The Washington times., 1924-11-17
PROTOCOL HAS
MADE WORLD
COURT FOES
Even Friends Turn From II
Since Bones Tried to ''Put
Teeth" in Pact
BY GEORGE r. HOLMES,
IntefnatioraI News Service.

international News Service.
American entrance into the
World Court st Geneva, strongly
recommended BY Presidents Hard
ing and Coolidge, has been pro-
jected into the dim and misty
future.
Informal conferences between
administrator leaders have re-.
suited IN On agreement, 1t was
learned to-day, whereby the issue
viii not be pressed at the ap-
preaching short session OF Con.
gress, and until the fate Of the
Benes protocol has been settled
il viii not be pressed st ell.
The Benes protocol, now repos.
ing in the chancellories Of mem.
Der nations awaiting ratification
was designed to put teeth" intc
the World Court. It has done
SOTO the extent that it has
scared off some Of the World
Courts warmest friends IN Con.
gress.
Pledges Of enforcement.
The protocol provides. briefly.
that al matters in international
dispute shall BE- referred 10 tn.
world court FOR arbitration, ant
whenever = member nation refuses
t. submit q question that act shall
be regarded by other member-na.
tons as an TACT OF aggression. =
It Is further provided that when
ever q Inember.nati0n refuses ia
abide by the courts decision In any
controversy such an act also shall
be regarded as IAN act OF aggres
sion. And all member nations
pledge themselves to enforce the
court decree against the recalci
trant one.
This protocol which has beer
ratified BY some but not all Of thu
member nations II regarded by ad
.ministraticn leaders as compulsory
arbitration with q vengeance and
under world conditions not even
the original friends Of the court
care to commit American interests
to it.
Senator Borah's Views.
Senator William z. Borah, wfs
win succeed the late Senator Henry
Cabot Lodge as chairman OF the
powerful Foreign Relations Com
nittee of the Senate, said today:
There win be no haste In even
considering the terms Of American
adherence until the .Benes protocol
has been passed upon by the mem
ton win have q very material
bearing on our attitude toward the
court."
The Idaho Senator said furthei
he did not expect the court to be
taken up at the short session Of
Congress.
In some quarters It Is believed
that President Coolidge viii make
only a passing reference to the
whole matter In his forthcoming
message.
Under the protocol as drawn ur
by the echoslovalSian premier, NJ
Benes, Japan might conceivably
bring before the court the Amer.
lean immigration issue.
II the United States, as q mem
Der Of the court, should refuse I'd
consent to the courts acting on
it--as this Government most Ger.
tanly would--4hen by the very
terms Of the protocol the court
would be confronted with the duty
Of declaring this Government t.
be IAN aggressor."
Action Is Unlikely.
And should the immigration con.
troversy lead to war on the same
theory the member nations would
be pledged to help Japan.
There are now slumbering in the
Foreign Relations Committee two
chief world court plans. One ID
the original Harding Hughes pro
poSaL framed before the protocol
in question was written, and the
other the So-called Pepper plan
which proposes a world court en-
tirely cut off and disassociated In
every way from the League 81 Ma
lions. 1t provides, In effect, for Q
brand new world court.
It is wholly unlikely that any
action will be taken on either prop
osition at the short session Of Con
gfess. There certainly Will be NJ
action on the Harding Hughes pro
posal until the nations Of Europ,
have acted upon the Benes protoco
which now awaits their action.