Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1920-02-10
Summary Of Viscount
Grey S London Letter

The sensational letter of Viscount
Grey, special British messenger to
the United States, who has just re-
Gently returned to England, in which
he discusses the proposed reserva-
tons to the peace treaty and advo-
Gates, in effect, acceptance of some
Of the notifications proposed, has
created a storm OF discussion in this
country.
The Grey letter, which was pub
lished in the London Times purely
as personal opinion and nothing
more" declares that the cry Of bad
faith" against the United States for
it's failure to rattfy the treaty is I'M
warranted and that it IS not fair
to represent the United States as
holding up the treaty solely from
motives OF party politics and thereby
sacrificing the interests Of other ma
tions for this petty consideration"
While the writer admits that there
are party politics and personal ami
mosities in the United States" he
disclaims these as the primary fac
tors holding up the treaty and as
serts also that self-interest Is not
the compelling factor in this nation S
delay in acting on the treaty. He
discusses at length the traditional
policy of the United States in hold
ing aloof from internationa espe-
cially European, entanglements, and
offers this as one of the underlying
causes for the failure to ratify: Sec
N1,I, IL
stitutional division of authority. be-
tween the Legislative and executive
branches of our government and JUS
titles the attitude of the reservation
lists as a desire to protect, for the
! good of the nation, the rights and
powers of the legislative branch in
case of conflict between the two
branches.
Viscount Grey declares that
the League of Nations without the
United States will lack the neces-
sary moral and physical power es-
! sential to its success; that without
the United States it will become, in
stead of world organization, mere
ly a European confederation, faint
ed with all the interraciaI jeaIoustee
of Europe, but that with the United
RCcIICSJ IL Will LIOL NC WllLln II6
power Of fretful nations of the world
to disturb genuine peace" Still, he
! thinks that it would be better to
have the United States admitted with
the reservations proposed as "a will
ing partner with limited obligations
than to have it enter as "a reluctant
partner who felt that her hand had
| been forced"
He states that he thinks that the
N"difficulties which Americans see in
1T CThe operation of the League of
Nations) will probably never arise
or be felt by them when they are
once in the League; but expresses
| full sympathy with those who wish
to modify the treaty, although he
does not deny that some of them
| reservations are material qualifi-
cations of the League of Nations as
drawn up in Paris, or that they must
prove disappointing to those who are
with that covenant as it stands and
are even proud of it."
The Grey letter insists upon the
right of the component nations OF
the British empire to their respective
votes, which total six, but declares
that there can be no objection to the
demand Of the United States to an
equality of votes instead of the one
to which it would be entitled under
the League of Nations as it stands.