Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1920-10-23
ROOT DENIES ANY
INJUSTICE TO cox
Declines to Retract statement on
Governors Attitude Toward
League.

,.l nom,nee. IL elected, would insist upon
rat;6c,,;on of the League OF Natiohs
,,,vcnant "ius, as President Wilson nego-
tiated IL" Mr. Roots telegram ioiio"s'
"Uon. James NJ. Cox, Dayton, y.
al have today received your telns'a1,m
dated Yesterday. | would not w,iiu
do YOU injustice and do not ."lnA
,n,c~v;cw with the President ana an
authoritative statement that you ana ne
wcr,, in complete accord upon the League
20 Nations | cannot be mistaken ABOUT
his rrx,tion. Throughout the long struggle
in Inc Senate he steadiastly reluseu ~
Uive his assent To any reservation "hi.h
Substantially changed the covenant as ne
brought IL back He certainly mas ho'
changed. His very recent utterances s''o"
that IL vou have changed from that com
rlc,, accord with him have not heard Oh
IL. ,:,.d bv
s'Such a change Is not Indicated ny
the vague and general expressions y, y,
yr,r telegram saying that you Mi
accent reservations that VII ci'hy'
th,t will be- helpful, that will resastire
,hs American people; that YOU would
81, down with the members OF the senate
,bat Won would confer with MIR. Wilson,
Mr. Taft and myself and all others who
have n sincere purpose, etc, etc, because
,.o,, arc the one who would determine
,,b.. WAS helpful. what would reassure
the American people, what advice you
would follow, and you are soiemniy,
publicly pledged TO an agreement WIN
Mr.. Wilson concerning the covenant ne
brought back from Europe
1sJbere is one statement OF your teie-
nam that does give definite idea OF
where YOU stand upon what MT. WILSON,
de- .larcs to be the heart OF the League
the general alliance of Article =. py
which the United States would undertahe
70 guarantee as against external aeereorr 3
aion the territory and independence W "
.vrrv member Of the League, and TO
make that guarantee good oy "a y
necessary. You say in your telegram ina, y,
yn, will accept reservations that VIII
clca1v state 10 our associates IN the
Ieasle that Congress and Congress.
along has the right to declare war'
And that our Constitution sets up hml's
In lee,slat,on or treatv-making beyond
which We cannot go. M:
THAT IL seems, is what YOU arc wiihns
N 40 .hout Article X. Well, 1t is ao-
.oh,tclv nothing. Everybody knows al
rr~dy that only Congress has the right
10 declare war, and that there are nnnits
Ia LEGISLATION and treAty-maklug power /,
All vDvornnents of all civilized nations
know t. You accomplish nothing py
telling them of II again ne uo9oe ~
about giving the guarantee proVideo ~
Article Y rs that the making oil eea.,
CONTAINING II is solemn assurance 10
sll a.. n.,,ons that il is within the treaty
n,al;no mower and that the promise
20 n,ake war binds Congress as fully as u
binds sll other members OF our govern
nent to maintain the plighted faith oil the
United States. l.
I'm all governments the power 70 de-
clare war rests somewhere. ana an agi@
m .nt TO make war i an agreement eua'
at rower shall hc so exercised Dy INC
Ulcers IN whom il rests. A reiuSal oS
t'oorrcss 10 pass the necessary resoluaoo
would simply he breach OF the treaty.
AN ana logous case Is the power o.
Congress toapproprlate mo icy. l herc = ~. i'u
other power in our government 10 90 'ila'
l.ut II the United States makes treaty
,creeinq TO pay million d"ia's -
mother country. would any one say 'ha'
he obligation could be cancelled oy
refusal of Congress to appropriate the
raancx9 Certainly not; the only effect
xould be that the United States wouio
AVE broken faith. The real questlot
= whether we shall enter into guarantee
under which the faith of treaties VII
require Congress to pass resolution
declaring war. That is what the President
nrouosed That Is what your Telegram
makes IT clear YOU propose.
son the same day that you sent tn
telegram. according TO the press reports
in a meeting at Providence some one II
the audience asked you, Would you ac
cept the Lodge reservations TO the League
nj Nations" There Was your opportunity
Among those reservations was one WHICH
said:
. THE United States assumes nc
obligation TO preserve the terfitoria
laiegrity OF political independence 0
anv other country by the employment
~ its military or naval forces, DC
unless in anv particular case the Congress
which under the Constitution has the soil
power to declare war or to authorize IN
cmplovrnent OF the military or na'
forces OF the United States, shall IN tn'
exercise of full liberty OF action, b. ac
or JOINT resolution, so provide.
That reservation would leave Con
rress free whenever the time came to act
in accordance with the judgment anc
conscience and the judgment ard con
Sc,euce OF its constituents regarding
the merits of the controversy at that time
''Your position as you now state i
would leave Congress bound Dy th'
solemn pledge of faith Of our countT,
10 pass the resolution for war, no matte
what the merits of the controversy nigh
be.
''If YOU did not mean that Congres:
should be bound, you had an opportunity
at that meeting In Providence TO say
Il agree to this reservation or to this par
OF tins reservation Your answer II
reported to have been, The Lodge reser
ystions never were seriously suggested
IL they had been Senator Lodge woulC
have declared for them in the Republican
platform adopted at Chicago.
"And thus you sidestepped the ques
ton and you state In your telegram TO M
the perfectly futile thing you are willin,
to do upon the subject Of Article x
"Your telegram to me undertakes II
state your case, and both what you say
and what you refrain from saying con
finn the understanding ! expressed In 10,
speech that your position and purpos'
are 10 impose upon the United States th'
covenant negotiated at Paris without an.
real change whatever"
"Elihu Root"