Evening star., 1920-03-10
MONROE DOCTRINE
|NTERPRETAI|0NBY
LATIN AMERICANS
Makes Wilson Definition
Integral Part of Inter-
national Law,
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

BY DAVID LAWRENCE.
! While the Senate Of the United
States has been debating reservations.
iespecia'fy one that would permit this
country alone to interpret the Mon
roe doctrine. the governments of Ger
trail and South America have quietly
sought and obtained an interpreta-
ton of that doctrine which rivals in
Importance the original declaration
| by President Monroe.
| The government of Salvador was
the leader in the movement, which
has now taken on all the formality
| necessary to make the definition given
| by President Wilson an integral part
| of international law. For the COW
! enant by the league of nations will
; become international law so far as
the members are concerned. and Sal
| Vador has just decided to enter the
| league with the understanding of the
| Monroe doctrine officially given her
ny the Department of State upon IN
tstruction from President Wilson.
| Some future administration can, of
course. interpret the Monroe doctrine
differently. for it is a national policy.
| but the legal value of an exception
noted at the time of entrance to the
/ league cannot be exaggerated. AS the
Senate of the United States had
phrased it, the Monroe doctrine was
not only to be Interpreted by the
United States alone, but any incoming
member Of the league would have
! been in the position of signing i
blank check, accepting any interpre-
! tation which future administrations
might seek to impose. AT least now
| they have a definition on which they
can base future protests.
Obtain Correspondence.
! Practically all the Central and
jSouth American governments have
obtained copies of the correspondence
| between the State Department and
'the legation of Salvador and called it
to the attention of their governments.
each of which in all probability, on
lentering the league of nations. Will
make reference to the definition given
| by President Wilson and thus pro-
| tect themselves legally against the
wrongful use of the Monroe doctrine
! in the future, a circumstance that mas
! kept Latin Rmerican countries sus-
picious of the United States for u
long time.
! The government of Salvador.
Through it's alert minister here. was
careful not to try to define the Mon
roe doctrine, respecting the same as
purely d national policy of the United
| States But at the same time it was
!
| ed States for an Interpretation. Act
! ing Secretary Polk in his formal note
to Salvador said:
| 1.-The views of this government with
! reference to the Monroe doctrine were
set forth in the address of the Presi-
dent of the United States to the sec
| ond pan-American scientific congress
| copy of the pertinent portions OF
which beg to attach herewith.
| Extract From 1913 Speech
! Then follows this extract from the
speech of President Wilson, January
9, 1915:
| THE Monroe doctrine was pro-
! claimed by the United States on her
own. authority. 1t always has been
maintained and always Will be nam
tanned upon her own responsibility:
But the Monroe doctrine demanded
merely that European governments
should not attempt to extend their po-
! litical systems to this side of the At
lantic. 1t did not disclose the use
which the United States intended to
! make of her power on this side of the
| Atlantic.
| .It was hand held up in warning.
| but there was no promise IN 1t OF
what America was going to do WIN
! the implied and partial protectorate
which she apparently was trying to
set up on this side of the water; and
I believe you will sustain me in the
statement that it has been fears and
| suspic icions on this score which have
hitherto prevented the greater IN
| timacy and confidence and trust be-
tween the Americas. The states OF
America have not been certain what
| the United States would do with her
power. That doubt must be removed.
| And latterly there has been very
! frank interchange of views between
| the authorities in Washington and
those who represented the other states
| OF this hemisphere-an interchange OF
views charming and hopeful because
| based upon an increasingly sure ap-
probation of the spirit in which they
have seen that if America is to come
| into her own, into her legitimate own,
| in world of peace and order. she
must establish the foundations OF
amity SO that no one VIII hereafter
| doubt them. l hope and believe this
can be acc omplished.
| There conferences have enabled me
to foresee how it will be accomplished.
1t will be accomplished in the first
place by the states of America unit
! ing in guaranteeing. to each other alb
solutely political Independence and
| territorial integrity. In the second
| place, and as a necessary corrollary
! to that. guaranteeing the agreement
| to settle all pending boundary dis
putes as soon as possible and by
amicable process; by agreeing that
| all disputes among themselves.
should they unhappily arise. will be
handled by patient. impartial investi-
| cation and settled by arbitration. and
| the agreement necessary to the peace
| of the Americas that no state of either
continent will permit revolutionary
| expeditions against another state to
| be fitted out on its territory. and that
they will prohibit the expectation Of
| the munitions of war for the purpose
of supplying revolutionists against
neighboring governments"
|, Proposals UnavailinE.
| II will be noted that President Will
| son virtually proposed to the Latin
American governments at that time
! what he has suggested in article X of
the covenant. Indeed, nothing came
of the three proposals because Of the
outbreak of the war, which upset in
| ternational relations everywhere. but
! the most vital principles set forth by
Mr.. Wilson in January. 1915, have now
been embodied in the covenant, and
the new members of the league from
| Central and South America would be
able to invoke article x if the United
states did not respect their political
| indcpcndence or territorial integrity
That is why the insistence of certain
senators that the United States as
| sumes no obligation under article Y
| has been misunderstood in other
parts of this hemisphere. 1t has been
| feared that the Senate did not want
| to pledge itself not to take territory
from neighboring countries. That is
why Mr. Wilson's definition of the
Monroe doctrine as principle Of nom
ACKNOWLEDGMENT by the United States
| as we'll as European countries as
sumes new Importance in Central and