Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-05-25


foreigner.
Nevertheless, the Foreign Policy As
ISOLATION has its unofficial diplomat"
In the person of its chairman, James G..
Mcdonald. Aside from the general ad-
ministrative supervision of all the &C.
tivities of the association, Mr.. McDon-
aid has a special part in the process Of
disseminating information on foreign
! affairs. Once week he discusses in
ternational problems before the micro
phone for one of the large radio hook
ups. In a burst of naivete q foreign
journal once calculated that it was pos
sible for 100000 people to listen in"
on these talks and hailed Mr.. McDon-
aid as the interpreter of world affairs
to 100000 Americans!
Mcdonald Keeps Himself Posted.
While this estimate slightly exagger-
ated the speakers probable audience,
nevertheless it Is true that Mr.. McDon-
aid is the interpreter of international
problems to those Americans-and there
are many Of them-who do care to listen
in on his radio hour. To keep in touch
with developments and with the per-
| sonal1ties responsible for them, Mr.. Nc
Donald spends each Summer abroad,
making visits to the great and the near
! great OF various countries. They re-
ceive him eagerly and, for the most
part, discuss their problems freely with
him, not merely because they wish to
impress their point of view upon the
man who Is going to talk to 10000 900
Americans, but because Mr.. Mcdonald
! is one OF those who has his finger on
the pulse of American public opinion
and is thus able to give informa ton
quite as valuable as that which he
receives.
Here again is form of contact be-
tween the peoples Of different coun-
tries-another channel of communica-
ton and understanding to supplement
and assist the more formal channels Of
Official diplomacy.
One organization has developed still
further the technique of direct contact
between unofficial representatives Of
different nations. That organization Is
the Institute of Pacific Relations Amer
lean in its inception and In the bulk Of
its financial support, the institute is
nevertheless truly international or
ganization. In each country with in
tereSt III the Pacific area q group of
representative citizens sponsors the work
of the institute. In the United States
there is an American council. In Great
Britain 1t Is the Royal Institute of In
ternational Affairs. Each of these ma
tional bodies conducts special study and
research work in the problems Of the
Pacific area.
Important Feature Introduced.
This is all preparatory to the most
| important feature of the institutes pro-
gram-the biannual conference. In
1925 and again in 1927 this conference
was held in Honolulu. Last year Kyoto
was the host and in 1881 1t will meet
| In China.
Each national group or council ap-
1 nj @aIn a. a.
these conferences. The personnel Of
the delegation Is selected not primarily
for its expert knowledge of the prob
lens involved, but for its ability to
speak for and to American opinion. Dr.
Ray Lyman Wilbur, then president of
Stanford University, headed the Amer
lean delegation to the first two confer
ences. After a most successful incur
sion into unoffacial diplomacy, DR.. Will
bur disqualified himself and became
S'ofaOier by assuming the duties of Sec
rotary of the Interior. He was sue
ceeded by Mr.. Jerome Greene, whose in
terest in Pacific problems dates from the
day Of his birth in Japan and persists
with increasing intensity now that he is
q partner in one Of our greatest inter-
national banking houses.
The president Of the American dele
cation to the institute conferences
shares his duties as an unofncial dip
lomat with other members OF the dele
cation. Paul Scharrenberg, the Cali
fornian labor leader, himself an ardent
/ advocate Of Japanese exclusion. has
rendered remarkable service III bringing
about q better understanding Of labor
problems on both sides of the Pacific.
Prof. George II. Blakeslee of Clark Uni
verSity has been constant student
of the political problems of the Far
East and has been most successful in
interpreting those problems not only to
Americans but to the representatives of
other nations. DR.. Stephen p. Duggan,
director of the Institute Of International
Education, in itself factor Of no slight
importance In unofficial diplomacy, and
DR.. Paul Monroe have given constant
help in educational affairs.
Prof. Shotwen Takes Practical Side.
One of the most successful Of our un-
official diplomats is Prof. James T. Shot
well. Quite aside from his work as pro-
lessor Of history at Columbia University
and his position as director of the di"
vision Of economics and history of the
Carnegie Endowment for International
Peace, he has devoted his untiring en-
ergy to the practical solution Of world
problems. At the Kyoto conference he
proposed q solution for the problem OF
extraordinarily in China which has
received favorable commentator from
Chinese officials, American ofncials and
American leaders in Shanghai, as well
as the group represented at the Kyoto
conference. His plan will undoubtedly
figure largely in the official negotia-
lions which are now going forward for
the settlement of this knotty problem.
| In addition to his work In the Insti-
tute of Pacific Relations, DR.. Shotwell
has claim to high rank among our I'M
official diplomats. For 1t was he who
gave the impulse to BRAND, who gave
the impulse to Kellogg which finally
produced the kellogg pact" by which
the nations renowned war as an instru-
ment Of national policy. And, In pass
ing, Dr. Shotwell was one Of the principal
authors of the famous Geneva protocol
which has not yet been forgotten by the
nations which desired to supplement
the League covenant with its procedure
for formally determining an aggressor.
Changes Noted in Methods.
It is the work of such men which Is
paralleling the development Of the con-
ference method in official diplomacy
with the evolution Of a new technique
for less formal and more spontaneous
) contact between peoples. While the on
cial diplomats may wax bit petulant
J at times over the supposed vagarieS OF
these unoffcial spokesman, the success
of their efforts so far would indicate
that they respond to a genuine impulse
in our national life, characteristic de-
sire for a direct and informal approach
to international problems. In period
+ in which our international responsible
ties are expanding daily 1t is almost in
, evitable that they should overtax the
official machinery and thus afford ample
room for our unofficial diplomats to vent
} their enthusiasm and display their skill
in n manner which will assist rather
, than hinder the more responsible but
, more hesitant efforts Of their ofiicia
cotemporaries.