Jasper County Democrat, Volume 21, Number 104, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 29 March 1919 — OVERHAUL THE LEAGUE ARTICLE [ARTICLE]

OVERHAUL THE LEAGUE ARTICLE

Major Problems Remain Undecided; Important Points Not Even Discussed. GUARDS DOCTRINE OF MONROE American Preaident Said to Be SafeI guarding Famous Policy With Amendment to Be Offered at the Proper Time. Paris. March 28.—Though the league of nations covenant now has been completely overhauled and partly recast, three major problems remain undecided which have not even been discussed nt the redrafting sessions of the league commission. The problems are: 1. The Monroe doctrine, for which President Wilson reserved a safeguarding amendment without actually offering one. 2. The racial equality clause, which the Japanese still have “up their sleeves,” but which they refrained from offering at the commission meeting. 3. The French pro|>osnl for a league of nations military staff, which would prepare plans, and which, the French hope, would act more quickly than the league Itself in the event of another invasion. The revised covenant now is in the hands of a redrafting committee which will Incorporate the adopted changes in suitable form. Thus modified, the draft will be subject to ratification by the full commission.

Amendments, whether expressly reserved or not, may arise at any future meeting, and the last chance to Introduce changes will not come until the covenant is submitted to the ratification of an open plenary session of the peace conference. Concession to Opposition. The greatest concession to the American Republican opposition is seen in the Insertion of an absolute clause affirming that all member shall have the right to withdraw from the league whenever they consider this to serve their respective national Interests. In the course of the debate on this clause, President Wilson told the committee that as far as the United States was concerned, it would not withdraw unlesA its reasons for withdrawing were sufficiently Justified in the eyes of the entire civilized world. The representatives of the majority of other nations made similar statements. What President Wilson has in mind with regard to the Monroe doctrine is a mystery. Whatever amendment he may offer will not be Introduced under that name, because it is regarded as too indefinite and subject to too many varied interpretations. Nor is It known exactly what the Japanese will offer in connection with the race-discrimination question. Here are the main decisions of the league commission which the redrafting committee will embody in the covenant :

1. Women may hold any office in the league. The proposal, made by Lord Robert Cecil, was unanimously and enthusiastically adopted without discussion. 2. Colonel House and Messrs Orlando, Smuts and Maklno were appointed to select a “capital” for the league. It may be said in parenthesis that judging from the composition of this committee Geneva, Switzerland, has the best chances to become the seat of the league. This committee will prepare the peg on which the league may hang its hat, and will, indeed, give the league a habitation before it has been legally ratified. It will select a building and even collect furniture and prepare stationery and the physical machinery for the league’s workings. Neutral for Secretary?

An important “job” in the league will be that of secretary, which means an executive officer. Probably a citizen of some neutral nation will be selected for this position, though no names have yet been mentioned. 3. It will be definitely stated in the covenant that no ipember nation can be forced to take a mandate for one or more colonies. This was implied by the original draft, but is now to be specifically stated. 4. A special group of clauses w ill be added referring to labor, commerce, traffic in war material, white slavery and drugs, explicit conventions regarding which will be left for future elaboration. It is perhaps worth mentioning that •nothing is said about prohibition. 5. Member nations desiring to withdraw must give two years’ notice. This is designed to forestall possible wars arising over the “secession of members.” When the drafting committee has finished its work the new covenant probably will be published so it may again be thoroughly discussed by the whole wojnd. But whatever happens, it is absolutely certain that the phrasing of the covenant will not delay the drafting of the treaty of peace. That, too, goes on apace under the new pub lie and bolshevist pressure. The reason why the “big four” didn’t get together and do before Christmas what they are doing now is that the allies were no more ready for peace than they were for war. In fact, peace came about a- year sooner than it had been really expected. Not Cause for Delay. \ London, March 28,—“1t is quite' un-

true that the league of nations project hog been the cause of delay in the general work of the conference,” says the Paris correspondent of the Dally Chronicle. He continued: “Jt seems to» have been thought across the Atlantic that there was a stiff-necked objection to amending the covenant in a way to meet the criticism recently mooted in America. Except the need for rapN progress and the fact that the first draft was less faulty than some of its critics affected to believe, there is no ground for this Idea. “I have no doubt that the principle of the Monroe doctrine will be protected, although an appropriate form of words has not yet been drafted, and Americans here are optimistic as to the reception of the final text.”