The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1925-04-13

hoti To Europe was-and still
is-the dollar worshiper.
1t is not clear to Europe even
now why Americans came into the
war; but Europe knows well that
we had an Interior motive. Per
haps it was to grab colonies. nor
Well, then, to protect our credits.
No? Well, surely to sit - the
seats of the mighty. Not But
we must not pretend that we
came over as a fairy prince 10
help the oppressed. Europe long
since smothered her fairies, ana
as for princeS-"Put not your
trust in princes" So the ruling
classes Of Europe, those control.
ing the actual governments or
Europe. mistrusted President VIII
son and greeted him with leering
and suspicious eyes when ne
crossed the sea to sit In the
Peace Conference.
There at the Peace Conference
he faced a serious combination.
The four major powers instlnc-
lively were arrayed against him,
with only Great Britain's states
men-and not all OF them-un-
Outstanding him. In addition to
the responsible governors OF the
four major powers, he sat with
the representatives. of the little
nations, who, though they be-
lieved in Wilson as Santa Claus.
were none the less dubious, none
the less hungry, always European.
Different Kinds Of Game.
This also must not be forgot
ten-that the President was
PLAYING one kind of game, the
allies another. Europe's diplo-
mats sat at the table. playing
for boundaries, for economic adj
vantages, for military guarantees.
for balances Of power. They
played the pre-war game.
But our player sat in the game
and played q lone hand. He
played with no one at his shout
der to check him. Time and again
he had come out of the Council
Of Ten or out of the meeting OF
the Four or Of the Five, realizing
afterward and freely admitting
in private that he had agreed to
something or disagreed with
something too hastily. Yet he
was of the temperament that
must play q lone hand. His re-
lations with men were cordial.
but never fraternal; he attracted
followers rather than friends; he
had experts, but he tolerated no
partners. He could ask advice,
but no one in the sacred circle
of his acquaintance had the royal
right to call him a foOl and live.
So he sat and played his lone
hand in a game whose cards he
knew but slightly; whose players,
banded against him, he never
could meet as cronies, and whose
ill-gotten gains he despised.
Yet he played a great game,
and posterity may call 1t a sue
cessful game. II only he could
have put dramatic art into the
game as well as head, he might
have swept the table--or, better,
kicked it over!
A British Conception.
The League of Nations in the
very beginning, before the arms
tice, as early as 1916, was q
British conception. The British
put to work upon 1t a well-known
paciffst judge, Lord Parm0or.
Lord Robert Cecil wrote to
Colonel House about It; the Colo
mel wrote to the President. Each
set down his own notion Of the
thing. They compared notes,
locked up their two drafts until
after the armistice, and no one
knows just what was in the
Presidents mind when he sailed
for Europe in December, whether
he had his ideas clearly thought
out or whether-to use phrase
Of his own-he was merely think
ing without language"
The French had their draft and
their conception Of a League of
Nations when the President ar
rived. Their conception was that
the League should be a super
state with a superarmy and a
auperstaff which should always
be ready to scare the superday
lights out of Germany IL she be-
gan mobilfzing on the French
frontier. The British draft was
read to the newspaper corre-
spondents early in January. Italy
had draft, but 1t never figured
in publicity.
In the meantime no one knew
about what America wanted in
the way of a League of Natio.s.
No American Peace Commissioner
could remotely guess. In mid
January the President sat down
at his typewriter and pounded on
a draft. He passed It round to a
few friends, to few foreign
statesmen; and the work OF
drafting the League Covenant
Houses room, S15 at the Hotel
Crillon.
Wilson and House.
The President and Colonel
House represented America in
the drafting committee, with a
few experts always at hand to
guide them. Lord Robert Cecil
and Mr.. Balfour took more inter
est than any other British states.
men in the work of the draft,
and M. Leon Bourgeois--not a
member of the French Peace
COMMISSIONERS delegated to
represent France. The Japs mod
estly asked for race equality;
were gently refused, and sweet.
~ acquiesced, hiding their time.
The Italians also passed. Thirty
hours at different times OF the
day and night for three or four
weeks were consumed in forming
that first draft of the cove
nant. Ten hours were taken to
add the amendments.
That day when Wilson read the
covenant to the open conference
was the greatest show day Of his
life.
Without ceremony or introduc-
ton, the President of the United
States of America rose. He smiled