Perth Amboy evening news., 1921-04-19
GOING BACK WITH PRESTIGE GONE.

President Wilson was all wrong. He tried to
do something for humanity; he would use the
great resources of America in an altruistic man.
ner for the advancement of civilization. Amer
lea fought to make the world safe for democ-
racy; she did not want anything herself, only
peace and Justice; she had no axe to grind no
balance of power to maintain, no old score 10
settle or insult to wipe out; she fought that the
people of the earth might be free.
Such was the grand and lofty idealism under
which Woodrow Wilson led this republic into
!, the great war. The coming of America under
such conditions was hailed with delight by the
down-trodden and the oppressed everywhere. 1t
was like the arrival Of a great deliverer. There
was universal distrust of all the chancelleries OF
Europe, but with America 1t was different. Our
reputation for high-mindedness and broad
nindedness, our moral prestige was worldwide.
President Wilson, and those who believed
with him, thought this a reputation worth nav
1nr: he set about to have this nation live up
to 1t, 4 But because of the personal jealousy,
malic1 and hatred Of certain influential men of
: different political faith everything possible
waa done to destroy whatever President Wilson
attempted to accomplish.
xrhe President was called visionary and the
JQlHK3 ne WlSHcu " "Si
As idealistic dreams. America, it was said,
should have nothing to do with European al
fairs; it was none of our business what nations
were free and what were enslaved; let the rest
az the world work out its own destination; we
are SUFFICIENT unto ourselves.
And 30 the great and solemn referendum took
place resulting, seemingly, in the utter repudia-
ton of President Wilson and the overthrow OF
his policies. Henceforth we were to hold aloof
from all the rest OF the world and adopt the
policy Of isolation. Let the other nations go
hang and crawl out of their troubles the best
way they can.
But now, after only a month and a half of the
much-heralded isolation policy what do we find?
I~solation is not so easy as it appeared to be-
America, under no less a regime than that OF
President Harding, is gradually worming ner
way back into the conferences of Europe. 1t
lid not take the new administration long to real
ixe how impossible-how utterly foolish-any
policy of isolation from world wide affairs is
America is not going back to take her place
in international conferences as the big, high
minded, altruistic nation that she was once be-
lieved to be. That Is where President wilson
made his mistake. There was too much or the
Ideal and not enough Of the material In his
policy. President Harding is now aiming at the
same thing that President Wilson was insisting
upon-that America should have a voice In
world affairs-but instead of using the nations
influence to help others, particularly those OF
the weaker states, his Is a policy of America
first! 1t is the narrow, selfish, self-seekins
America that is now asserting itself. Gable
landings and oil fields are at stake. America
must he heard. The uplift of humanity, the ad-
vancement of civilization and the cause of peace
are too ethereal for this practical administra-
tion. Americas reputation in the world as the
friend of the oppressed. is nothing in this ma
terial age. The United States like the rest Of
the great powers, must have its pound OF flesh
President Harding, having seen to it that any
thing pertaining to idealism is killed, insists thai
we shall be in on the divvy.
The hope with which the world looked long
ingly toward America for leadership In highel