Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1920-03-25
Housing the Diplomats
BY Frederic ]. Haskin

sentative in Washington more than
100000 year IN salary and expense
money has brought into discussion once
more our own system OF paying and
housing our diplomatic representatives,
which makes il impossible for any but
very wealthy men to bold the most inn
portant American diplomatic posts.
The subject is very old one. Nearly
everyone is aware that We do not provide
our ambassadors with suitable quarters In
most capitals, and that in many OF them
the salaries they receive viii not pay their
rents. But the war has put new face on |
the matter Never since the days of !
Franklin 3 mission to France, has SO much |
depended upon the diplomatic corps. |
True, there is tendency to beilttle the |
diplomats for the unsatisfactory way IN |
which they are conducting the affairs ot |
the world after all, they arc still |
conducting them. The diplomats arranged
the world war for us, and after we had |
fought that for them, they arranged the
world peace. Never before were such
momento,is questions decided so secretly
and arbitrarily by diplomats, so-caiied'
And il is very noticeable, too, that IN the
trading which went on IN Paris, those
nations which had the best diplomats
came out ahead of the game, and those
with the worst diplomats came out, so to
speak, minus their very shirts.
WANT GOOD TRADERS.
D;nlomaey has been described as an
apnlcation of tho principles of horse
trading to international affairs. so 1t
seems to be And the late European
| iamhoree illustrated the fact that sharp
| trader can get more for spawned mule
| than a rank amateur can for a sound ana
! bIooded horse. The moral seems 10 bo-
| as long as we are going TO conduct inter
national affairs by the horse-trading
system. let us have good traders
To do this, We must pay our traders
more money than we are now paying
| them and we must give them petgSf
| houses 10 live in. This rs an especially
opportune moment for acquiring the
| necessary real estate and building inc
| necessary houses. because the rate OF
exchange in our favor makes 1T possible TOT
| ms to get more for our money IN Europe
than ever before, and more perhaps than
we will ever be able 10 get again IN long
time.
Then. too. new countries have been
created. and they are countries winch look
10 the United States ss ono Of the gTeatest
of the poyyerg We should establish our
selves pto, ,erly in these countries, the
authorities say, by housing our diplo-
matte representatives with dignity Ana
therr are other countries where, before the
war. VIC were known commercially, out
not politically. as acting Secretary q
State Polk recently put t-countrles that
\ bought our sewing machines and reaperS,
hut had never heard Of us as The defender
of small nations and large ideals These
nations are now aware Of us as great
political force, and they expect our diplo-
rnatic representatives to live mp TO thaf
greatness.
The above are the principal arguments
in favor Of housing our diplomats with
dignity and paying them enough 20 meet
their expenses. They seem strong and
sufficient and public sentiment AZ thus
time seems To concur with them Yet the
arguments against caring for our dlpio-
mats as other great nations care for theirs
have always prevailed on the floor Of the
house. They prevailed i've or SIX years
ago when the fouden bill was passed.
That bill, as drawn, provided that Con-
prcss might appropriate money for build-
ing houses for our diplomats in foreign
capitals. On the floor of the House It vas
! amended so that not more than gi5O,OoO
could be expended in any one capital and
not more than 100000 in any one year.
That completely scotched It, bause We
cannot buy or build suitable embassies IN
the capitals where we need them most foI
SI50n00 each. In general the ground
would cost more than that 4 measuer
known as the Rogers bill has now been
. favorabiv reported by the House com
; raittee on foreign affairs, which amends
the Louden act by striking out that limlta
; ton. Ii will be interesting 10 note It:
: fate on the floor OF the House.
TREASURY WATCH DOCS HOWL.
For when such bill reaches the floor
: invariably certain members arise anC
drclaim against the eun-AmerIcan TnagnIh
cenceH which such an appropriation I'M
: niles They conjure by the unostentatlou
democracy of Jefferson. They recall how
Franklin with his h0mely visage and un
: powdered poll won diplomatic victories II
. Paris. They assert that the Amerlcai
representatives abroad should be contcn
, with an austere simplicity OF life. Tn
point OF view was represented IN the hear
ings on the Rogers bill by RepreSentatlv
Huddleston.
1t seems to me, said this apostle 0
homely democracy, "our policy should b
To provide quarters and provide that Tn
officials occupy them and if We want then
10 stav in an apartment house, SO be II
If he does not ike the quality of Tn
goods, he can pour 1t back in the Jug
NV own feeling, | may say, Is against thu
competition and this extravaganza
un-American magnIhcence. l should thin
an apartment is plenty good enough.
Mr. Polk replied to this.
IF the British ambassador came her
and lived at hotel We would conslde
that he was showing contempt for th
United States, he said. And Represents
tive SABBATH added:
The people of foreign nations Judge
country by its representatives and no
they conduct themselves and how the
live An American representative In or
of those countries who lives In some ol
shack will leave q mighty poor impreSSio
on the business men and on the con
munity, and the people viii not have
much respect for him as they will have f
a representative of Montenegro, il he h,
the right kind of dignified place.
There seems to be something IN !
Even in this home of homely democrac
We seem to see certain evidences that me
a. try to impress each other by appearance
= In fact, it is doubtful if there is any com
try In the world where more money
spent on appearances. Whether it shou
be so or not, both men and nations a
a Judged largely by the appearances the
| make and surely Americans should NJ
. be lacking III an appreciation OF that lac
Nowhere on earth has the art OF blufhi
I.a,, oarr,cJ -, hfrhnr r1arfaptlOu than