Edgefield advertiser. [volume] (Edgefield, S.C.) 1836-current, 1920-05-12
Stand by Treaty is Presidents
Plea.

Plea.
Washington, May "a call to
the democratic party to go into the
campaign standing four square in
favor of the treaty of Versailles and
against the senate's reservations was
issued tonight by President Wilson
in a telegram to Oregon democratic
leaders made public at the White
House. Declaring that the party had
the shonor of the nation" in its
hands, the president said that the
Lodge reservations were utterly IN
consistent" with that honor as well
as destructive of the rule of the
world leadership which the United
States must assume.
The only true Americanism, the
president said, twas that which PUT
America at the front of free nations
and redeems the great promises
which we made to the world" 1t
would be violation of such PROM
ises, he said to attach reservations
to the treaty which "whittle it down
or weaken it as the republican lead
ers propose to do" The telegram was
in response to the following message
from G. E. Hamaker, of Portland,
Ore. chairman Of the Multonomah
county democratic central commit
tee.
primary election May twenty
first. Please wire whether you con-
slider it important to nominate candi-
dates pledged to ratify Versailles
treaty without Lodge reservations.
The reply of the president follows:
"I think it imperative that the par
ty should at once proclaim itself the
uncompromising champion of the ma
tion's honor and the advocate of
everything that the United States
can do in the service of humanity,
that it should therefore, endorse and
support the Versailles treaty and con
demn the Lodge reservations as ut
terly inconsistent with the nations
honor and destructive of the world
leadership which it had established
and which all the free peoples of the
world, including the great powers
themselves, had shown themselves
ready to welcome.
'sIt is time that the party should
proudly avow that it means to try,
without finching or turning at any
time away from the path for rea-
sons of expediency, to apply moral
and Christian principles to the prob
lens of the world. 1t is trying to ac-
complish social, political and inter
national reforms and is not daunted
by any of the difficulties it has to
contend with. Let's prove to our late
associates in the war that at any rate
the great majority party of the ma
ton, the party which expresses the
true hopes and purposes of the peo-
pie of the country, intends to keep
faith with them in peace as we'll as
in war. They gave their treasure,
their best blood and everything they
valued in order, not merely to beat
Germany, but to effect a settlement
and bring about arrangements of
peace which they have now tried to
formulate in the treaty of Versailles.
They are entitled to our support in
this settlement and in the arrange
ments for which they have striven.
The league of nations is the hope of
the world. AS a basis for the armis-
tice, l was authorized by all the
great fighting nations to say to the
enemy that it was our object in pro-
posing peace to establish general
association of nations under specific
covenants for the purpose of afford
ing mutual guarantees of political
independence and territorial integ-
rity to great and small states alike,
and the covenant of the league of ma
tions is the deliberate embodiment of
that purpose in the treaty of peace.
The chief motives which led US to
enter the war will be defeated unless
that covenant is ratified and acted
upon with vigor. We cannot in honor
whittle it down or weaken it as the
republican leaders of the senate have
proposed to do. If we are to exer-
else the kind of leadership to which
the founders of the republic looked
forward and which they depended
upon their successors to establish,
we must do this thing with courage