Evening star., 1920-01-26
TREATY ACT|0NNOW
WILL DECIDE TRUE
c. 0. P. LEADERSHIP
Mr.. Lodge Faces Dilemma
Between "lrreconciIabIes"
and ''MiId ReservationiStS."
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

HeSe are moments IN Ine
tate of the peace treaty in the United
States Senate. The opportunity be-
fore Senator Henry Cabot Lodge.
leader of the republican party, is
without precedent or parallel
cilables," who demand the nullifica-
tion of the league of nations, and
threatened on the other side by mild
reservationistS." who want a COM
promise effected. Mr.. Lodge is steadily
trying to hold both groups of repub
licans and preserve party solidarity.
1t gives some idea of what the Mas
sachusetts senator has been going
through from the beginning. his trials
and tribulations, his embarrass
and setbacks in trying to steer his
party over the most veXing question
that has been interjected in Ameri-
can political history in a generation.
Mr.. Lodge Faces Dilemma.
Senator Lodge has come to the
cross roads. Either he or the social
ers.". comprising men like Senators
Borah, Hiram Johnson, Brandegee.
Knox, Mccormick and others. are to
interpret the position and duty of the
republican party on q question that
may be an issue in the presidential
campaign. Senator Lodge is urged
by the forces outside of Congress,
men like Chairman Hays of the re-
publican national committee, former
Attorney General Wickersham, Oscar
Straus and former President Taft, not
to commit the republican party to any
program that may mean the death of
the peace treaty. He is on the other
hand threatened by revolt and a third
party if he doesn't side with the ir-
reconcilables.
1t is perfectly possible that the in
fuence of the Hearst newspapers will
a fn h0 a nf
Johnson if he makes an independent
race for the presidency, and that some
of the elements in our population who
have been fighting the peace treaty
support the republican party may be
alienated from the republican party.
Regardless of how distasteful the
political aspect may be, it is there,
staring leaders on both sides in the
face
President II Not Considered
For the present President Wilson is
in the background. To many friends of
the peace treaty he has seemed an
party has gone ahead without his
sanction and entered into negotiations
for compromise not only on the as
sumption that he will accept what
they negotiate, but that public opinion
will compel him to do so.
So Senator Lodge must choose be-
tween two groups. To many persons
who have followed the treaty fight
closely from the beginning, the
choice he must naturally make is on
the side of the treaty. He debated
with former President Lowell of Har-
ward and argued that he was for a
league of nations, but with reserva-
tions. Those reservations were final
1y proposed in the Senate and they
failed, because the democrats were
not satisfied. Yet even those reser-
vations were not supported by the re-
publican irreconcilables. They said
they would vote against the treaty
with or without reservation-they
would fight to the bitter end against
the whole thing. Senator Lodge could
therefore afford to lose the support
of these ten or twelve republicans and
get enough of his own party and the
democrats to put through the Senate
the compromise which now is being
negotiated.
The question of whether the Presi-
dent would accept would come up
separately and subsequently. and If Mr..
Wilson refused the country would
know definitely and finally where to
place the responsibility. And unques-
tionably the President would make
clear his reasons in any case
Concessions Kept secret.
But whether or not it has been nee
eSsary the fact is the compromise
which is being negotiated at present
has been kept a confidential matter.
The public doesn't know what has
been conceded or added by either side.
From the fact that the irreconcilable
republicans have threatened to bolt
the republican party, it is known that
Mr. Lodge has made some concessions,
but whether they are objected to be-
cause they are substantial in char
hon CT, Nvn1x l. "a
compromise with the democrats easier
and therefore become equally objec-
tionable to those who really want to
keep the treaty from being acted upon
is hard to say till the details are re-
vealed.
The fateful moment, however. for
leadership on the republican side to
express itself has come. Will Senator
Lodge rise to the occasion and say
that the. republican party does not OBJ
ject to a league of nations properly
safeguarded by reservations - which
has been the position of prominent re-
publicans from the beginning? Or
will Senator Borah and Senator John
son prevail and thus actually become
the true leaders of the republican
party in the Senate?
Lodge Success Likely.
One inclines to the view that Sem
ator Lodge will win out and will
stand his guns simply because talk of
revolt has been heard before nnd has
amounted to nothing, and, while Sena-
tors Borah and Johnson might secede
it Is doubtful whether tried old party
men like Senators Brandegee, McCor-
mick, Fall. Knoy and others in the
group would care to
produce a split that might hand the
next presidential contest to the demo-
Gratis on a platter, very much as the
progressive revolt did in 1912. Com
promise has been delayed eleven
weeks, but the hour is at hand when
the country will know finally if the
treaty is to be gotten out of the way
or forced into the campaign by both
sides as a cloak to domestic questions
of graver consequence which both
sides are unwilling this presidential
wear to tackle.
Copyright, 1920.