The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1920-02-19
LANSING POPULAR IN
DIPLOMATIC CIRCLES
Was Courteous With Representatives of Foreign Gov
ernments and Never Intimated to Them His Frequent
Differences With President Wilson
BY DAVID LAWRENC +,
Copyright 1920 by The Reformer.

-
WASHINGTON, Feb. Is Robert
Lansing was popular as Secretary OF
State. Diplomats recognized the awk-
wardness of his position, particularly his
inability often to speak for the President
because the latter individual would not
take him into his confidence, but they
made allowances for this and liked Mr..
Lansing for such frankness as he was
able to display. He was courteous with
foreign governments and although he
differed again and again with the Pres
ident as to the wisest policy to pursue,
he never showed it to a foreign govern
ment. Whenever the President decided
a question, that was enough for Robert
Lansing. Like an ambassador in for
eign country, he followed instructions
faithfully.
Nevertheless. it must not be imagined
that Robert Lansing has not eXerted 4
very great influence on our foreign pol
icy in the last four years. Even before
he took office, he framed the neutrality
policy of the government as counsellor of
the department of state and is generally
credited with having been the author of
the phrase, "a strict accountability,
WHICH WAS uStI III Oitt VI tiC uiSl l~tiSi-
tania notes. He wrote many drafts of
notes that never saw the President 5
eye and he wrote many that were pigeon
| holed by the President. But like true
counsellor he was always ready with a
comprehensive statement of the alter
natives involved Usually, he gave the
| President various courses of action which
could be followed and, while politely sug-
gesting which he himself thought best
invariably left it to the President 10
choose. But Robert Lansing knew ira
ditional American doctrine and he also
put in every note he wrote a certain
liberalism and altruism, that so many
lpeople would promptly say was Wilsoni
an. Even on the notes for which the
President received the highest praise
you couldn't get word out of Robert
Lansing as to the part he played.
remember particularly one of the best
notes ever sent out by the United States
government, communication to the Aus
tro Hungarian government about the re
lquested embargo on arms. Solieito
: Woolsey and Secretary Lansing frame,
that note and the editorial praise whc
the President received for doing what h
didn't do had no effect on the feeling
of the men in the Department of State
who took it as a matter of course.
f Mr. Lansing will always be remembers
v for his clear definition of Pan-American
s ism and for his splendid conception c
what our relationships should be with til
nations south of us. 1t is true that h
:, didn't favor the coupling of the Leagr
of Nations with the peace treaty simpl
because he thought better considerable
could be given to each separately. Br
he didn't press his views and when Il
American mission got to Paris, he worke
as hard as anybody to help realize IL
| ideal which the President had set befol
the peace conference. He wrote a pla
for a league of nations and submit,
it along with the rest, but showed
signs of displeasure when it was not a.
proved, nor was he peeved at the frequeI
llprominence bestowed upon Colonel Hous
He took the Presidents idiosyncrasies