AMERICA AND THE TREATY.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CXVIII, Issue 18353, 10 March 1920, Page 6

AMERICA AND THE TREATY.

Recent cable messages from 'Washington concerning the political struggle which is taking place over the League of Nations Covenant do not throw a great deal of light on the nituation. Why. President Wilson’s reiteration of his refusal to consider Senator Lodge’s reservation, to Article Ten should be regarded as a hopeful augury for an ultimate compromise between Republicans and Democrats it is difficult to understand. The Lodge reservation regarding Article ,Ten is, of course, the crux of the whole matter. The full text of the reservation is as follows: The United States assumes no obligation to preserve the territorial integrity or political independence of any other country or to interfere in controversies between nations^—whether members of the League or not—under the provisions of Article Ten, or to employ the military or naval forces of the United States under any article of the Treaty for any purpose unless in any particular case the Conegress, which, undtfr the Constitution, has the sole power to declare war or authorise the employment of the military or naval forces of the United States, shall by Act or joint resolution so provide.

This reservation, together with thirteen others, all intended to render the American Republic immune from the authority and jurisdiction of the League, was presented by Senator Lodge to the Senate on November 19 last. President Wilson was at the time on a bed of sickness, blit he wrote a letter to Senator Hitchcock, leader of the Democratic Party in the Senate, in response to a request from the Democrats for guidance. In that letter the President expressed the opinion that the 'Lodge reservations provided, not for the ratification, but for the nullification of the Treaty. It should be explained that the reservations were appended to and part of a formal resolution ratifying the Treaty. The Lodge resolution was defeated by fifty-five votes to thirty-nine. It was supported by thirty-five Republicans and fbur Democrats and opposed by thirteen Republicans and forty-two Democrats. A subsequent motion for unconditional ratification was defeated by fifty-three votes to tbirty-eight. At this unsatisfactory stage of the proceedings the Senate adjourned sine die. The resolution of ratification requires, to become effective, a two-thirds majority. As the position now stands

there iB little change to record since the adjournment of the Senate. Unconditional ratification is recognised to be impossible, as all the Republicans save one, Senator M’Cumber, and seven of th© Democrats are opposed to certain features of the Treaty, notably the Shantung settlement. There has, however, been a determined effort to effect a compromise. With this effort President Wilson has not associated himself. He issued an appeal to the Democratic Party to make a party issue of the Treaty, hut tho party feeling, as far as can he gauged from recent cablegrams, is strongly in favour of compromise, and the party leader, Senator Hitchcock, has been prominent in the negotiations. It is a peculiar fact and one which may not be without importance as an indication of the ultimate decision, that the reservation regarding Article Ten, quoted above, though presented by Senator Lodge, was drafted by Senator M’Cumber, the mildest of the Republicans on this question. Public opinion in America is said to bo strongly in favour of ratification with modified reservations, and the principal obstacle in the way seems to be the uncompromising attitude of President Wilson. A few weeks ago a petition, said to represent tho views of 20,000,000 citizens, members of various societies, called upon the Senate and Whit© House to get together and ratify tho Treaty. Unquestionably, from a British point of view, ratification with reservations will be preferable to failure to ratify, as the indecision of America is seriously jeopardising tho success of tho difficult task of the Peace Conference.