Evening star., 1943-05-08
Former Representative Lewis Contends
For House Share in Treaty Making.

TO the Editor of The Star:
In your issue of April l3. Senator Bur-
ton OF Ohio is quoted as saving that
the peace treaty must not be a party
measure '-(amen, I say, indeed but
must be jointly formulated by Repub-
llcans and Democrats if it is to obtain
the tWo-thirds Senate vote required bv
the Constitution" And continuing, he
Is quoted again as saying, We've got to
meet the two-thirds rule-its up to the
people and Senate to make it work.
IT the esteemed Senator means by
THIS that the Senate possesses a legis-
Iatlve monopoly over the approval of
peace agreement or agreements he is
most happily and most certainly mis-
taken. He can accept this assurance
as sponsored to him by an illustrious
predecessor, Senator Theodore Burton of
Ohio, who, having gone back to the
House of Representatives and having
made thorough investigation of the
subject as member of the House Com
mittee on Foreign Affairs, stated to the
House:
1Asb'S oSp 1oi III Ill lily ltpOlJ UIldJ
we could pass a resolution initiated in
this House in which If the Senate con-
CURED, 1t would be binding. On several
occasions the Congress has done that.
We annexed Texas by resolution origi-
mating in the House after a treaty had
failed. We annexed Hawaii by a reso-
luton in this House and passed in the
Senate after treaty had failed. We,
the House, took the initiative for peace
with Germany in 1921"-Congressional
Record of the Sixty-eighth Congress.
second session. Volume 66, part No. S,
page 5405, March 3, 1925
In his report for the committee Rep
resentative Burton refers to about 100
precedents for such action by congress
sional procedure taking the place of
action that also might have been taken
by the treaty method. 1t is a mistake
to assume, as some writer's are doing,
that the treaty form alone may be
employed in effecting agreements with
other nations. The Supreme Court itself
frequently has declared that the Presi-
dent can enter into international un-
derstandings," "compacts, conventions"
which possess the same validity as
treaties If they have or receive the
approval of Congress, although lacking
ratification as treaties by the Senate
under the two-thirds rule. = -" See U. S.
VS.. Curtis, 299 U. S. Reports D. 306, 5, 6.
The treaty method is not the only
method available, 1t is an error to say
so; as much error as to say that you
can only go to Baltimore by walking
there, thus ignoring the railways, the
automobile or, mayhap, the air. Since
the very beginning of the Government,
the alternative method of an agreement
approved by Congress has been employed,
there being some $500 such executive
agreements" as compared with about
300 formal treaties. Only born recalci-
trants could wish it to be otherwise.
Said President Taylor in presenting
the joint resolution admitting Texas to
the Union, after a treaty for that pur-
pose had been defeated in the Senate:
The power of Congress is fully COM
petent in some other form of proceeding
to accomplish everything that formal
ratification of the treaty could have
accomplished"
I challenge any student or pubIcist
doubling the soundness of President
Taylor's statement to examine the SUBJ
ject and then reply.
It Is unthinkable that the State De-
partment, after the three repeated fall
ures Of its peace treaties by veto Of
Senate minorities under the two-thirds
rule should fail to submit any future
peace understanding with other ma