The Cook County news-herald. [volume] (Grand Marais, Cook County, Minn.) 1909-current, 1920-09-15

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est conceiYable assistance tothe str, ok
EN- eoples of Europe. include all Of
them and speak with a genuinely SYM
pathetic heart, whether It lis tos men \
ton devastated France, or sorely-tried
Italy, or nobly- struggling Poland, or
distracted and misguided Russia, or
gallant little Belgium, or pitiably de-
$ceived Austria, or the ruthless invader,
Germany, which came to the supreme
tragedy through a leadership which
brought disaster to her misguided peo-
pie: .sssss4z s 1T ~ LA ri s<>sss y
81 4 1T was with that feeling of sym
pathy and desire to serve, that most
reluctantly and with grave misgivings,
as I announced at the time, I with
reservations designed to preserve our
essential liberty of action The. rec
ord is made, and under The same con-
ditions, confronted by the same alter
native. I should vote now az voted
then. -
Conditions Have Changed.
But the conditions have changed.
Experience has brought enlighten-.
ment. We know now that the league
, constituted at Versailles is utterly i'm
potent as preventive of wars. It is
so obviously impotent that it has not
even been tried. The original league,
mistakenly conceived and unreason-
ably insisted upon, has undoubtedly
passed beyond the possibility Of res.
toration. The maturer judgment of
the world will be- that it deserved to
pass for the very Simple reason that,
contrary to all of the tendencies devel-
oped by the civilizing processes of the
world, it rested upon the power of
might, not of right.
"The assertion is made frequently
that through the surrender of our ma
tionality we might have saved the life
of the covenant-that is to say, that,
although twenty-eight nations could
not make it function, one added to the
twenty-eight would have achieved a
glowing success, provided, always, that
the one were America.
"This pays to America the tribute
of exceptional influence, but I suggest
that if the world is dependent upon
our action to bring about the supreme
realization, then we ought to have the
say about our own freedom in partici-
pating therein. But let us consider
what is meant by this reliance upon
America. What can it signify if not
that it is to the United States, and to
the United States alone, that the 9TH
er twenty-eight nations look for the
bone and sinew, the money, the NUM-
tions and the men to sustain the en-
tire organization, not as an agency of
peace, but as an armed force?
A Telling Admission.
"A few days ago delegation of an
organization which calls itself So
ciety for the Prevention of War ap-
pealed to the premier. of Great Britain
to unite and use the powers of the
world in defense of Poland, Armenia
and the Dardanelles. The British pre-
mier replied, according to his remarks
quoted by the newspapers, to the ef-
feet that, while the formation of AN
international army would be AN ideal
ooAuIAOA, IL OOu1u 1OC NC
! ed because the European nations could
not furnish the troops and the United
States had withdrawn from co-opera-
tion'-a polite and diplomatic phrase
and more exactly meaning, of course,
that the senate of the United States
had not completed the partial obliga-
ton assumed by the President to do
that very thing-that is, to furnish
the troops Could clearer indica-
ton of what would have been expect
| ed of this country as a member of the
| league be desired? Hardly. Some,
too, think, or say they think, that this
| extraordinary service should be rem
dered. I do not agree with them, but,
assuming that they are right, I VEN
ture to note that nothing stands in the
way of performance The President
has only to call upon Congress to de-
clare war, and to confer upon him spe-
cifc authority to raise armies for the
protection of the powers which, though
recently associated with, are still for
eign to our own republic.
ut is reasonably safe to assume,
| however, that the President will not
pursue this course. Fortunately, he is
under no compelling moral obligation
under the league to do so. His recent
unhappy experience, moreover, in ask
| ing Congress to send American boys
to Police Armenia would hardly en-
courage repetition of a request al
ready courteously but quite firmly de-
clined by the Congress. What then, i1I
like circumstances, would be the an
swer of the British premier himself?
In his own words, addressing a meet
ing of the Coalition Liberals on Au-
gust II last, according to the press re-
ports, he said:
"'When the terrible question of peace
or war has to be decided, our first
| duty as government is to the peo-
pie, who trust us not to commit their
treasure to any unjustifable adven-
ture. Nothing but the most impera-
tive call of national honor, national
safety and national freedom can Just
| tify war; Before this country is COM