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104.
oK
The Commoner
JANUARY, 1019
Real Crisis t Hand in
Peace Conference
vnilowing is a London cablegram from the
emir Correspondent of the Baltimore Sun, under
i nf January 1: President Wilson now faces
wa second and most difficult task. He will meet
K its acute phase at Rome, where the Insistence
t the government on secret treaties is strongest
Jnd where popular support of President Wilson,
ff anything, exceeds that of England. He must
rither induce the people of Italy and France to
relect the policy of their governments regarding
secret treaties or he must persuade the govern
ments themselves to reject it.
There is no mistaking the meaning of Cle
menceau and Plchon's speeches or the crisis that
has arisen in the Italian Cabinet. Pichon served
notice in so many words that England was bound
by secret treaties which give Franco territory in
Syria and Palestine' and Italy the Adriatic lit
toral, which is peopled with Slavs. These
speeches are timed to serve as a reminder to
England and America that no agreement is pos
sible between them except through a violation
of treaties. It creates a very difficult situation
for Wilson.
England has agreed to go along the lines of
the Wilson principles. Undoubtedly she desires
an abrogation of the secret treaties made at the
outbreak of the war, but her hands are tied, and
tho continental countries are citing Wilson's
own doctrine against the abrogation of treaties
as a reason why the pacts must be kept.
Clemenceau's speech shows extreme imperial
ism. Compromise is possible between it and the
principles of Wilson, with which England has
expressed general accord. t
All Clemenceau's doctrine springs from the
French demand for territory. If France takes all
west of the Rhine and the Saar coalfields, she
knows she must fight Germany for them in the
next generation, therefore Clemenceau wants an
alliance of America, England, France and Italy
to defend the seized territory in the future. For
tho same reason Franco must have fortified
frontiers, big armie3 and a balance of power.
Clemenceau undoubtedly timed his ..utterance
to show the Italian government that he stands
with it to tho last ditch in her imperialistic am
bitions and to counteract the effect of Wilson's
Italian visit.
The situation emphasizes Lloyd George's im
portance. He is committed to Wilson only .on
principles, subject to the great pressure of public
opinion at home, demanding Wilson's peace.
Lloyd George in the past has shown great skill
in adjusting principles to fit a practical situation.
From Clemenceau's speech it is apparent that'
England and America are agreed on the freedom
of the seas, so that no real issue is between them
except the application of a general program to
Bpecific territorial questions.
There can be no real league of nations unless
these questions are settled.
The real crisis of the peace conference is- at
hand. Wilson can make Lloyd George's position
easy only by marshaling popular opinion in
ranee and Italy for a just x peace and making
the governments feel its force.
CLEMENCEAU AND WILSON DIFFER ON
"BALANCE OF POWER"
A Paris cablegram under date of December
l says: The declaration made tfy President
Wilson in his speech at Manchester Monday
Jgainst balance of power among the nations is
regarded in high American quafters here as a
direct rejoinder to the speech of- Premier
uemenceau in the Chamber of Deputies, in
nf L liett declared, his support of the "balance
o power idea and his purpose to make it his
vwttll0ugllt in the Peace negotiations.
W, Hler. U was intended to bo so, it is not
Known, but the President's speech, coming with
hU i i rfour hours after 'that of tho Premier,
Mono ? a contrast between the two declara
tions as sharply defining two opposing viewpoint's
nations balanco of Power among tho
SumvLteX,tual copy of the Premier's speech on
fniw. ght is now available and gives the
loiiowing reference on this subject:
flpmir? , an old system which appears con
temned today and to which I do not fear to say
W mal.n faith2l at this moment. Countries
organized the defense of .their frontiers
with the necessary elements and tho balanco of
powers" . j
Great disorder broke out in tho Chamber at ,f
this point. and Pierro Prlzon, a socialist deputy. f
exclaimed: "This is tho system whioh has gono
into bankruptcy."
Premier Clemenceau continued, saying:
"This system appears to bo condomnod by
some very high authorities. Nevertheless, I will
remark that If such a balanco had pretoded tho
war that if America, England, Franco and
Italy had got together in declaring that who
ever attacked one of them must oxpoct to boo
the three others take up tho common defense"
Tho Premier was interrupted hero by applauso
and disorder In the Chamber, but later resumed:
"There is in this system of alliances which I
do not renounce, I say it most distinctly, my
guiding thought at tho conference, if your body
permits mo to go there, and I beliovo that noth
ing should separate after the war tho four great
powers that the war4 has united. To this Bntento
I will make all sacrifices.
The statement of tho French Premier is looked
upon as foreign to the statement made a few
hours later at Manchester by President Wilson,
when tho President said:
"If the future had nothing for us but a now
attempt to keep the world at a right poise by
a balance of power, the United States would take
no interest, because she would join no combina
tion -of power which Is not a combination of all
or us."
INTERRUX'XING TIIE CEREMONY
fa V.
