Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1922-05-04
CHAPTER Tx.
The Treaty Fight I
Upon his return home from

Upon his return home from
Paris the president immedi
ately invited, in most .cordia
fashion, the members Of the senate
foreign relations committee to con
fer with him at the White House
! Some of them who received the in
vitation Immediately announced
that as a condition precedent to their
acceptance, they would insist thai
| the conference should not be- secre,
| in character and that what would
happen there should be disclosed &c
| the public. The president quickly
accepted the conditions proposed b.
| the Republican senators, and made
a statement from the White House
that the conditions which the con
ferees named were highly accept
able to him, and that he was will
ing and anxious to give to the pub,
lie stenographic report of every
thing that transpired.
In view Of subsequent history, the
conversation between the president
and Senator Haring about the dis
tinction between illegal" and "mor-
al'' obligations, which was interest
ing at the time, takes on an added
interest. Said Senator Harding: If
there is nothing more than a moral
obligation on the part of any mem
bers of the league. what avail ar
ticles 10 and 11?"
The president: why, Senator, it
is surprising that that question
should be asked. If we undertake
an obligation, we are bound in the
most solemn way to carry it out.
Senator Harding: eff you believe
that, there is nothing more to this
than a moral obligation, any nation
will assume q moral obligation on
it's own account. Is 1t moral OBJ
legation? The point I am trying to
get at is: Suppose something arises
affecting the peace Of the world and
the council takes steps, as provided
here, to conserve or preserve, ano
announces its decision, and every
nation in the league takes<advan
tage Of the construction that you
| place upon these articles and says
We'll, this is only a moral obllga
ton, and we assume that the ma
ton involved does not deserve oul
participation or protection and the
whole thing amounts to nothing ou'
an expression of the league coun
Gil.
The President: There is ma
tional good conscience in such a mat
ter, I should think that was one OF
the most serious things that coulC
| possibly happen. When 1 speak OF
a legal obligation, I mean one thai
specifically binds you to do a par
! ticular thing under certain sane
tons. That is a legal obligation
and. If l may say so, has a greater
| binding force; only there always re
| mains in the moral obligation the
right to exercise ones Judgment as
| to whether it is indeed incumbent
upon one in those circumstances tc
do that thing. In every moral obi
cation there is an element of judg
ment. In a legal obligation there
is no element of judgment"
Facing His Critics
Never before did the president
show himself more tactful or more
| brilliant in repartee. Surrounded by
twenty or thirty men, headed by
Senator Lodge, who hated him with
a bitterness that was intense, the
president with quiet courtesy, par
ried every blow aimed at him.
NO QuSSI1OII1 1lO 1lldIICI 1AO" POAAAS
ed it was, seemed to disturb his Sc
renity. He acted like lawyer who
knew his case from top to bottom,
and who had confidence in the great
cause he was representing. His
cards were frankly laid upon the ia
BILE and he ppeared like fighting
champion, ready to meet all corners.
Indeed, this very attitude Of frank
ness, openness, sincerity and cour-
tesy, one could see f. l the defines
was a cause Of discomfort to Sena-
tor Lodge and the Republicans
grouped about him, and o-4o could
also see written upon the faces of
the Democratic senators in hat lit
tie room a look Of pride that they
had a leader who carried himself so
calamity and who so brilliantly met
every onslaught of the enemy.
The president anticipated an alb
rupt adjournment of the con-
ference with a courteous invitation
to luncheon. Senator Lodge had
just turned to the president and said:
''Mr. Presi ent, 1 do not wish to in
terfere in any way, but the confer
ence has now lasted about three
hours and a half, and it is half an
hour after the lunch hour" Where
upon, the president said: will not
you gentlemen take luncheon with
me? It will be very delightful"
1t was evident that this invitation,
so cordially conveyed, broke tn ice
Of formality which up to that time
pervaded the meeting, and like boys
out of school, forgetting the great
affair in which they had all played
prominent parts, they made their
way to the dining room, the presi-
dent walking by the side of Senator
Lodge. Instead of fisticuffs, as some
of the newspaper men had predicted,
the lion and the lamb sat down to-
gether at the dining table an! for
an hour or two the question of the
ratification of the treaty Of Yer
sailles was forgotten i'll the telling Of
pleasant stories and the play of rep
artee.
When Opposition Grew
Although at this conference Of Au-
gust 10, 1919, the president had
frankly opened his mind and heart
to the enemies of the treaty, the op-
position instead of moderating seem
ed to grow more intense and passion
ate. The president had done every
thing humanity possible to soften the
opposition of the Republicans, but,
I~o orb RI him