Evening star., 1920-03-21
SENATE NOT LIKELY
TO ACT SOON ON
/ KNOX PEACE PLAN
Treaty at White House.
!. Three Courses Open
I to President.


their attempt to bring up for action
the resolution introduced by Senator
Knox of Pennsylvania declaring the
state of war between the United
States and Germany ended.
Senator Knox is i'll. number of the
senators are away, and it was the gen
eral opinion that consideration of the
peace resolution would be- deferred
until late this week. The majority
support they could muster for the
resolution. Some of the irrecoISilables
= 1dicated they would oppose any
nm. asure which embodied a general
decA aration of international policy.
SomA of the mild reservationistsa on
the Oh Ter hand. withheld their de-
cision VA lille they looked over the pos
sibiiities Nof getting another vote on
the treaty
Next MSye Is Eonjectural.
The peace, tfeaty, after an eight.
month sojourn in the Senate. last;
night was back in thes safekeeping of
Athe PresidenA with a note appended
Saying that ratification had been re
eNwould be yemained conjectural.
Whff., House officials declined to COM
ment
about tM CAPITOL, However. was that
Mr.. Wilson probablys would let the
treaty lie on ms desk while the bitter
controversy it has raised is 1ougnt
out in the political campalsh-
Some Would Try Again.
Scarcely had the bulky docunent,
manv W,eaks of sto,r my debate and
negotiation. passed pA yslcaly out OF
the Capitol building, NWhen SOME VI
the senators who worka tor r.,ii -
and try once more for a compromise;
Mild reservation repubA cans ana
compromise democrats disc uSSeo me
possibilities of such an efa II VIII
out decision, however. and L ne pr
diction of leaders on both siN was
that no proposal for another econ-
sideration ever would take SEA iouS
FORM
The unsettled state of Senate opini> IN.
nevertheless. had the effect Of slowin
up the plans of the republican leaders
for passage of a declaration OF peace
In making this decision the majority
managers in the Senate are understood
to have been influenced IN part by un-
determined factors in the House, which
also would have to act on peace reso-
luton, and whose leaders baked at
similar proposal last December. Most
of the ranking members of the House
foreign affairs committee, in whose
hands the peace resolution would fall, :
were out of town and had not inform
cd their associates of their attitude.
Peace Move in House.
During yesterday the Senate was not
IN session, but the question of a peace
declaration was raised in the House by
Representative Tinkham, republican,
Massachusetts,, who introduced a declar-
atory resolution and had it referred
without debate to the foreign affairs
committee In its general provisions it
follows the resolution of Senator Knox,
republican, Pennsylvania, which is
backed by the republican Senate lead
ers. Both provide for repeal of the
declaration of war. for certain settle
ments with Germany and for declar-
alton of international policy.
Until some affirmative action Is
taken by Congress or the President
to end the war status legally, the
technical position of the country re-
the day after the armstice was sign
ed War legislation continues in
force and under the War Department
Interpretation of the situation the
President retains his war powers as
commander-in-chieft to keep American
troops at whatever posts in Germany
he thinks necessary to enforce the
armistice terms
The President has expressed en-
phatic disapproval of securing a
technical peace status by any method
except ratification of the treaty.
Senators generally do not believe he
has altered that position, and the
republican Senate leaders confidently
luton he will veto it. They hope
however, to secure enough democratic
support to repass it in both. houses
BY the necessary two-thirds majority.
Hurry Treaty to White House.
Senate officials who have had physi-
cal custody of the treaty since July 10,
when President Wilson himself carried
it into the Senate chamber, lost no time
yesterday in obeying the mandate to
return it to the White House. Accom-
faI hrr rnl
A. Sanderson, secretary of the Senate,
took it to the executive offices bright
and early yesterday morning and had
to wait nearly an hour before Mr..
Tumulty appeared to receipt for it.
The big volume. wrapped in brown
paper and bound up with red tape, at
first was taken into the office of Ru-
dolph Forster, executive clerk of the
White House, but Mr.. Sanderson de-
clined to leave it until he had receipt
signed by the secretary to the Presi-
dent
When Mr. Tumulty arrived he went
for a talk with the President. Almost
an hour elapsed before he returned to
find the treaty on his desk and Mr..
Sanderson and his assistants waiting.
After the receipt had been signed
treaty to hand it to Secretary Tum
ulty. but the latter demurred.
Let it lie there" said Mr.. Tumulty,
and the delegation from the Senate
departed.
Except for the few hours it was at
the government printing Office for
making the first printed copies, the
official text Of the treaty, brought
from Versailles in the personal pos
session of the President, has reposed
in a safe in Secretary Sandersons Of
fee since ii was given to the Senate.
1T was said last night that it prob
ably would go now to a vault in the
State Department. unless the Pres
dnI 70 oil l,a
Capitol
Three Courses Are Open.
Three courses are open to Mr. Will
son. He can return the treaty to the
Senate, in which case the republican
leaders declare it will be pigeonholed
Indefinitely; he can do nothing while
he waits for the verdict of the peo-
pie in the political campaign, or he
can treat the treaty a dead letter.
so far as international diplomacy is
concerned. and proceed to negotiate
separate peace with Germany-a
step which be alone. under the Con-
stitution. could initiate.
Whichever of these he chooses, a
long delay seems inevitable before
lie can bring the country to a full
peace status. and the State Depart
Tnent holds that until such a status
: attained the present diplomatic
md trade relations with Germany
must be continued.
There is an American comm ission er
r Berlin representing the United
States unofficially, but he is not re-
Earded as having diplomatic status
All negotiations of diplomatic char