The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1921-12-04
Sen as "China's Savior"
Looming Large as Sec
rotary Hughes.
GREAT MEN HANDLE
GREAT SITUATIONS
Harding an Unflurried
Executive Amid All
Farley Detail.
BY MARK SULLIVAN.

about the Roman Cato | felt ike
asking him why read Plutarch on
Cato when you can read Wells on
kato in the evening paper--not
only about I<ato but see him in the
flesh and i'm action; and not only
see kato in action, but see Hughes
and Harding and Root and Balfour
and BRAND and the others. sus-
pect that an entirely reasonable
argument could be made that these
men are just as able and Just as
big in personality as any of the old
Romans were. Certain il Is easily
demonstrable that the affairs these
men are dealing with are decidedly
more important than the affairs
the old Romans managed
Deeds Are Greater.
What the men who meet every
day in the white marble Pan Amer
lean Building arc doing is on a
vastly larger scale than anything
the Romans ever had to do. II Is
on a larger scale N proportion as
the civilized world of the present
is larger than the civilized world
Of 1900 years ago. Not only is the
scale larger by the degree in which
the civilized world is larger; it is
infinitely enlarged. also. by the
fact that so much more of the
world is able to read and follow
public affairs with intelligence and
conviction. 1t must have been COM
paratively easy for one of those
old Romans to come to the front
in that relatively small world Of
educated men. In the Roman world
proba bly, the number of persons
who had an intelligent understand
ing of public affairs was not larger
than fairly small American town.
For the rest, the Roman Empire
consisted of a few millions of Hit
crate dependents and serfs. 1t must
have been a very much easier pro-
cess for man of ambition and
ability to push himself to the top
of the world than il is for men
like Harding and Hughes and Bal
four and BRAND and Kato to push
themselves to the front in their re-
spective nations.
My conversation with Wells wa.
ocular and took place in one of
the friendly contacts that are
characteristic of the informal sur
roundings of the conference. Never
theless, ] suspect that a reasonably
serious thesis could be written on
the theory shat what is happening
here before our eyes is about as
large as most of the things that
constitute the high peaks OF his
tory. Wells, the reporter, in the
daily papers, is not less important
than Wells. the historian, in his
Outline of History" 1t ought to
80. ;,.,r;o.,
o,aIt..;a
10 nanor 60
re ,roITrna os p,,,,, Vi
sssu,oing ., oa,,rs ~.
nortar. - .ha. nre, -.
The ahi1itv to d.scrih. tha -
ouateIv
Leading Reporters Here.
For that matter. the reporters
who are here to describe the con-
ference, like the statesmen who
participate in it, are the elect of
their particular world. The report
ing. of course, cannot be as good
reading as Plutarch or Gibbon, or
A host of minor historians. 1t is
only after reflection and detach-
ment, and only with the thoughtful
49, NN'A'No llldl
this conference can be described
adequately as matter of history.
All that VIII come later. For the
must be hurried. But the fact re
mains that for the purpose of re-
porting the conference men who are
here are like the statesmen, who
compose it, the most exalted of
their generation.
If II were not for the over
shadowing Importance of the con-
ference and the clearly greater ne
cessity Of recording 1t as adequate
ly as possible, there are good
many aspects of domestic politics
that would be recognized as of high
Importance, and calling for the
most thorough understanding on
the part or the public. II 1t were
not for the conference, the debate
In the senate on the Newberry case
would have had tho big headlines
In the daily papers. The failure of
congress to write an adequate tax
measure, in fulhlment OF the ad-
mfnistratfon's program. would be
seen as political issue with con-
sequences of sure Importance; and
the coming together of Congress
for Its first regular session next
Tuesday would be realized as an
event OF the highest public interest
H,rd,pp,. s.r.,,,x S.,u.
an
Al VI these Things president
ann 80 10 take In the
sr, Vi .he uay WORK. Ills un-
..n,,,,u u S ..s 10 one OF the most
nns .h,nss tnst appeal 10 those
w ~ .he oaiiy round or
eaes not tne Time. or
cour' u at.empt measured es-