New-York tribune. [volume], March 06, 1920, Page 10, Image 10

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3fem $0xk mnfcmw
lint to Last?the Truth s Newt?Rdl
toriala-?Advertisements
Member at the Audit Bureau at Clreulatlooa
SATURDAY, MARCH 6, 1920.
r ". ' ' ' : " taeaseaaaa as '.' g
Ora?! ud published daily by New Tsrtt Tribune
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Substance and Shadow
In his letter to Senator Hitch?
cock President Wilson admitted that
the Senate reservation to Article
X was sound in essence. He com?
plained that it was unsympathetic
in form. On Thursday Senator Glass
was charged with carrying a modi?
fied reservation to the White House.
Its substance is the same. Is there
a saving grace in its wording? The
Presidents long dispute with the
Senate has been over phrases rathei
than over ideas. He knows and has
several times acknowledged that no
obligation under Article X can be
discharged by the United States
unless Congress consents to that dis?
charge in any particular case. H?
seems to hold, however, that in some
mysterious metaphysical sense obli?
gations may be and should be as?
sumed without any promise whatever
to discharge them. Apparently that
is the theory on which he stands in
wanting to modify the language o?
the reservation.
But what value would such a
subtle refinement of phraseologj
have in the practical working out o?
the conceptions of the covenant.
Even were it possible to retain th(
substance of the Senate reservation
while "softening" its form, how would
the league be strengthened thereby 01
its relations to the United States
altered? Our form of governmeni
inhibits a sweeping acceptance oJ
obligations such as- Article X con
templates. The right of Congress t*
interpret any responsibility put 01
this country by Article X cannot h
abridged. It may be that in an>
particular case Congress may be a?
eager as the President to accept i
recommendation from the council ii
which our own representative ha;
joined. But this country's partici
pation cannot be automatic. Ou:
dualistic system prevents that.
Wrangling over the phrasing o:
the reservation is, therefore, hardl;
more than a metaphysical exercise
The country wants to see the sub
stance of the present reservation re
tained. The President is insistinj
on a shadow of form which practica
minds cannot regard as of any con
sequence.
Heirs to the Mantle
Mr. Palmer and Mr. McAdoo seerc
to have designated themselves tenta?
tively as heirs to a mantle of leader?
ship whose clasps are still fastened
tight. ' Each is willing to be thi
next Democratic nominee for Presi?
dent if Mr. Wilson doesn't decide tc
cast his hat far into the ring for the
third time. Their candidates are
therefore both conditional and defer*
ential. Their hats are only on the
top rail of the fence surrounding th?
ring.
Mr. Palmer comes from Pennsyl?
vania? an immovably Republicar
state. His nomination would vio
late all the tenets of the pol?tica'
strategists. Yet his urbanity and
the comparative colorlessness of his
political record give him a certair
availability as a campaigner for del
egates. He is w.orking ostensiblj
for himself. But everybody knows
that the President will always hav.
a reversionary option on the Palmei
vote.
This situation is neatly suggested
in the Attorney General's answer tc
the Georgia Democrats who asked
him to enter the?r primary. He ac*
cepted the invitation, but tactfullj
put his acceptance on this ground:
"I deem it highly important that th<
Democrats of Georgia should hav<
the opportunity to directly pas?
upon the record made by the presem
Administration and the candidacy 02
one who supports that record ir
every phase."
Mr. Palmer's finesse exceeds Mr
McAdoo's. When the latter was in
vited to run in the Georgia primary
he wrote a voluminous letter ex
plaining why he thought it highlj
important that the Democratic dele
gares from Georgia?and presum?
ably from the other states?shoulc
go to the national convention unin
structed. Mr. McAdoo is a native
Georgian and would probably have
been more acceptable to Georgia a:
an Administration candidate than
Mr. Palmer is. But vhat critics of
fais to Washington call his "r?cula
s
tion" prevented him from seizing an
opportunity now annexed by his
more astute rival.
Mr. Palmer is In the Administra?
tion. Mr. McAdoo is out of it. That
circumstance handicaps the latter as
an "heir." In order to accentuate
hia somewhat unavowed candidacy
he is compelled to develop differences
of opinion with his former Cabinet
associates. Thus, when Attorney
General Palmer was Cvrestling with
the bituminous coal strike settlement
Mr. McAdoo intervened with a
charge that income tax returns on
file in the Treasury showed that the
operators had made colossal averages
of profits under war regulation. It
was explained later that these exces?
sive profits were realized only by a
few small, cheaply run mines.
Yesterday, again, Mr. McAdoo
came out with a proposal to reduce
Federal taxes and issue more bonds.
