A
The Commoner
AUGUST, 1913
29
The Think-Before-Fighting Plan
The Public (Chicago): The peace
plan of President Wilson and Secre
tary Bryan has progressed sufficiently
to make Its early acceptance by all
important nations a probability, if
not a certainty. Once adopted, it
may not be an absolute preventive of
war; but it will certainly be a strong
check. It will be greater glory to the
president and the secretary of state
to have taken the first practical steps
toward putting an end to war, than
could have come from any number
of bloody victories on battlefields. It
will be greater honor to the United
States to be the nation that has taken
the initiative in such a matter, than
to be superior to all others' in brute
force.
The plan submitted to foreign na
tions by Secretary Bryan provides
for investigation of international dis
putes by an international commis
sion. Pending investigation and re
port thereon no hostilities shall oc
cur. This gives to each nation a
period for reflection, and, unless
modern nations are more barbarous
than -generally supposed, a pause of
that kind will alone be sufficient to
cause a revulsion of feeling regard
ing the prospective war. In spite of
the incentive to war, created by pro
tective tariffs and other artificial
checks on industry, it is hard to be
lieve that any .civilized nation will
deliberately proceed after a period
of reflection to bring the miseries of
war on the citizens of even a much
weaker nation, and, besides, to incur
the risk of suffering some of those
miseries' itself. No doubt fewer wars
would have taken place had there
been such a plan in operation here
tofore as the Wilson-Bryan measure.
Six months of delay would have given
heated tempers a chance to cool, and
the demagogic nature of jingoistic
utterances to become apparent. Pub
lic hearings before an impartial tri
bunal would have shown fair-minded
citizens of eacli nation a better and
more honorable way to settle the
trouble than through wholesale
slaughter. While it is not absolutely
certain that all wars can thus be
prevented, it is probable that they
will be much less frequent. Besides,
the predatory purposes of wars of op
pression can then be no longer suc
cessfully disguised as patriotism.
Following is an Associated Press
dispatch: Washington, July 14.
Denmark, through Minister Con
stantino Brun today became the
twenty-first nation to accept the prin
ciple of Secretary Bryan's peace plan.
Details of the plan already have been
forwarded to Denmark. It is not ex
pected that treaties will be negotiated
embodying the principle of the plan
before next fall.
Lincoln (Neb.) Journal: Mr.
Bryan's peace plan goes prosperously
on. That is, an increasing number
of nations say they are favorably dis
posed. If no hammer falls into the
machinery Mr. Bryan will land a
Nobel peace prize first thing we
know.
ANOTHER SUGGESTION
An Associated Press dispatch from
Washington says: A proposal to
maintain the status quo as to mili
tary and naval preparations among
disputants during the period of inves
tigation of international differences
constitutes the third and final pro
posal in Secretary Bryan's peace plan.
In making that portion of the pro
posal public Secretary Bryan said
that the obligation to maintain the
status quo would not be obligatory in
the event of danger to either of the
two contracting parties from a third
party. The proposal, which ho sub
mitted to the twenty nations which
have accepted his plan in principle, as
well as to the other nineteen nations
not yet heard from is as follows:
"This government is prepared to
consider the question of maintaining
the status quo as to military and
naval preparations during the period
of investigation, if the contracting
nation desires to include this, and
this government suggests tentatively
that the parties agree that there
shall bo no change in the military
and naval program during the period
of investigation unless danger to one
of the contracting parties from a
third party compels a chango in said
program, in which case the party
feeling itself menaced by a third
power shall confidently communicate
the matter in writing to the other
contracting party and it shall there
upon be. released from the obligation
not to chango its military or naval
program, and this release will, at the
same time, operate as a rolease of
the other contracting parties. This
protects each party from the other in
ordinary cases and yet provides free
dom of action In emergencies."
The proposals previously an
nounced provide for an international
commission of five members, one
from each of the contracting coun
tries to be chosen by the government,
ono to bo chosen by each of the con
tracting countries to bo agreed upon
by the two contracting governments.
Ono year Is suggested an a proper
timo for the investigation of the
subject undor dispute.
"All of theBO BUKKCBtlonB," nald
Secretary Bryan, discussing his plan,
"arc presentod for consideration, and
not with the intention of imposing
any fixed conditions. The principle
of the Investigation being accepted,
the dotalls are matters for confer
ence and consideration."
Tho twenty nations which have
accepted tho principle of tho peace
proposal in the order named are:
Italy, Great Britain, France, Brazil,
Sweden, Norway, Poru, Russia,
Austro-IIungary, the Netherlands,
Germany, Bolivia, Argentine Ropub
lie, China, Dominican Republic,
Haiti, Spain, Portugal and Belgium.
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