Norwich bulletin., 1920-06-18
Wilson Welcomes
 Test 1. of N. Vote
Believes American People De sire It Above Any Other Pc litical Issue.


 dent that the democratic convention al San Francisco viii welcome Ike accept | ance by the republican party of any in- vitation to make the league oe nations the issue in this campaign.
 I am even more confident" the pres ident is quoted as saying that such ref erendum will confirm my taILn that the American people desire it above any thing else that political party now may provide, and that they will con- demn the republican policy of denying them the consummation of their hopes. No one will recommend a referendum on that issue more than ]"
 T suppose I should feel flattered," he said over being made the issue of the presidential campaign by the republican party But even the effort of the plat form makers at Chicago to confer the distinction of being not only a burning but living issue by camoufaging and obscuring the real issues will not deceive the people.
 "The processes by which the Chicago platform was accomplished seemed to me to have been essentially and scienti- fically Prussian in inspiration and meth cd. Instead of quoting Washington and Lincoln, the republican platform should have quoted Bismarck and Bernhardi, because the republican attitude regard ing the supreme issue that cannot be abandoned or disregarded strongly sug- gests the arbitrary influences that die tated the doctrines of those two eminent persons.
 Every charge directed az linst me and my administration is obI iously de- signed to becloud and negative the para mount issue confronting the people of i America, to befoG their sense of respon- | sibility and make violation of the obli- | gations they have assumed to be of small | consequence. 1 sincerely believe that the attempt of the republican party to win | the sanction of the American people for it's attempted evasion of these obliSa- tions will be decisively rebuked. With one thing I am fully satisfied-this is | that the republican party in its platform has joined me iM the suggestion l made ] in my letter to the guests at the Jackson Day dinner in Washington in January last In that letter expressed the hope that a sincere attempt would be made to determine the attitude of the Amer ican people on the league of nations by | the resort to the genuinely democratic process of the referendum.
 Of course, I have no way of antiCs pating the probable trend of sentiment that will be expressed in the democratic national convention at San Francisco oT 1OTecdStlnH l that body But I have every confidence that the delegates who will sit in that convention will repeat the challenge issued to the republican party and ex. 1 press their readiness to permit the peo, pie to decide between the vague and am i biguous declaration by the republicans and a positive and definite expression o1
 opinion by the democratic party. What
 ever else the democratic party may do, hope that it's convention at San Fran cisco will say just what it means on ev cry issue and that it will not resort ei
 ther to ambiguity or evasions in doing
 So
 This thing (the league of nations)
 lies too deep to permit of any politica
 sculduggery, any attempt to sidestep oi
 evade moral and humanitarian respon
 abilities much too solemn to treat sC lightly or ignore.
 T should prefer at this time not tt discuss partisan politics or to ventur
 any prediction as to the probable atti
 tude that the democratic convention vii . take on any subject. I sincerely believe
 however, that the vast majority of gen } tlemen who will sit in the San Francis co convention will appreciate the nee essity and permanent value of keepin! } the word that America has given to tn rest of the world.
 "The thinly yelled rejection of thu l principle of the league of nations by tn
 Chicago convention will not fool any one. The attitude of Senator Lodge an l that of Senator Johnson differ only il } degree. Both are really opposed to it il
 any form One of these gentlemen
 disingenuous and evasive and the othe
 candidly hostile.
 Tt must be a tri1e disconcerting t
 some republicans" he added, Ito hay their party propose now to repudiat
 that which was approved a few year Y ago by some of their most importan leaders. I am as confident today as , was when I returned from Paris finall
 in July last, that the people of not onl America but of the entire world, ar in favor of the league of nations tha i. they would feel a greater sense of secur : ity if it's benefits should be guaranteed : that they would not approve with thei
 votes of the policy of the republica
 party which is wholly political in inter
 and purpose; to deny them the proteC
 tion that the league of nations assures ' ''The republican congressional policy
 he added, was more significant for eva f sion of joint responsibility in grapplin r with the roblems that confront th l. country than for any moral appreciatio s of the responsibility itself. Republica l, leaders in congress cried aloud for tt e repeal of some of the measures whic y they we'll knew protected the people frol l. more serious evils than they would hay l. the country know.
 "The Lever food control act has prov
 ed to be one of the most effective ager
 cies in preventing depredations at tt N expense of the people than almost an
 other measure now in operation. Tin e for repealing it is not yet
 e Republicans choruseu ponderoI s- note of protest against the administr; a tion enforcement of the espionage a, n and some other measures that were , IT vital necessity during the war. Neve d theless I defy the republicans to pro,
 that the power given the governmel s- during the war has ever been unjust
 used against the people that a sing
 citizen has been unwarrantedly punisht
 for any act of aggression or disloyal
 against the nation; that any man h; ID been punished for expressing his opinio have read charges to the contrary. b. 11- in each instance I have had the matt 'l thoroughly looked into and am in DOS y, tion to contest the accuracy of ar III statement that the rights of a sing t, citizen have been unjustly invaded Ill "The United States senate has f T. eleven months had in it's hands Il power to end conditions that are u so mstakably irksome to a great many IT our citizens because with the ratificatit D of the peace treaty the operation
 laws that were enacted to safeguard u
 interests of the country in the war wou
 automatically cease.
 0 "As long as these laws are on u
 statute books they must be enforce