South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1920-10-10

house having escaped from his front porch
- where visited by none but partisan straddlers,
appears driven in desperation 20 make more def
mite stand for or against the League Of Nations,
and IN face Of past utterances, hnding 1t inn
possible 20 take more definite stand for, has an
nounced himself determinedly against
He viii have no more reservations, no more at
tempts at Qualification; he IS going to scrap the
League" which vetong It's daily operations with
a membership Of Il nations. preventing wars and
adjusting international differences without US. he
says IS already "scrapped." His plan is a separate
peace with Germany. and then Gamalel, fit des-
cendent Of that ancient Iharisee says ne will pro-
coed 70 the setting up OF association of
tions'-the senate dictatng,-and take the other
nations in.
Which leaves him exactly where he has stood
since his nomination; where he stood in his
speech Of acceptance-only in that the strength Of
his leaaings show the direction IN which his des-
peration lies He is scared out of his wits by John
son. Borah and the irreconcilables. He is more
afraid of them than Of William Howard Tar.
George W. Wickersham Elihu Root Charles Evans
hughes. How these men will be able to go along
farther with him, having asserted for him that he
has not meant what he says he means, is
the next conundrum 20 be worked out II they try t.
They must TO follow Mr. Harding farther. scrap
their word and If they have been honest about in
he past scrap" their consciences; ditto. their
uounced judgments. There is no question about it
now. It requires all too gullible public. even
among the most astute partisans. to accept such
6iamertical alternatives that presented by Mr.
Harding that he intends to scrap" the League and
Mr. Taft's assurance that he means to rati-
fed with clarifying reservations swallow them both
in the same gulp.
Mr. Harding frankly asserts that he has no
that he never did have. To us it has always been
plainly thus. but It that lot Of his partisan
followers have been hoping against hope. quite to
the contrary. only now to have that hope blasted.
You cannot be for the League and against It the
same time You cannot be for "scrapping'
it and for ratifying It, both at once. Cover
ing before the Borah-Johnson combination.
which knew his mind. he has shown the first sign
OF honesty since his nomination. and, we guess told
the truth.
He has made definite statement, or nearly so; so
nearly so. fact quite fulfill his instructions.
campaign speaker:
Avoid Gov. Cox's fallacous contention that
the chief disiseratun is defniteness I'm the OBJ
legations to DO assumed by the United States. II
the obligations are in their nature undesirable,
the greater the dehniteness the greater the
risk"
Therefore he would scrap" the whole thing re-
able. (which SINNERS the issue down to the desir-
ability OF the obligations. Ground in between tho
upper and neither millstones-between Gov. Cox on
the one hand and the Borah- johnson combination
on tho other-the Marion man has been forced to
locate himself
The senator VIII scrap" the Paris treaty and the
League II ne is elected; definitely says so-and he
has nothing constructive TO offer that he Will
advise with the senate oHgarchy with some sort
Of association OF nations in the distance as
ISOLATION nations" course in which the "chicf
disideratum" will not be "dehniteness." Can't you
SEQ the hand Of the war-god in such frame Of
mind? IndeAniteness and misunderstanding have
bred all the wars that have blood-soaked the earth
Muitarsm and the prohteers upon militarism,
the Mestophelean inspiration. and be the only
inspiration. for such a program.
What care they for the blood Of your boys; or for
the drain upon your pocketbook, TO keep them in
the field? Humanitarian has all gone out of the
souls of such men, Mr.. Harding joins them as one
of that school Of neurotcs with goosenesh and teeth
a-chatter. trying hard to be wise and brave who
don't give care what happens as long as it don't
happen to them
The senator IS like the man who fell into the soup
and thereupon congratulated himself upon being
IN the swim.