The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1927-08-05
Geneva's Finish Points a Moral

Ordinarily this newspaper is not given to the use
OF that gratuously aggravating phrase II told you
And certainly there never has been time when
we felt little inclined to succub to temptation as
we do right now But the final, utter and hopeless
collapse for the Presidents naval conference at
Geneva makes it necessary to point moral If not
to adorn tale.
To begin, every President since Washington, not
being omnipotent, has had to depend, more less,
upon advisers. And President Coolidge always has
not been happy in his selections
Particularly has this been true in foreign affairs
The Tacna-Arica plebiscte arrangement for set
Ting the fortyyear old quarrel between Chile and
Peru foredoomed to failure from the very start
those all acquainted with the real sentiment Of
the peoples concerned well knew. Yet the President
was led into sponsoring it.
The entire Mexican American embroglio which led
the two countries to the very verge of and which
certainly did not increase the Presidents prestige
either at home abroad the result of more mis-
judgment the part of those upon whom the Presi-
dent had right--and duty-to rely for advice
The Nicaraguan tragedy, blunder which has
borne fruit in hundreds of killed and wounded, is
but another example of the President being let in
for blame which, really should fall elsewhere.
And on, all along the line, down to and nclud-
ing the hasco at Geneva. =
Ever since the Geneva project first was preached,
this newspaper has ceased to warn that short
of miracle it did not have ghost of a chance to
succeed.
This ii not Boosting Nobody regrets more TRAN
that the warning has proved 100 per cent correct
We mention the fact solely to emphasize the pon>
that the State Department should have warned the
President in time to forestall the disaster.
If newspaper could find out the hopelessness o.
attempting further naval limitation at this time the
State Department, with all its special facilities for
gathering such information abroad should have found
the task easy. The President would have taken the
cue and at least postponed the parley until reason
ably sure OF success
Today the fat is in the fire. The gentlemen at
Geneva = American, British, Japanese now may
spread buckets OF salve over the core the wreck is
leaving and still its baeful effect will be felt around
the world
II the David and Jonathan among nations-Britan
and America-can not agree, something indeed must
be wrong with the world. Thus will peoples every
where reason and, so reasoning, go being iacreas-
ingly suspicious Of one another
An nteAigently conducted sounding out process
before the President committed himself would have
convinced the State Department and the President
OF the futility of conference at this time.
= Secretary Kellogg should have attended to this
as his predecessor in the State Department Secre-
tary Hughes did in 1921 prior to the conference of
Washington
Meantime, all Europe is saying Mr. Coolidges
failure at Geneva is behind his choice not to run
again for the presidency.
Moral: A President must be mighty careful of the
ADVISERS whom he chooses. If he chooses badly, his
prestige, more than theirs is very apt to suffer-