Great Falls tribune., 1921-12-24
COUNCIL TABLE
To KEEP PEACE
HARDING IDEA
President Would Have
Nations Do Before as
They Do After Wars.
Elaborates Plan of All
Joining to Avert Con
flicts Before Break.

Washington, Dec. 23.-(By the As
sociated Press. )-"1ou nave war:
YOU destroy thousands of millions OF
men and measureless treasure. ana
then you gather about table and set
tile it. / have a feeling that man
kind has become wise enough to sit
down before the war and try to settle
it. And that is the ohieft of the four
party treaty. That is why l say the
small lack of agreement in construlng
it is not significant
Thus spoke President Harding fol-
lowing the issue of a statement on the
"unimportance" of the difference OF
Interpretation of the four-power Pa
cific pact.
Sees Progress in Good viii
Replying to the question:
"Do you feel that the world had
made great progress in the direction of
peace and good will?'
President Harding said
81 think l made some. such reply TO
a similar question at the last inter
view l do think so. | believe it with
all my heart / do not say that with
the thought of arrogating to the Unit
ed States any greater part of the con-
tribution than that which has been
ance and like civilization.
''But it seems to me that in lo2l,
as we have come to know more fully
the aftermath of the war, as we have
come to appraise the unspeakable cost
of it ALL there is a new conviction IN
the hearts of men that that sort of
appeal-the appeal to arms-to settle
international questions is q futile thing
and that we are unworthy of our posi-
ton and unworthy of the blessings
which fall to a righteous civilization If
we do not find some means for a
righteous adjustment without appeal to
slaughter and waste and all the uis-
tresses that attend.
Always Settled So-AfterWard
'I think that conviction has rooted
itself throughout the world. and there
must come some helpful. progressive
expression of it. / think that express
sion is being given at this conference.
| have no thought to preach on this
subject today, but make your own ap-
plications, please.
when men sit about the council
table and look each other in the face
and look upon the problems deliberate
ly, without passion, they find the way
to come to an agreement. And, after
Ill,
the world that has not been settled in
the end that way.
why, if there was a menace of
peace in Japan. what objections could
there be for the United States to sit
down with her in the Orient. and with
the other great powers, and discuss
how the matter could be adjusted? II
some one had done that when Austria
was threatening Serbia. there would
have been no European war.
The whole purpose of this confer
ence is to provide some means where
Just, thoughtful. righteous peoples. who
are not seeking to seize something
which does rot belong to them can live
peacefully together and eliminate
causes of conflict.
This is III the American heart and
it is in the British heart. and it is in
the Japanese heart and in the French
heart and Italy heart--ererywhere in
the world.
IF this present day civilization can
not take advantage of this new real
ization of that emphasized conviction,
/ would not give much for the civiliza-
ton Of the fuure. But here is new
spirit seeking and impelling pence. and
lit must add to our Christmas happi-
ness"