The Daily Alaska empire., 1935-10-12

pretty flat when the cables were daily telling the story of the way in which it taking its courage in both hands in order to exalt and execute the Covenant As The London Times declared the action of the Council gave "a firm and dispassionate answer the incredulity of any who have come to think that the collective system would fail at the first sharp test.
 The greatest world event of last week was un- ldenaby the action of the Council of the League in upholding the Covenant living and binding treaty obligation For the British Government, Prime Minister Baldwin and his representatives at Geneva stated that British foreign policy was based upon the Covenant of the League Speaking for France Mir Laval affirmed that the French Govern lment now regarded the Covenant a fixed and lsettled part of international law Both France and Great Britain together with all the other nations, except Italy, represented in the Council took the position that they had assumed obligation which they could not disregard without dishonor to them selves and danger to the peace of the world With reluctance with ravity yet with unflinchng determ- inaton they all voted to proceed to apply the doc trnes and directions of the Covenant to the un- settled controversy between Italy and Ethiopia This was because it carried immediate menace of war, while the great object of the League to prevent war to punish country entering upon ag gressive war.
 This is admittedly the bravest and most un- compromising step yet taken by the League. It will be conrasted with the action failure to act, lin the case of Japan and Manchuria. To be sure,
 
 la commission to report the facts. When the re- port holding Japan to have been in the wrong, the League agreed that the Japanese Government had violated the Covenant, well other treaties, but did not propose to enforce sanctions against the offender. The difficulties of doing so con- fessedy great yet the shown by the League in that crisis highly damaging to it's repute. It may have led Mussolini to think that he could do what Japan had done. But from that dsap- pointing and humiliating episode, the League has now reverted to it's original noble purposes and appears before the world today revived and strengthened for the work which the peoples have placed in its hands
 Nobody should expect it to resort at to extreme measures against Italy whether economic Tor military. It has left the door wide open for further efforts in behalf of conciation and peace ful settlement. Negotiations to that end do not need to be held exclusively in the hands of the League. They may be privately conducted by diplo- matists in three-Power consultation. The League would accept and approve any solution upon which they might agree But all the while the League stands behind them beside them and before the eyes of all men now the greatest instrument of peace in the whole world It is endowed with large powers which not arbitrary, but flexible and controlled by the explicit provisions of the Coven- ant This revival of the League in all the strength and efficiency which the Covenant intended to confer upon it, will be signal of hope and fresh courage for mutitudes who have been living in fear that needless and disastrous would whem the world in terror and misery.