New-York tribune., 1920-06-27
Foreign Leaders Were Misled as to
the Extent of President
Wilson S Power

Geneva-that is. to give n,Ors
tenticn to arbitration and ,. 90
the League of Nations--w;ll ,os. "
possibly be revealed, even ~ a.
vance Of election. CO.
Still, I do not believe tn. n.,..,
VIII ever totally abandon the I,s.s'1
Of Nations or the idea Of an sss,. u'
American partnership. For ss -
brief time that it was in ey;s,.sE ~
in Paris this association wor.ss
nalrably, from the British point y.
view, and I shall be very much ST..
prised if, even though a Repuh,;o..
administration may be cho,.n -
the next election, the British 1o :.
keep the League Of Nations id., !,
the background and bring il ~.
again on more favorable occ,,,,
IN the future.
Ihe French, on the other han.
and the Italians and the Cons,.'s
tails generally, are done with 4.
League Of Nations. Unless p,.s
dent Wilson should be renom;r.,..
and reelected cannot conceive m,
his ideas will have any mora er,
rency on the Continent. Franco I.
cepted the League Of Nation. M.
because it was the price she hsd !.
pay for promised American as,,,
ance, and her acceptance was urs,.
tlcally compelled by the Bri6A
Mr.. Wilson's policies robbed Fran.
Of much Of what all Frenchmen b.
lieve should have been the reward,
of her great sacrifices. In III.
end it failed to provide that sus,.
anty which alone could have just,
fed it in French eyes.
Italy Always Opposed
Italy never accepted the lespuS
in practice, never bowed to thu
Presidents ideas, has pursued ma
! will continue to pursue polclu
quite antagonistic to those advo.
Gated by the President. Presently
Italy will join In some new Cont.
mental alliance, just as France hr
already begun the reconstruction ot
her system by military agreemen,
with Belgium. Poland has disclosed
her attitude toward the league By
The war she is carrying on with Rus.
ala, and both Russia and Germany
are outside the league and bound
to stay outside of it, because for
both Of them it represents an asso.
citation Of hostile nations.
In sum, except for the British, ths
Chicago convention has, in my judg.
n.ent, sealed the death warrsn. q
the League Of Nations. Even from
the British We must look for 4
period Of quiescence before the idss
Of All Anglo-American association
which is the root idea Of the leagu.
with the British, comes up again
But it viii come up again in som'
form and never quite disappear from
the British mind henceforth.
For the Continent the Lesgus d
Nations was form OF internatODk
association contrary to tradition
and to policy. It's sole recommends
ton was necessity, the nccessit.
which grew out Of the fortuitous 20
sition occupied by America at th
close Of the war and the vigorou
support Of President Wilson at Psr
/ by the British Only France amonl
the nations on the Continent had al.
interest in the pcrpetuation OF tn
league, and French interest ws!
!. wholly contingent upon the yaldf
ton Of the Anglo-Amcrican guaran
! ty against German attack, whlcl
has gone by the board now.
French Sentiment
When the fact Of the division u
, America over the treaty was fri
| disclosed to the French p7blic the'
was a natural hope THAI IS Pres
dent would be victorious. eAcar'
only in this case could Francs cetsN
/ compensation for the compron1se
forced upon her by the PRESIDE:
Paris. But the extent Of the oppos'
ton has already crushed this hop'
To-day tho French merely rej0'o
that johnson was not successful q
Chicago, because they see in him 10
merely an opponent of the treat'
but an enemy Of France herself
Chicago is, then, in my optnioi
the last chapter in the amazing u
ternational episode which oesd
With the Presidents notes 70 1el
many, preceding the al1Iiistics
/ 1919. From thar moment until U