The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1928-08-29
Our "National Honor"

Our country has now solemnly renowned war as an
instrument of national policy.
Our country has formally agreed, in writing that
the settlement of disputes with other countries shall
never be sought except by pacific means.
There are only three articles in the pact signed
Monday in Paris The above paragraphs cover the
whole meaning of two of them. The third merely
provides that the treaty must be ratified by each
government in It's constitutional manner That means,
in our case that it must be ratified by the United
States Senate and there is little reason to believe that
the Senate will fail to do this
A phrase commonly used in all civilized countries
and no doubt in some not considered civilized-is
national honor Despite its universal this phrase
has heretofore had only the vaguest meaning.
We will not consent to arbitrate any dispute "in-
volving our national honor" statesmen in the past
have declared on behalf of country Just what
was to be understood by that never was very clear
Sometimes we suspected that it didn't mean anything
whatever that it used simply to gloss over pur-
pose to go to war in any contingency that might APP
peal to the statesmen concerned. For with it went
the expressed or implied intention of the statesmen
themselves to decide what might might not affect
"our national honor"
Naturally some statesmen are more sensitive than
others Some are downright touchy. Some like other
humans go about the world looking for affronts or
sights to their dignity, the dignity OF their gov
ernnents. You know people like that and some of
these people unfortunately, occupy positions that
make them important factors in the keeping OF peace
or the making of war. Rub one of them the wrong
way and "the national honor" of his country imme-
diately is involved he sees it, Probably however
we are pretty we'll past that stage of history when
personal Sights precpitated nations into war
latter stage, one hardly remote from the present
time is familiar to all Of In this stage sef-seek-
ing business buccaneers would set up shop in for
eien land In the course of events they reSpassed on
the good nature of their hosts and aroused the anger
of the populace. Somebody got hurt. Thereupon the
home governmental it we're powerful government
issued threats and warnings in the name OF its
national honor and eventually dispatched some bat
teships to the scene.
1t may be That the buccaneers were seeking to do
things in the foreign country that violated the law
That made no difference The national honor" had
to be asserted.
When the assertion completed-when the war
was over that to sayt usually happened that the
nation with the sensitive honor had in some manner
taken over a large section of the weaker country.
The national honor always has been useful to a
nation seeking empire.
II this new pact of Paris accomplishes its declared
purpose the national honor of the signatory nations
no longer can be used to cover the hidden purposes
Of war.
That is if we have national honor
And now we are talking about something entirely
different; not national vanity national sensitive
nesS or national prestige d. national ambition. Just