The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1922-07-10

rotary Of State Hughes, In address,
ing a recent university commence
ment gathering, outlined to the
graduates the importance of the
work of the diplomatic corps and
showed the need Of the country for
trained diplomatic representatives
of the highest skill.
This has long been a debated
question in American government
and recently there has been grow
ing opinion that the state depart
ment should be taken almost COM
pletely out Of politics and developed
along more scientific lines, more
in the manner of the army and
navy. The theory is that the state
departments staff which deals with
foreign relations should be some
what comparable to the army wal
college.
1t has been a legacy of the Ameri-
can system of democratic govern.
ment that change in office-holding
comes with change in political ad.
ministrations; that, to preserve the
direct responsibility Of all Officers
of the government to the people
those elected should dismiss the
appointees of the defeated admin
istration and name new ones of the
victorious political faith.
Scant objection, if any,-ever had
been raised to this system until the
Peace conference at Paris. Here
came an occasion when the most
highly skilled trained diplomats OF
the world gathered to determine
the destiny Of nations. 1t was rec
ognized that the United States was
represented by distinguished states.
men, politicians and soldiers but
that the other powers brought tc
the peace table men with far more
experience in the wiles Of diplom.
acy WHICH, now as much in the
days of Medicis, is a Machiavellian
business.
Robert Lansing, the American
secretary Of state, was an interna.
tional lawyer and Henry White. a
member of the delegation, had
served as an American ambassador
The other members of the delega-
ton were not practiced diplomats
Indeed, Secretary Lansing and Mr..
White in point of experience fell
far short of the men they faced.
There has been no more criticism
Of what the American delegation
did tHan of what was accomplished
My other national delegations, but
the conference did strongly impress
upon the minds Of all Americans
who saw it or participated even in
directly in it Americas need for
more highly skilled diplomats.
England Trains Them Young.
In England, diplomats are train
ed from youth. A young man up
on leaving preparatory school is
destined for the diplomatic corps
Consideration is given this when he
enters college and his course OF
study is planned accordingly. Up
on graduation he enters the for
eign office which is the British
equivalent for our department OF
state. At first he will serve. per-
haps, merely as messenger. in
no case as more than a sub-clerk
Gradually, he works up through the
years and after awhile is appoint
! ed as an undersecretary or clerk in
the legation of Great Britain al
some small foreign capital. Us
ually he is approaching middle age
before he becomes a full-fledget
minister. After yet further ex
perience, he finally achieves the
rank of ambassador, moving by sue
cessive promotions to the more i'm
portant capitals. By the time hi
becomes ambassador at a capita
like Paris, Berlin, or Washington
he is a diplomat who knows every
trick of the profession and is 81
deeply versed in the foreign polio,
of his country that it is second ma
ture for him to avoid pitfalls into
! which an inexperienced diploma
would fall.
The same scientific method o
training diplomats is pursued il
France. Germany and other nations
The result is that when a grea
peace conference comes there arr
men ready to handle the large af
fairs to be negotiated.