San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1923-01-28
Harding Challenges Proof
Situation Would Be Better
= With U. 5. In.
WOULD FRANCE OBEY?
League is Functioning but
Makes no Effort in Ruhr
Controversy.
Nv DAVID LAWRENCE.

CopyrlEht, 1928, by The san Antonio blsn' l.
Washington, ID. e., jan e Icsi
dent Harding has challenged the auNo,
Gates of American membership IN tne
League of Nations to prove that Amer
lea or the world in general would haIe
been any better off today IN the mat MAJ
ter of collecting PREPARATIONS from yer
many il the United States mad Jolheu
the league.
For many months since the European
crisis has been developing there mas
heen statement in the press and by
letters on the part OF Republicans ana
Democrats of the pro-league way OF
thinking that the deadlock over rcpara-
tions could have been avertcd had
America been a full Pledged participant
instead of n casual observer in Euro
pean affairs.
Z The President without desiring to
omen the old controversy has good
naturedly called the attention OF these
critics to the fact that under the
covenant Of the league. unanimous ac-
zion is required for every important
step taken by the council. How. asks
Mr.. Harding in effect, would France
have been persuaded TO give her con-
Ssent TO a revision of the Versailles
treaty provisions about reparations or
any of the other claim, which she
feels are absolutely just?A Would the
pleas of the allied powers in the met
ings Of the council of the league de-
velop any more effect than the urgings
of diplomacy which has been going on
for so many months?
Jurisdiction Is Limited.
Plainly. Mr.. Harding doesn't think
the council of the league even with
America actively participating would
have done any more good than the in
formal petitions Of Secretary Hughes
through diplomatic channels or Lord
CurzoD. the British foreign secretary
through his Spokesman. The French
haze shown such a tenacity that Mr..
Harding doesn't think they would have
yielded to the league or any other body.
In fact. the conception which the
President and Secretary Hughes have
of their functions and power Is one
Of limited jurisdiction. They do not
think one sovereign nation can make
any other sovereign nation do anything
which the latter does not want 10 do.
At first this was considered to be the
main fault of the covenant of the
league. II was called a "super gov
ernmenf" on the theory that every
the council Of the league which be-
came the supreme government and
could make nations take IN arms
against their own will. The defenders
of the covenant said this was erroneous
and insisted that unanimous action
was required to make the councils
work effective.
Friends of the League Of Nations
covenant have declared that the great
est value of the league was in the cxer-
else of moral influence rather than
physical force. They contend today
that if America had joined three years
ago, a spirit Of Cancellation and media.
ton would have been brought 10 Euro
ipean controversies which could have
prevented them from being brought to
head as they have been in recent
weeks, but their strongest point is that
Germany would never have dared Il
resist France II the action of the league
council had been unanimous and Il
Germany were facing the united opln
ion of the whole world.
Brings Up Old Speculation.
In fact the argument resembles very
much the speculation that always vii
exist as 10 whether Germany would
have rome TO war in 1914 IL she haC
dreamed that England would enter tn
frav at once in defense of Belgium o.
If she had had the remotest suspicion
that the United States could be draggCt
into the conflict body and soul.
Nobody will probably be able 4
answer Mr.. Harding's challenge to tn
satisfaction Of the historian. The trutl
: is the League Of Nations is today il
existence and is not interfering in tn
dispute over the Ruhr. Mr.. Hardin
told callers in the last 81 hours tina
the league still has the power to under
take the settlement Of the reparatiOn
controversy, but evidently is not dom
it.. IL the league can't do it, wha
good would q world political or ecOnC
mic conference do, such as Senate
Borah is proposing? That's the Pres
dents query. Lord Curzon has in tn
last week dumped the Lausanne tangl
over Near Eastern questions into tn
lap Of the league. Under Article
of the covenant any nation can dra'
TO the attention Of the league an
question which threatens the peace {
the world. The Ruhr invasion is sue
a question. Yet none Of the man
members Of the league have invoke
IT'S good offices. Never before has II
league had such n chance TO demonstrat
what il can do in an European Girls
and IL il succeeds there is no dOui
that much friendlier attitude towaI
the league itself would be developr
here in Washington. What can ii
league do? Mr.. Harding IS an inle
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