Evening star., 1924-06-20
WARREN PRESERVED
HARMONY AT PARLEY
Strategy Prevented Impending
Rupture Over Plank for
World Court.

49, ~eah NASNSidIIu nhi io"ls cSNapSu
wreckage can now be told. The hero
of the story is Ambassador Charles
Beecher Warren who never gave a
more astute exhibition of his diplo-
matte talents. The villain in the
piece is Albert jeremiah Beveridge,
former United States senator from
Indiana. The plot of the episode
ranges around the world court plank
inserted in the G o. 7. platform at
the behest of President Coolidge and
in triumphant defiance of the irrecon
cilable old guard.
The senatorial anti-leaeue group
in the convention, led by Senators
Henry Cabot Lodge and George
Wharton Pepper, found themselves
completely worsted on the world
court plank in the committee on
resolutions. No representations made
by plank advocates before the COM
mlttee carried the weight that was
eXeited by the organizations which
urged the inclusion of the Harding
iHughes-Coolidge proposal for Amer
mean adhesion to the Permanent Court
OF International Justice founded by
the league of nations. Finding them
serves hopeleSSly in a minority in
The committee on resolutions. the
ahtl-leaguers. it appears, decided to
take their fight TO the floor of the
ION. Either Lodge or Pepper
would nave been the natural foeman
TO advocate the anti-Coolidge world
court, along lines each of them had
areaoy projected in the Senate. But
to ~ was deeided TO ihtrust the silver
the task. Beveridge was ready to
D., throw himself into the breach He
prepared powerful speech ready to
ohcork at the psychological moment
Warren Introduces Strategy.
The onetime boy orator of the Wa
bash timed his attack from the floor
Tor the hour when the report of the
committee on platform should be pre-
sented for adoption. Then the finesse
OF Charles Beecher Warren. chairman
OF the committee. came into deadly
play warren read the platform to the
convention. He stressed its vital
points with fine effect. The references
70 warren G.. Harding. to the neces-
slty OF electing a Republican Con-
gress that would accord loyal sup
port to Republican President; the
partys belief in prohibition law en-
(orcement; finally, the recommends
ton of American entry into the world
court on Coolidge lines-alI tines.
were presented to the delegates with
emphasis and eloquence. When this
mad been done, Warren took occasion
to inform the convention that the
platform, as just submitted. had W on
the unanimous approval of the COM
mlttee on resolutions, with the eX-
A, ception of one state" As he mention
ed that one state" Warren looked
meaningly in the direction of the re-
calcitrant delega ton from Wisconsin
At least five times. before he finally
LETT the speakers rostrum, Warren
referred 10 the harmony and unani-
nifty with which everybody but the
'one state" had accepted the party's
charter of principles.
Had Beveridse in Mind.
The strategy of the ambassador to
Mexico was not understood by the
convention at the time. Hundreds of
delegates do not understand it yet, |
and never may, unless this narrative |
comes to their attention. But the !
underlying purpose OF Warren 5 tau |
tological emphasis on the words with !
the exception of one state" had, in !
fact. more than the Wisconsin dele |
cation al the back of it. 1t mad AL !
bert Jeremiah Beveridge in mind, too.
Its manifest purpose was to discour-
age Beveridge, or any other regular
Republican in the convention. from
doing anything that would align him
with the despsed and discr edited del
egation from Bob" La Follette's |
state. Beveridge kept his seat and
his tongue. He made no effort to
combat the world court plank. |
Neither did anybody else, except In so |
far as the Wisconsin delegations |
blanket minority report on platform
is concerned
Beveridge was persuaded that dis |
cretion was the better part OF Vaior |
on his world court fight plans. he au-
tomatically buried another hope. That
hope was the possibility that a brli-
liant or successful attack on the court |
,Sank would cross of gold BeNer- |
idge into the vice presidential nom
ination. Had the convention got our
of hand on that issue, in principal
consequence of a fervent oratorical
plea by the Indianian, politicians con-
cede that it might have been impossl-
bile to prevent d stampede IN Nils Ia
vor for the vice presidential nomlna-
ton. But the anti-leaguerS reckohed
without their Warren.
Handy Man of Convention.
The Michigan man, in fact. was
The handy man of the leaders who
ran things on the speakers pat
form. Phil Campbell of Kansas ably
directed the parliamentary s.ratess
of proceedings and made HAWKES.
record But Warren was the one
always called into counsel as
pinch hitter on other occasions. HAD
he been allowed to prevail When the
convention found itself in "a jam over
Lowden and second place, some OF
the historic Embarrassment that en-
sued might have been averted. 1t
was Warren, at least, who suggested
and carried through. the proposal for
a ninety minute adjournment Thurs
day evening, after Lowden had been
nominated, in order that the con-
yention authorities night get in di-
rect touch with him as to his willing
ness to accept or otherwise. Also
il was in Warren's mind that din
ner-hour pause would result in clear
ing the atmosphere in all directions.
Without consulting anybody, but act
ing wholly on his own natural
.hunch" as to what the tangled sit
uation demanded, Warren stepped to
the front of the platform, proposed
a recess and it was voted in a rush.
The convention bandmaster, with
unconscious sense of appropriateness,
struck up a popular melody of the
moment at the instant the Lowden
puzzle was most battling. He had the
band play "What1l l Do?' When
ever the Cleveland convention was
in a what'Il-I-do quandary it drafted
Charles Beecher Warren. No wonder
he is already named as Secretary
of State IN a future Coolidge cabinet,
if such there is to be. f. w. w.