Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1922-03-28
ACT OPPONENTS
QUESTION VALIDITY
OF RATIFICATION
Administration Leaders Are
Forced to Admit Merit Of
Contention and to Plan for
Treaty reconsideration

|
four-power Pacific treaty, and its
two supplements got into such
miXup in senate Saturday that the
administration ratification program
| temporarily was tied in knot and
the leaders hurried into conference
| to draw up a new plan of campaign.
| Challenging the validity of yes
| terday's action by which the four
| power pact itself was ratified. op.
| ponents for the treaty suggested
that the vote be reconsidered so that
the ratification could include the
| Elementary interpretative agree
ment signed by, the plenipotentiaries
at the same time.
At first the administration lead
ers refused to recognize any merit
in the suggestion, but after several
conferences they decided that some
| further action was advisable. Most
of them opposed the reconsideration
plan, proposing instead a ratifica-
ton vote on the supplement. Such
a separate resolution of ratification
was in process of drafting when the
senate adjourned over Sunday.
Throughout the days debate the
treaty opponents sought to give
| point to their arguments by empha-
sizing that the supplement deals
with issues which long have been
sources of friction between the Unit
ed States and Japan. 1t declares it
to be the understanding of the sig
natories that the treaty shall apply
| TO ic1ap6c in tho PAcjfiP
and that purely domestic questions
shall not be brought before the four
power conference for reconsideration
and adjustment"
Immigration Question
Many times in the debate the
| question of Japanese immigration
into the United Stayes was mention
ed as a domestic" American ques'
ton, which might be a fruitful
source of trouble, senators on both
sides agreeing that no doubt
ought to be left that the American
| government retains full power to
deal with the subject as it sees fit
| Those who asked tor a reconsidera-
ton, contended that unless the valid
ity of the supplement were estab-
lished clearly, Japan might claim
the privilege of referring the whole
immigration problem of the, Pacific
coast to meeting of the powers,
j Meantime the business actually
4 before the senate was a second sup
plement to the four-poWer pact.
signed two months later than the
first, and so defining the geographic
cal scope of the pact as not to in.
clude the homeland of Japan. AS
soon as it was called up at the out
set of the session, Senator Robin
son, Democrat, Arkansas, offered an
amendment to exclude also the
| Island of Sakhalin, but neither the
geographical supplement nor the
proposed amendment to it was men
toned thereafter in the days de-
bate. Late in the day, when debate
on the domestic issues supplement
had died down, Senator Rams
dell, Democrat, Louisiana, took the
floor and occupied the remainder CT
! the session with speech support
ing the naval treaty and advocating
an efficient merchant marine.
Senator Hitchcock, Of Nebraska,
ranking Democratic member of the
foreign relations committee, took
the lead in demanding senate action
on the domestic issues supplement
and in challenging the validity Of
the vote by which the senate yester
day ratified the four-power treaty
The supplement, Senator Hitchcock
cOntended, was either a proper part
of the treaty and required senate
approval, or else it was not bind.
ing and left the problem of domes
tic issues in a Dangerous situa
ton. He recalled that before yes
terday's vote he tried without sue
| 70 1n Nov S,,o Ill
in the ratification resolutions.
Lodge Plays Lone Hand
The arguments were supported
by Senators Pittman, Democrat,
| Nevada; Swanson, Democrat, Vir-
ginia; Robinson, Democrat, Arkan
Sas, and others, Mr.. Swanson declar.
ing that to reconsider the treaty
vote and include action on the sup
| plement sis the only way this gov
eminent can get a guarantee that
| the immigration question is not to
| be within the scope of this treaty."
Several times they raised again the
| question of why the supplement,
signed at the same time as the
treaty, was not included in the
body of the treaty itself.
Senator Lodge, of Massachusetts
! the Republican leader and an arms
conference delegate, maintained tina.
! the declaratory supplement was not
in fact part of the treaty and did
| not require senate approval He
| described it as merely an interpreta-
ton of the treaty by the signatory
| governments and asserted that even
if it didn't exist, domestic questions
never could he brought within the
scope of the four-power arrange
| ment.
Several Republicans, including
Senator Lenroot, of Wisconsin.
! backed up the position OF Senator
| Lodge, but for the most part the
| treaty supporters made no attempt
! to reply in detail to the arguments
of Senator Hitchcock and his asso.
ciates. For time late in the day.
with the democratic attack at it's
| height, Senator Lodge sat alone in
| the midst of rows of empty seats
| the only senator on the Republican
| side. at work on the new ratification
| resolution he said he would offer as
! soon as the geographical supple
| ment had been ratified.
Doesn't that situation over there
remind you of the boy who stood
on the burning deck whence all
| but he had f1ed?'" asked Senator
Caraway, Democrat, Arkansas.
| YES replied Senator Stanley,
| Democrat. Kentucky. "And 1 don't
know which is in a worse fix, the
deck or the boy"
One of Sianeco