New-York tribune., 1920-10-29
Unpledged and
Embossed, , Says
Sen. Harding! G.
(Contlnuod from page onO

fContnucd from page ons)
let me see if | can tell you where
stand. | am at least entitled to speak
for myself. | have been speaking since
the 22d of last July, and / challenge
any Democrat in America, high or low,
to find a contradiction in anything l
have said
81 said in the beginning that we
were opposed to an armed military
alliance with the Old World, end say
1t now. | have said frequently, and /
say now, that We are never going to
have anything to do with Il league v tn
enter into any upcr-govcrnment of
the world. We are not going to allow
council of foreign powers in Geneva
to tell us what we must do to fulfill
our obligations. Having made this
great Republic ourselves, we still thinl,
we are capable Of going on and per
forming our obligations to the world.
81 have said repeatedly that Ameri-
ca does not intend to accept that
league. 1t is true that as a member
cf the United States Senate | voted
to ratify the peace treaty and the
league covenant with reservations, but
when | voted there were attached to
the covenant rcsorvations to safeguard
the Independence Of the United States.
They were no5 designed to make
clearer our obligations, but to In {
oar obligations. And the reservations
We wrote we insisted upon the world
accepting before our membership in
the league should become binding.
"One reservation was OH mem ber-
ship. The covenant says a member
or the league may retire on giving
lWo years notice, prCvhlcd the zen
Der has first fulfilled It's OBLIGATIONS
under the league. Some 'pygmy-minded
Senator, thinking it over, aid: well.
who decides when a member of the
league has fulfilled these obIiC2t;o.s -
80 we wrote an American reservation
and said: THE Congress of the United
states viii decide when we have ful-
filled our obligations'
Said No to Mandate
"Then we wrote a reservation which
said that the United States would not
undertake any mandate until Congress
should so decide. That was written
because somehow in the readjustm ent
of the world largely according to the
dlctatlon OF those who assumed to
speak for US they were setting up a
score or less of new nationaities for
which the ruling powers were to be-
come responsible dozen new Alsace-
Lorraines for the world to fight about
Tor generations to come. 1t was pro-
posed that the great nations take man
dates, or sponsorship, for some Of
these, and particularly that America
take the mandate for Armenia do
not say il was promised, but can say
officially that later on, even though the
league covenant with reservations had
n ha ia
authority to take that mandate, and
when he made that request to the Sen
ate, ust as politely as Senatorial cour-
tesy could say SO. We said NO
'That request was made of the SEN
ate by the President after Great Brit
ain and France had taken all the de
sirablc territory bordering on Armenia,
leaving for Uncle Sam the starving and
oppressed people OF Armenia They
said The Armcnians are Christian
people and that fact Will appeal to the
sympathy of America So it would,
my countrymen, because suffering Ar
menia has 50 tragic and so pathetic an
appeal that we have been giving for
three years 81 10000 a month out Of
Americas private purse for the relief
of suffering over there
Explains Senate Refusal
I'VE do deeply and sincerely sym
pathize, but when we came to look
INTO the situation-and | speak Of
ucially, because it was my fortune to
be the chairman OF the committee that
ncld hearings on the su5iect-we found
rat acceptance of an American man
5.e FOR Armenia would require from
0,C0O to 100 900 American boys TO
be planted nearly 5000 miles away, in
the very gateway between Oceident
anc Orient, in the pathway Of all the
Wars since recorded civilization be
gar; planted over there TO involve
America in all the conflicts Of envy
and jealousy and rivalry and centuries
old hatreds of the Old World. | tell
you, my countrymen, we are not going
20 do it.
Then there was Article X. which
IS very simple thing. they say
proclaimed the heart of the league
| know it is the heart of the league
the steel heart, hidden beneath d coat
OF mail Article X creates a world
government, puts America in alliance
Nltn four great powers to rule the
world by force Of arms and commits
America to give her sons for all the bat
tichelds Of the Old World. II says
member nations undertake TO respect
me territorial integrity Of each other
md to preserve tha. territorial in
tegrlty from outside aggression, and
1T further provides that the council
Of the league shall advise as to how
tais compact shall be carried out. I
have not quoted the words literally,