Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1920-01-09

to the treaty of Versailles.
Still War With Germany.
Germany is beaten. but we are
still at war with her, and the old
stage is reset for a repetition OF the
old plot 1t is now ready for the
resumption Of the old offensive and
defensive alliances which made set
tied peace impossible. II is now
open again to every sort Of intrigue,
The old spies are free to resume
their former abominable activities.
They are again at liberty to make il
impossible for governments to be
sure what mischief is being worked
among their own people, what in
ternal disorders are being fomented.
Without the covenant of the league
of nations. there may be as many
secret treaties as ever, to destroy
the confidence of governments in
each other and their validity cannot
be questioned. None of the objects
we professed to be fighting for has
been secured or can be made GER
tain Of without this nations rati-
hcation of the treaty and its entry
into the covenant.
Vindieation OF Rights.
This nation entered the great
war to vindicate its own rights and
to protect and preserve free govern
ment 1t went into the war to see
it through to the end and the end
has not yet come. 1t went into the
war to make an end of militarism
to furnish guarantees to weak ma
tons and to make a just and lasting
peace. 1t entered it with noble en-
thusiasm, Five of the leading bel
ligerents have accepted the treaty
and formal ratihcations will soon be
exchanged. The question is whether
this country will enter and enter
whole-heartedly. If it does not do
so. the United States and Germany
will play lone hand in the world.
The maintenance of the peace of the
world and the effective execution of
the treaty depend upon the whole
hearted participation of the United
States. | am not stating it as a
matter of power. The point is that
the United States is the only nation
which has sufficient moral force
with the rest Of the world to guar
antee the substitution of discussion
for. war. If we keep out of this
agreement, if we do not give our
guarantees, then another attempt
will be made to crush the new ma
tons of Europe.
Thinks People Favor League.
81 do not believe that this is what
the people of this country wish or
will be satisfied with. Personally,
do not accept the action of the
senate of the United States 40 the
decision of the nation. l have as
serted from the first that the over
whelming majority of the people OF
this country desire the ratification
OF the treaty and my impression to
that effect has recently been con-
firmed by the unmistakab1e evidence
of public opinion given during my
visit to II of the states. | have
endeavored to make it plain that if
the senate wishes to say what the
undoubted meaning of the league is,
| shall have no objection. There
can be no reasonable objection to
interpretations accompanying the
act Of ratification itself. But when
the treaty is acted upon, I must
know whether it means that we
have ratified or rejected it. We
cannot rewrite this treaty. We
must take it without changes which
alter its meaning, or leave it and
then, after the rest of the world
has signed it, we must face the un-
thlnkable task of making another
and separate kind of treaty with
Germany.
Country's Wishes Unknown.
But no mere assertions with re-
gard to the wish and opinion of the
country are credited. If there is
a7v doubt as to what the people of
the country think on this vital mat
ter, the clear and single way out is
to submit it for determination at the
the next election to the voters of
the nation, to give the next election
the form of great and solemn ref
erendum, referendum as to the
part the United States is to play in
completing the settlements of the
war and in the prevention in the fu-
ture of such outrages as Germany
attempted to perpetrate. We have
no more moral right to refuse now
to take part in the execution and ad-
minlstration of these settlements
than we had to refuse to take part
in the fighting of the last few weeks
of the war which brought victory
and made it possible to dictate to
Germany what the settlements
should be. Our fidelity to our as
sociatcs in the war is in question
and the whole future of mankind.
1t will be heartening to the whole
world to know the attitude and pur-
pose OF the. people of the United
States.
Spiritual Leadership. |
Il spoke just now of the spiritual
leadership Of the United States,
thinking OF international affairs. But
there is another spiritual leadership
which is open to US and which we
can assume. The world has been
made safe for democracy, but de-
mocracy has not been finally vindi-
Gated. All sorts of crimes are being
committed in its name, all sorts Of
preposterous perversions of its doc
trines and practices are being at
tempted. This. in my Judgment is
to be the great privilege of the de-
mocracy Of the United States, to
show that if can lead the way in the
solution Of the great social and in
dustrial problems Of our time and
lead the way to happy settled or
der of life as welt as to political lib
crty, The program for this achieve
ment we must attempt to formulate
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