Evening star., 1925-09-14
LEAGUE REJECTION
: OF PROTOCOL SEEN
Failure in Major Purpose of
Body Held Evident in
Present Issue.
By PAUL SCOTT MOWRER.

BY Gable to The Star and Chicago Daily News
GENEVA. September 14.-It may
now he taken for granted that the
sixth assembly OF the I.esgu of Ma
tions win confirm rejection of the
Geneva protocol. This formal. final
rejection seems To entail important
league.
Careful study Of the situa ton leads.
indeed, TO the conclusion that. while
in it's secondary aspects as an inter
national center and international
method. the league Ia proving increas-
ingly brilliant. in it's primary aspect
as means OF insuring general Sc
curity from war by compulsory arbi-
tration, by making common cause
against agEressors and by general
disarma ment. the lea que has thus far
dehnitelv failed.
Secondary Purposes Met.
Its success In vast number of
secondary matters has made the
league invaluable and insures iis con-
tinuance. A. forum which even
the weakest ma tions may he assured
fair hearing: as a sounding boa rd
Tor world public opinion; as a la bora =
tory for interna tional ideas: MS a
mecha nism for orga mixing end con-
Quoting Internal tional conferences and
inquiries; as method OF studying
international problems OF any de-
scrfptfon: as co-ord mating center
FOR manifold International social. hu-
msnitarian: scientific and juridical
activities. and even as an arbitral
boof. the league ia daily proving it.
self indispensa BILE for states and
peoples or the modern world.
But toward iis primary aim OF
preventing war the league has been
unable To take a single concrete step
since its inception. II has settled
some important disputes. but only
when both parties agreed 10 accept
it's decisions.
accomplished nothing whatever "A
for making common cause against
the aggressor by means OF military
and economic sanctions. the Corfu
anair proved that no member was
disposed TO do this except when IL
feels Its own national interests are
directly involved
The principles of security. arbitra-
ton and disarma ment are conta Incd
In the League covenant. which all
members have accepted. Eut the
covenant is vague. The principles re.
auired definite application. .ktt"r la
borious efforts extending over several
years these principles were finally
clearly interpreted in last wears
famous protocol. The British govern
ment, for one reason or another.
dfslikes this protocol Ii therefore
has been completely dropped.
Problem IL Taken Away.
The great powers have summarily
taken the whole question OF security
and arbitration out OF the leagues 8
ha nds. without so much as A by-your-
leave. An attempt viii be made TO
gloss over this disa sreea BILE fact by
An assembly resolution expressing
confidence in the projected security
and arbitration pacts negotiated out
side the league and calling 8 council
to prepare a genera, disa ment
conference whenever II thinks secur-
ity by this method has been sum
ctantlv attained
Practically. however. everybody
knows that necessarily Il will require
years before enough local pact< can
he adopted to achieve that universal
ity Of security and arbitra tion with.
out which every one agrees disarma
ment In impossible.
OF the great powers which are
league members only France whole
heartedly favors the protocol. Great
Britain. Italy and Japan are opposed
to IL. and now even France. for rea-
sons of political opportunism. is will
ing to drop the fight for the protocol
which nearly all the smaller nations
want.
As long as the great powers thus
continue to decline to accept RESPONSE
bilities commensurate with their DOW
er and influence effective orga ntza
ton of world peace will he obviously
Impossible.
fCopyrixht. 1928 nv Chicago Daily NewsCo.l }