Evening star., 1933-12-28
The Political Mill
By G.. Could Lincoln.

which will be attended by President
Roosevelt and leaders of the Democratic
party from all parts of the country,
calls to mind again the great efforts
made by Mr.. Wilson at the conclusion
of the World War for world peace A
| determined group in the Senate Of the
United States in 1919 defeated ratifi-
cation of the Versailles treaty and the
Covenant of the League of Nations.
There remains today before the Senate
Foreign Relations Committee, however,
the protocol Of American adherence to
the World Court, an echo of this past
conflict over the Wilson program for
international peace and the adjustment
of disputes without recourse to arms.
And the proponents Of world peace are
! pressing even today for consideration
of the World Court protocol at the
| coming session of the Senate in the
/ hope that it may be finally ratified and
the United States become member of
the court-Which was part Of the Wilson
| plan.
! The adherence of the United States
to the World Court has been urged
upon the Senate by three Republican
Presidents who followed Wilson in the
White House. 1t was agreed to by the
Senate a number of years ago with
reservations. These reservations were
not satisfactory to European members
! OF the Court, and Elihu Root was sent
| abroad to take the matter up. He came
| back with the so-called Root formula,
which was declared to cover the mat
| terS in the Senate and reservations and
the objections raised to those formulas
abroad The protocol of adherence was
redrafted and sent to the Senate, and
there it has reposed. 1t might have
been disposed of long ago, despite the
opposition Of the old bitter -enders,"
had it not been for the depression
which clutched the country in the last
part of 1929 and turned attention away
| from international peace.
1t would appear to be logical Sc
qucnce for the next Democratic ad-
ministration after that of Wilson. aid
ed by a completely controlled Demo-
cratic Senate. to seek and obtain rati-
| fication of the protocol which will put
this country into the World Court
as member. But it still appears that
the consideration of the protocol may
| lag. In other words, it is the intention
! Of the foreign relations committeeman
OF the Senate not to bring the protocol
up for consideration until the pro-
gram Is completed" The program
means the legislative program. cover
ing the recovery bills and appropria-
tionS. Frankly, the Democratic men,
bers OF the Senate committee, see a real
| night over ratification of the World
Court protocol under present condi-
tions and they do not want to have
| legislation forced to wait on it. Many
Of the opponents of the League of
Nations and the World Court, which
= ~ ar
been retired from the Senate. one way
or another. Moses and Watson are
gone, for example, on the Republican
side and jim Reed of Missouri on
the Democratic. But there still remain
Borah and Johnson and Robinson of
! Indiana and several others. Under the
rule OF unlimited debate and the two
thirds rule relating to treaty ratifca-
ton, there is still plenty of fight left in
this World Court protocol.
\ =
/ Not all of the professors who have
come to Washington with the Roose-
! velt administration are at the White
House end of Pennsylvania avenue
, The Senate boasts at least one He Is
Senator Elbert D. Thomas of Utah, who
was professor Of political science at
the University of Utah before he was
elected last year to the Senate He is
a new Democratic member of the Sen
ate Foreign Relations Committee, and
at the annual convention OF the Amer
lean Political Science Association in
Philadelphia this week Senator Thomas
delivered en- address dealing with the
Senate and its attitude toward treaties
and the Executive. The Utah Senator
said that in spite of the fact I have
been disappointed over lost causes, the
Senate is definitely creature of men
who wanted a government by the peo-
pie, but who, nevertheless, were afraid
Of democracy" He prefaced this re-
mark, however, with a statement that
he still saw merit in the constitutional
clause by and with the advice and
consent of the Senate provided
two-thirds of the Senators present con-
cur"
In the course of his address, Senator
| Thomas said:
You are all familiar with Washing
tons answer to Jefferson when Jeffer-
son asked Washington how it hap
pened that they created such a thing
as the United States Senate. Jefferson
had just poured his tea out into a
saucer Washington answered Jeffer-
sons question by asking Jefferson why
he poured the tea into the saucer before
he drank it, and Jefferson replied: To
the Senate of the United States was
| brought into existence to create cool
ing process.
i am just wondering II President
Wilson's reactions to the Senate in his
late years were not a result Of a con-
| clusion he came to years before when
he wrote in his Constitutional Govern
ment' that whenever the President
shall rightly interpret the national
thought and boldly. insist upon it, he is
| irresistible" President Wilson wrote
that. He believed it. and as a result
he thought the people would sustain
him.
1T Is true that the two-thirds rule in
regard to the ratification of treaties
permits the Senate to play. politics. 1t
! allows many factors which have not
TO do with the real business at hand
to enter in. That, Of course, is a weak
ness, but 1t Is the type Of weakness that
enters into practically every phase of
government"
Senator Thomas suggested that a
good deal could be accomplished by
having the President seek the advice
and cooperation of the Senate Foreign
Relations Committee prior to sending
treaties formally to the Senate OF the
% members of that committee, he
pointed out, IA are members Ordinarily
of the political party to which the
President belongs. That was not the
case when Woodrow Wilson sought rati-
fication of the League of Nations
covenant, however, for the Republicans
were in the majority and Lodge was
chairman Of the committee. The Utah
Senator said, however:
Cannot the Executive use this COM
mittee as an advisory group in relation
TO treaties. since he has to receive from
it its consent before the treaty can b.
ratified? The idea, I am sure, is not
new. 1t is. though, way out, and a
way, too. which will contribute to our