San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1923-09-09
HAD EUROPE KNOWN

In speech before the Canadian Bar
Association, at Montreal, the Earl OF
Birkenhead, former lord chancellor OF
England, declared that had Europe
known when the Versailles treaty was
being drafted that the United States
intended to stay out of her affairs many
matters which have caused endless trout
BILE in the world might have been
spared"
Laying upon. the United States the
blame for postwar troubles has been
a common practice with Europeans for
several years, and it would not be at
all surprising if in the event of the
disruption of the League of Nations as
a result of the present dispute between
Italy and Greece they should impute that
development to Americas "disloyalty'
to her war ASSOCIATES and to her own
wartime ideals. In fact, Lord Birken-
head made some such insinuation in
his Montreal speech; he referred to the
school of idealism which preceded the
last election in the United States" and
expressed the belief that such school
was right"
1t seems to be impossible for Euro
peans to understand American ways
Our processes of thought, our purposes,
Our philosophy; in short, the considera-
tons which move us to self-eXpresslon.
They profess to be wise in many things
extremely sophisticated. But their
power of comprehension is wanting in
one respect: They hove no conception
of the spirit which animates this nation
in its relations with other countries
apparently it is beyond their power to
grasp the meaning of national altruism
of the kind that seeks no material COM
pensation.
If the United States had joined the
League of Nations, possibly that insti-
tuition might thus have been assured OF
a longer existence than present prospects
promise. 1t is the nature of America
to go through" once it has committed
itself to a project But the very power
which is the mainstay of America, and
which the League might have counted
upon to save itself from the fate which
now stares it in the face, would have
been sacrificed if America had commit
ted herself to a project which she knew
to be unholy. Then and there she would
have lost the high character which
would make partnership with her, i'll
any righteous undertaking, so valuable
to other nations. Believing what she
did believe about the Versailles treaty
that it was based upon iniquity-she
could not have become party to its
enforcement without becoming morally
as incompetent to administer justice and
maintain peace as are the very nations
which have upbraidcd her for her eds
loyalty" to them and her own wartime
ideals.
Lord Birkenhead speaks of "the schoo
of idealism that preceded the last cleo.
ton as though America had undergone
transformation for the worse-as
though the people of this country haC
abandoned the high principles which
once served them as guiding genius
Americans do not need to be told wha
has taken place since the signing of tn,
armistice. They do not need to be tolC
that it was, Europc's actual Reputation
of the principles which animated Amer
lea in the war-principles which tn
ally nations professed to have adopte'
as their very own-that turned thi
country against the Versailles treaty an,
the League of Nations.
/. America, with her wealth, physca
strength and economic influence, NIGH
have given to the treaty and the cove
nant some degree of enforcibiIity. Blu
America could not have undertaken sue
enforcement without stultifying herse
without making of her wartime ideal
which are her peace-time ideals as wei
t just such a miserable mockery as til
{ ally nations of Europe actually hav
/ made of their professed adoption {
those ideals.
--OO--