The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1920-07-02
salutes Mighty People of This Great Republic,
Emerging With Imperishable Honor
From Most Tragic War.
[EAGUE OF NATIONS MUST COME FIRST
Financial Achievements of Party During Will
son Administration is Pointed to as Un-
surpassed in History of Republic.

was the product of democratic states
manship, thus interposing partisan
envy and personal hatred in the way
of the peace and renewed prosperity
| of the world.
! By every accepted standard of in,
ternational morality the president is
justified in asserting that the honor
OF the country is invoIved In this pusf,
III ess and we point to the accusing fact
the new republican chairman of the
senate foreign relations committee
publicly proclaimed. that any PROPOSE
tion for a separate peace with Ger
many, such as he and his party as
sociates thereafter reported to the
senate would make lis guilty Of the
blacklist. crime. $50 Z
On May 18th last the Knox suosti-
tute for the Versailles treaty was
passed by the republican senate; and
this convention can contrive no more
| fitting characterization OF its obliquoy
than that made in the Forum maya
zine of December, 1918, by Henry
Cabot Lodge, when he said: The in
tent of congress and the intent of the
president was that there could be no
peace until we could create a situation
where no such war as this cotiId oc-
cur. We could not make peace except
In company with our allies"
We endorse the presidents view of
our international obligations and his
+, firm stand agains, reservations de-
signed to cut to pieces the vital provis.
ion of the Versailles treaty and we
commend the democrats in congress
for voting against resolutions for sep
arate peace We advocate the immedi-
ate ratification of the treaty without
reservations which would impair its
essential integrity; but do not oppose
the acceptance of any reservations
making clearer or more specific the
obligations OF. the United States to
the league associates. Only by doing
this may we retrieve the reputation
of this nation among the powers of
the earth and recover the moral
leadership which President Wilson
won and which republican politicians
at Washington sacrificed.
We reject as utterly vain, if not
vicious, the republican assumption
that ratificat ton of the treaty and
membership in the league OF nations
would in any wise impair the integ-
rity or independence of our country,
The president repeatedly has de-
clared. and this convention reaffirms,
that all our duties and obligations as
member of the league must be full
filled in strict conformity with the
constitution Of the United States,
embodied in which is the funda-
mental requirement Of declaratory
action by the congress before this
nation may become participant in
any war.
Conduct Of the War.
During the war President Wilson
exhibited the very broadcast concep-
tion of liberal Americanism. He in
vited to Washington as his counsel
lors and coadjutors hundreds of the
most prominent and pronounced re-
publicans in the country.
The republican party in congress
meanly requited the considerate
course of the chief magistrate py
savagely defaming the commander
in-chief of the army and navy and by
assailing nearly every public officer
of every branch Of the service 1ntf
mately concerned in winning the
war.
We express to the soldiers and
sailors OF America tHe duAnii e@ti'A VI
their fellow countrymen.
Financial Achievements.
review of the record of the demo-
cratic party during the Wilson admin
istration presents chapter OF finan-
cial achievements unsurpassed In the
history of the republic. By the en-
actment Of the federal reserve act,
the old system which bred panics
was replaced by new system which
insured confidence. It was an md1s-
nensible factor in winning the war,
and today it is the hope and inspira-
ton Of business.
Under democratic leadership the
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