The Wilmington morning star. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1909-1990, 1944-01-17
Monday, January II, 1914


France and her place in Europe
and in the world.
The notion is false that the
smaller nations are opposed to the
intermediate phase of organizing
their neighborhoods for security.
The Netherlands Foreign Minister
wishes to see "a strong formation
in the west with America, Canada,
and other British dominions as an
arsenal and a vast reservoir of
power, with England as base,
especially for air power, and the
west European mainland by
which I mean the Netherlands,
Belgium and Francois a bridge
head. A development of this kind
would indeed compel us to rely on
the western powers, but conversely
they would also need us. 1t is diff
ficult to imagine a stronger posi-
ton for our country"
He then goes on to say, though
he does not elaborate upon it, that
this formidable western bloc
would find it's eastern counterpart
in Russia which like ourselves,
will have to devote full continued
s.ttention-and it will wish to do
SOTO the security of its open
frontier on the German side
The organization of the east
European neighborhood is more
difficult than the western. There
are no disputed frontiers among
the western allies. Ii is absolutely
essential that the disputed eastern
frontiers should be settled, and in
the utmost possible degree, settled
by consent But of one thing we
may be certain. They cannot be
settled by universal organization
OF all the nations of the world.
They can be settled only by direct
and specific negotiations among
the nations Immediately concern
ed, with the help of such good
offices as their mutual friends may |
be able to give.
The word institutions is fire.
ouently used in this country but it
is often misunderstood. We are
likely to think that a charter, a |
covenant, the blueprint of an or
ganization, or a large gathering of
delegates, is an institution. But l
believe that history will support the
view that enduring institutions
registed, formalize and regulate Or
ganization which has already been
formed. The American Constitution
did not create the United States,
the states which were already I'M
tied. adopted a constitution which
made "a more perfect union
The Wilson pattern of the League
of Nations called for union which
in fact had not yet become organ
lied, and actually, though the
French and others protested, the
writing of the covenant was re-
garded as the occasion for dlssolv-
ing rather than perfecting the real
of security, tested in
battle, which had been formed dur
ing the war.
We must not repeat this cardinal
error or we shall suffer the same
disastrous consequences. We are
repeating the error when we talk
as if we thought that universal
society was a substitute for, an al
tentative to, the concert OF the
great powers, and such specific
and regional organl-
,ation as the Netherlands foreign
minister envisages for western
Europe and the president OF
for central and
eastern Europe.
The universal society would be
ike body which was all flesh and
,ad no bones, wodl u eblikEATT
lad no bones, would be like a roof
Without a structure to sustain 1t,
f we let ourselves be diverted by a
alse universalism from the pract-
al. and therefore the specific Or
sanization of security.