Evening star., 1925-01-25

the Dawes reparations plan. The
| senate mas approved an amendment to
| the naval bill requesting the Pres
| ident to call another Limitation of
| ornaments conference. Secretary of
| State Hughes forthcoming retirement
has been linked by conjecture with
the fact that his views on foreign
relations and those of Chairman
| Borah of the Senate foreign relations
| committee are far apart. Senator'S
| are already pictured a licking their
| chops over the prospect OF having as
| Secretary of State a man who has been
| a Senator, whose vulnerable parts
! are known to them and who presents
an attractive target for senatorial
| criticism and general bully-ragging
| Altogether, vague rumblings which
| eminate these days from the Senate
| chamber portend another storm over
| foreign affairs, with the country, as
| usual, sitting back and wondering
| who, after all, is responsible for their
| conduct-the Senate or the Presid ent
| and his Secretary of State.
One editor, at least, has viewed
| with considerable alarm the resigna-
tion of Secretary Hughes. Unwilling
to take the Secretary's own word for
| 1t, he attributes ii outright to the
| differences between the Secretary and
Mr.. Borah on foreign relations. From
| this he draws a moral to adorn his
| tale, the same being that the senior
| tty rule of committee appointing ent s
| in the Senate should be abandoned
when it results in the choice of a
| chairman of the foreign relations
| committee who views do not coin
| eide with those of the administra
! tion. 1t is difficult enough, walls this
| editor, to conduct foreign affairs with
two Secretaries of State, and when
| their policies conflict it is time to sit
| down and write a letter to your
| Representative about il. Something,
| he maintains, should be done.
| Fought With Washington.
| All OF which is interesting mainly
| because it centers attention on a Gu
| rious phase of republican government
| which has resulted in a fight between
| the Senate and the President ever
| since George Washington asked the
| Senate's advice about a treaty he had
| in mind with some Southern Indians.
| He read the Constitution. ordered his
| coach hitched up and rode over to the
| Senate to ask them what they
| thought of the treaty. Instead of
| treating him with the courteous dig
| nifty due such condecension on his
| part, the Senate Immediately got into
| a row over the treaty and adjourned.
| And the father of our country is cred
| tied by historians with the remark
that he would be id If he ever
| went there again" He never did, nor
| did any other President until Wood
row Wilson.
| European statesmen, thinking of
| the diplomatic coup, which must be
! executed with boldness and swiftness
| as well secrecy, may wonder how
the United States gets along under
its dual or divided system of conduct
! ing foreign affairs. In fact history
records more than one case where the
| Secretary of State was forced to ex-
! plain in detail the American system,
for fear that misunderstanding
abroad would cause resentment and
| i'll will. 1t was not easy for foreign
| countries, in the early days-thoug h
they probably understand it well
! enough now-to see how a treaty
| could be negotiated by duly accredit-
ed representatives of the United
| States and then fail to meet the ap-
| proval of a body of men who had
nothing to do with its building. And
| skilled students of the question have
more than once discussed the adVan-
| tages of the American system versus
| the European, where, in the case of
| Great Britain, for instance, foreign
relations are left entirely to the
| Kings ministers. Lord Bryce ex-
| planned very simply, in his American
Commonwealth, the reason for the
success of the system in America, al
though there has been a world war
and resulting complications since he
| wrote 1t.
American Problems Different.
"The answer is" he said, that
America is not Europe. The problems
Il yoh for on nfTI n n
| United States has to deal are far few
| er and usually far simpler than those
| of the old world. The Republic keeps
constantly to her own side of the At
lantic; nor is 1T the least of the
merits of the system of senatorial
control that it has tended. by dis
couraging the executive from schemes
which may prove resultless, to dimin-
ish the taste for foreign enterprises,
| and to save the country from being
| entangled with alliances, protec-
torates responsibilities of all sorts
beyond it's own frontiers"
The Continental Congress of 1774,
composed of delegates from the col
onies, met to consider measures for
the common defense. and as it had to
| contract with foreign powers it had
to make treaties. These treaties were
made in the name of each of the 13
States and the Continental Congress
shared it's powers OF negotiation and
ratification with no one.
The Confederation, which lasted
until the new Government under the
Constitution, placed the treaty max
ing power in the United States in
Congress assembled" upon condition
that two-thirds of the States should
ratify When a Secretary of the
United States for the Department OF
Foreign Affairs" was appointed. a
resolution required that all letters to
| foreign powers in relation to trea
ties, the treaties themselves and the
instructions to ministers in foreign
countries should first be submitted to
Congress for appreciation.
Feared New Autocracy.
When the constitutional convention
met in 1887 the delegates had in mind
a vivid recollection of the govern
ment under King George III and any
thing savoring of autocracy gave
them nightmares and made them see
things in the dark. So they were very
wary of giving the new President
powers which might lead him to
think he was second King George.
. The first draft of the Constitution
vested the power of making am
bassadors, negotiating and ratifying
treaties in the Senate alone, with such
action depending upon a two-thirds
vote. But the proposal was debated
The fact that such a system would
be lacking in the secrecy, dispatch
and decision necessary in diplomatic
negotiation was brought up. One
side pointed out that it would give to
a minority the power to continue a
war which the majority wanted to see
ended through treaty. The other
side, still seeing things at night, de-
clared that If the President were lei
| in on the proposition at all it would
civ hin, opportunitv m in he