IB
a V W I
From tho Nebraska Stato Journal.
BASIS FOR WORLD LEAGUE
By Associated Press to tho Baltimore Sun.
Paris, Dec. 23. -President Wilson's confer
ences tomorrow virtually will complete the pre
II ilnaries he is expected to dispose of before
going to England. They probably will lay tho
principal part of. the ground work for the actual
peace conference.
RELIEF QUESTION BEING SETTLED
Mr. Wilson considers tho most pressing of all
problems before the Entente nations in a fair
way toward being solved. This is the. question
of supplying" food to the starving peoples of
liberated countries. It now seems probable that,
the work will be handled principally by tho
United States, through Herbert C. HooverS
American Food Administrator. It has been made
plain ' to the "Entente nations that the United
States has no wish to claim entire credit for tho
work of relief in the minds of the people who
are to b'e fed and a satisfactory understanding
appears to be in sight. Mr. Hoover conferred
with the President again today.
Participation by the United States in various
councils that have been handling food questions,
matters of shipping and tho like is being gradu
ally wound up, as American officials are trending
toward the opinion that these are proper sub
jects for the consideration of a league of nations
or at least of preliminary organizations which
may precede it.
BASIS FOR WORLD LEAGUE
Some of those who have been giving the sub
ject close study following the conferences with
Entente representatives say they would not be
surprised If the real foundation of a league of
nations were to be laid in co-operative arrange
ments between the United States and the Allies ,
for handling these fundamental questions.
Mr. Wilson's address at Sorbonne on Saturday
in which he defined his conception of a league
of nations attracted closest attention from all
public men lure. This is especially true of his
statement that the war could never Ik e occured
if the Central Powers had -cussed it for a
fortnight, and certainly not if they had been
forced, to talk matters over for more than a year.
RECALLS BRYAN TREATIES
The President's address has recalled that tho
United States, while William Jennings Bryan,
was Secretary of State, negotiated a dozen arbi
tration treaties, one of them with Great Britain.
These treaties bound their signatories to discuss
their controversies for at least a year before pro
ceeding to a declaration of war. An attempt was
made to negotiate such a treaty with Germany
but the Berlin government refused to entertain
it It is also recalled the same idea was once
expressed in a plan for preserving peace put for
ward by a group headed by Viscount James
B?yce,formef British Ambassador to the United
St There Is no official authority for the statement
that M?. WiLn Is thinking of the Bryan plan
as one of the elements in tho proposed machinery
for preserving world peace, but this reference
to tho plan in his Sorbonno speech has set public
men to talking.
BRYAN'S PEACE TREATIES
There was a good deal of fun poked at Mr
Bryan's peace treaties, as there always Is
strange as it may seem at every plan proposed
for lessening the possibility of war. Yet if they
had been agreed to by all tho nations of tho
world as they were by most of them wo
should have had a pretty fair league of peace.
On September 15, 1914, wo entered into general
arbitration agreements with Great Britain,
Franco, Spain and China. Prior to that time
twenty-two other nations had como into tho
arrangement, including Italy, Denmark, Norway,
Sweden and Switzerland, and most of tho South &'
and Central American republics.
These nations agreed that "all disputes be
tween them; of every nature whatsoever, to tho
settlement of which previous arbitration treaties
or agreements do not apply in their terms, or
are not applied in fact, shall, when diplomatic
methods of adjustments have failed, bo referred
to a permanent international tribunal." Tho ob
jection was that treaties unless backed by force
can have no effect. There are two answers to
this. , First, such treaties would bo backed by a
mighty force, tho public opinion of the world.
The other answer Is that treaties are respected
and enforced oven when not backed by force.
Too much has been made of Germany as a hor
rible example. Even Germany herself would have
hesitated before tearing up a dozen arbitration
treaties with as many different states. If Ger
many had been thus bound to Russia, Great
Britain and France in 1914, we may well doubt
whether her government would have treated, the
treaties as scraps of paper.
Here, then, It seems, is no mean basis for a
league of nations. Indeed, it would be a league.
There would have been a common obligation to
submit all disputes to arbitration, and also a
permanent arbitration tribunal to hear and de
cide them. Tho only question left Is whether
such a tribunal shall be clothed by the nations
creating it with power to enforce Us decrees.
Perhaps Mr. Bryan trusted too largely to moral
forces, and to the. influence of world opinion.
But these would have been very powerful. Even
Bismarck relied heavenly on the "imponder
ables." Certain it is that those who objected
to Mr. Bryan's machinery because, as they
thought, it was too weak, cannot be heard to
object to the league of peace because it may
pr to bo too strong. Tho treaties were, a
we have said, a good deal laughed at, parties
ularly by those who aro quick to scont danger?
in any scheme to lessen the horrible danger of;
war, but in the light or subsequent development
he seems to have been on sano ground. We can
not enter into any agreement and this may
as well be recognized wlthQut to somo extent
limiting our power of independent action. In
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