Republicans.
ROOT NOT IN CABINET
PLANS, MARION THINKS
New Foreign Policy Believed Re-
aected in Text Signed as Warn
ing to President.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

ing to President.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.
MARION. Ohio. November 4.-Presi-
dent-elect Harding will revert to the
round robin, signed by the republicans
of the United States Senate in March,
1919. as the basis of foreign policy in
the new administration.
This plan. which has been conf
dentially discussed during the cam
paign. will be put into effect just as
soon after Inauguration as possible
1t has the merit Of afrording a begin
ming in the inevitable process of rec
onciliation between the various fac
tions in the Senate.
No matter what the votes may have
been on the peace treaty and COW
enant, the round robin is the single
document that all the republican sen.
ators, both irreconcilables and reser-
vationists, have signed. Senator Borah
may have remarked during the cam
paign that he was against all ASSOC
Citations or alliances OF any kind, but
his name was signed to the round
robin. the text of which puts him On
record as favoring some kind Of q
league Of nations.
0OOI nGDOENe0 Oul Ox EuyOks
Moreover. it may be q surprise to
the world outside Of Marion. Ohio.
but it 10 an open secret here that
Elihu Root will not be Secretary Of
State in the next administration.
Also it may be disclosed that Mr..
Root is not in particular high favor
here and that he will not be the min
lister extraordinary or high commits
Il
many people have supposed. There 10
not the intimacy between Senator
Harding and Mr.. Root which has been
so often suggested as the basis for
a Harding Root team on foreign pol
icy in the next republican admins
tration. This may be disappointing
to a large number of people. but Il
is nevertheless true. It 10 known. for
instance. that Mr.. Root sent Senator
Harding a. cablegTam from London.
the friendliness OF which to the pres
ent league OF nations was not to the
liking OF the then republican .candi-
date for the prosidelcy.
Also there % q feeling here that Nf.
DDok didn't .play tia game during IL
campaign and that ths part he took In
44iqh, .hes bssn ereAtsd under ths
E01I1o q nations, was q direct recDg-
Mft1n e . type Of world ofEnniRkioa
which the republican party was 0ght-
ing.
No Partfeular Bfttexness.
Thers ii no particular bitterness or
hate against the people who made ths
present league Of nations, but one en-
counters strong convictions among the
men who reflect Harding's viewpoint,
convictions that lean more to the %
called ~irreconcilables" like johnson,
Borah and Mccormick than the pro-
leaguers like Root or Taft To be sure.
most of the folks surrounding Harding
from whom he has been taking advice
are antf-leaguers and bitter enderR"
They mako no secret OF the tact. The
overwhelming election returns are calm
ly pointed to by them a: q vindication
Of the ~irreconcilable" viewpoint Sem
ator Harding. however. has always tn
sisted that his political opponents pur-
posely misconstrued his position a. one
of opposition to any league or associa-
ton whatsoever.
ator Borah nor Senator johnson, leaders
of the irreconcilable group, spent much
time arguing what kind Of a league they
would favor, but condemning the present
league. The republican platform in Chi
cago. accepted by Borah and johnson.
favors ian international agreement" to
accomplish the same general objects
which the democrats have claimed to be
the purpose Of the Wilson covenant
Policy Reelected In Text.
But, more specifically than the repub-
Iican platform, the Harding policy 10
reflected in the following text OF the
famous round robin sent originally by
the republicans in the Senate as warn
ing to President Wilson in the midst OF
the peace negotiations:
ssWhereas, a committee Of the peace
conference has proposed a constitution
for a league Of nations and the proposal
is now before the peace conference for
its considerations: Now, therefore.
BE 1t resolved by the Senate OF the
United States in the discharge of its
constitutional duty Of advice in re-
gard to treaties. That 1t Is the sense
of the Senate that while it is their
desire that the nations Of the world
should unite to promote peace and
general disarmament. the constitution
of the league of nations in the form
now proposed to the peace conference
should not be accepted by the United
States; and,
sense of the Senate that the negotia.
tions on the part of the United States
should be directed to the utmost ex-
pedition of the urgent business OF me-
eotiating peace terms satisfactory 70
the United States and the nations as
sociated in the war against the Ger
nan government, and the proposal for
a League of nations to insure the per-
manent peace Of the world should
then be taken up for careful and Sc
rious consideration"
Promise at the Last.
IF is the last paragraph favoring
ga league of nations to insure perma-
nent peace" and the preceding para
nranh expressing a desire that the
s.ations of the world should unite to
n-omote peace and general disarma-
ment" which affords President-elect
We ding his promise for a new for
a;on nolicy. Senators Borah ana
Inbnson cannot go back on their sig.
notures to that document. They are
Committed to a general alliance or
= sssociation or whatever name 1t may
u 0IInouestionably it will be President.
elect Harding's purpose to negotfateI'
a treaty with Germany covering the1
main points in the Versailles treaty.
which relate especially to the United
states. AS for the formation OF q
league of nations. II Is genuinely
hoped by the President-elect that the
good in the present covenant may be
retained and that the bad. as he sees
n. shall be removed by the common
consent of all the nations now MEM
hers of the league. Senator Harding
objects to article x and
article XI and the clauses relating
to international labor. as well as sum
of economic blockade. Senator Nc
Cormick and others declare conf
IDENTIFY that the European nations. VII
gladly scrap the present leagpA -