Evening star., 1942-01-09
Denies That League.
Hos Died or FuiIed
Writer Expresses Faith
In Dreom Of World Peace
Supported by Liberal Leoders

January 10 marks the 22d anniver-
sary Of the coming into being Of the
League of Nations. As Winston Churchill
said on December rs, If We had kept
together after the last war, II we had
the renewal OF the curse need never
have fallen upon U.s."
1t was Woodrow Wilson who stated at
st. Louis, "All the nations that Ger
many meant to crush and reduce to the
status of tools in her own hands have
been redeemed by this war and given
the guarantee Of the strongest nations
Of the world that nobody shall invade
their liberty again. II you do not want
to give them that guarantee, then you
make 1t certain that without your guar
antee the attempt will be made again,
and II another war starts like this one,
are you going to keep out OF it? II you
keep out of this arrangement. that sort
Of war will come SOON"
It must be remembered that ~ ma
tions remain members Of the League Of
Nations. Although some Of them are in
exile, as Norway Holland and Belgium,
they have maintained their membership
In the League.
Eighty ofl1cials are on duty In the
League building at Geneva, the only
structure in the world which is the sole
common possession of the nations. What
are they doing? They are saving the
international unity; they are preparing
for the post-world organization; they
are assembling data on the problems
Of refugee rehabilitation, reconstruction
and social problems.
Principles of our civilization which
have endured the centuries have been
brutally attacked, IS nations have lost
their independence. Their leaders have
been killed. their intellectuals degraded,
their peoples crushed into submission
to a new and immoral order, against
which their hearts and minds revolt.
Behind all this lie profound social
changes. After this war We must con-
slider something more fundamental than
reparations from the conquered or help
for the starving War was formerly .
matter OF interest only to contestants:
now 1t swells beyond its confines and
affects all states and all peoples. There
will come the problem Of famine and
disease: OF civil disorder when terrible
forces will be released and revenge and
hunger in desperation will make war
after the war. Economic collapse. the
problem Of uprooted peoples, OF derelict
colonies, OF social uncertainty and po-
litical control; all will cry for attention.
We need not wait for anxious months
to set up machinery for the solution
! OF these problems, such machinery is
ready now and is found in the League
Of Nations.
The. United Nations which have signed
| the historic anti-Axis document are in
themselves League nations. OF the rs
signing, 25 were members Of the League
and 10 still remain.
The one country which gave impetus
/ to the League idea but which never
! joined now welcomes back to its source
important League groups. The technical
services are at Princeton, the economic,
financial and transient departments are
also there. The anti-drug unit has estab-
lished itself in Washington, while the
international labor office is in Montreal
For the first time in history the ma =
tions of the world have available an
| organized agency Of international CO.
operation. AS Arthur SweetSer member
| ~ tha 40 o,,a earrato riot c{pca 1910 ho Q
! so well stated: The world is far less
poor than 1t thinks. Amid all the pres
ent destruction there remain the seeds
from which new world-life can spring"
AS the acting secretary general of the
League, has just reported: There is not
only a heritage which should be safe
guarded during the crisis, but con-
which should be strengthened for new
and greater tasks"
The President, in his address to Con-
| gress, has said we must not only win
the war, but must win the peace. 1t is
significant that In these United States
on January 10 the League Of Nations
Association is observing the 22d ami
versary OF the coming into being Of the
League. The League has not died, it
has not failed except as We have failed
to use it; it stands as an instrument
ready to serve as We want it to serve.
Let it not be said that we, the people,
refused to join the League, let 1t be said
that minority of the United States
Senate prevented our joining. woodrow
Wilson led the crusade for the guaran-
tee VI peace on earth. We hold the vision
which we have not lost We will yet
make the vision real. In all the nations
of the world suffering humanity will de-
manc that sov1ething be done to prevent
this curse from anbstmg us again. As
Franklin Roosevelt, then q candidate for
Vice President, said on August 8. 1920:
ITO the cry Of the French at Verdun,
They shall not pass the cheer Of our
own men in the Argonne, We shall 60
through we must add this: 1T shall not
occur again This is the positive dec
laration Of our own wills: That the world
shall be saved from a repetition of this
crime. A treaty Of peace must be real
treaty for a real peace must include a
League of Nations, because this peace
treaty, If our best and bravest are not to
have died in vain, must be no thinly dis
guised armistice devised by cynical
statesmen to mask their preparations for
| a renewal OF ereed-inSpired conquests
later on. Peace must mean peace that
will last"