Such a plan runs counter to the pol?
icy of the Treasury Department,
which is pledged to protect the bonds
already issued and to reduce the pub?
lic debt Mr. McAdoo's suggestion,
therefore, doesn't indicate support of
the Administration's record "in
every phase."
The House of Representatives has
voted to investigate Mr. Palmer's
connection with the Administration's
failure to hold sugar prices down to
the war level. How does Mr. Mc?
Adoo stand on sugar?
It is regrettable that the ex-Secre?
tary of the Treasury can't recall his
recent letter and get into the Geor?
gia primary. Within the limita?
tions of their obligation to the real
head of the party, the two condi?
tional heirs to the succession should
meet on equal terms in the pre-con
vention fight.
Poor Germany!
An unfortunate feature of any dis?
cussion of reparation is the chance
it gives to the tireless pro-German
propagandists to renew their falsi?
fying activities.
The reparation question is most
complicated. No one not an expert
can be expected to carry in memory
its data. v Here is a condition to the
liking of those of Teuton sym?
pathies. It is safe to say anything
and to charge on the basis of bogus
figures that the Allies are plainly
cormorants.
The stuff, most of it not true and
little of the remainder relevant, put
forward in the German interest
j should be ignored and minds focussed
on only a few considerations. One
j is that no "crushing" indemnity has
been levied; another is that the sum
fixed is not greater than Germany
can.pay; still another is that there
is no prohibition on German trade
and industry.
The reparation bill, so far as fixed,
is not that Germany must pay $100,
000,000,000, as is arrantly said, or
even $40,000,000,000, but $15,000,
000,000?a sum it is agreed Ger?
many is able to pay. When this
amount has been paid over then the
international commission may, if it
deems wise, demand more, but only
when there is unanimous- agreement
that it is within Germany's ability
to pay interest and sinking fund on
the additional bonds are the same tc
be distributed. All the reparatior
articles of the Versailles treaty in?
dicate solicitude that the burden laic
on Germany shall not be greatei
than she can bear.
The Tribune, of course, has nc
hope of silencing the newest forn
of pro-German propaganda. It has
too often failed in other instances t<
have hope. The agreed-on tale will
be circulated and be believed by thos?
who want to believe it and by thos?
whose gullibility is experience-proof
The Keynes book and similar com
pilations of mistruths and half
truths are having large sales, anc
in certain quarters are spoken of a:
authoritative.
The War Memorials
It is good news that the Mitchel
Memorial is making headway, but
we hope that the project of a road?
way across Central Park at the
' lower end of the old Crot?n reser?
voir will bo held open until the
larger plan of a general war
memorial is decided upon. A review
of the ideas and design? exhibited in
the City Hall shows that,no satisfac?
tory submission of ideas has yet
been obtained?that it will largely
rest upon the Imagination of the new
committee of architects, artists and
sculptors to devise a fitting plan.
In this labor of imagination and
creation the question of sites is para?
mount? The Victory Arch at Madi?
son Square was damned by its loca?
tion, wholly aside from its artistic
status considered as a work apart
from its surroundings. The project
to remake Madison Square to sub?
serve this new element only shows
how impossible it is to remake this
hugely upbuilt town of ours. The
Battery offers a strong imaginative
appeal, but the architects who have
proposed this site have found it nec?
essary to draw their design with the
elevated eliminated?a trifling alter?
ation of the city's transit facilities
which unquestionably adds to the
beauty of the Battery, but which it
is exceedingly difficult to accomplish
as a practical matter.
Ultimately it seems probable thai
the committee will be driven to Cen?
tral Park as the one open area in the
city ample enough to yield a propei
background for a. irreat war mono?
ment. In this event the question of
the Mitchel roadway may well form
an integral part of the larger proj?
ect. The plan of transforming the
Crot?n reservoir into a great natural
playground of green grass and open
spaces, with a gateway from the
south?colonnade or arch?t-already
has been diacussed in those columns.
The site is one of great natural
beauty and high enough to command
the entire surrounding area. Obvi?
ously, if such a location were decided
upon proper approaches would be an
essential part of the design. We can
imagine no better memorial to Mayor
Mitchel than Buch a roadway. The
peculiar fitness of using such a play?
ground as a war memorial would be
the lesson of patriotism that it
would place before the youth of the
city, an ideal for which Mayor
Mitchel lived and died.
A very great responsibility rests
upon the new art committee created
by Mr. Wanamaker. It needs all the
assistance it can g?t. The Mitchel
Memorial should certainly be held
open unti^the possibility of using
this particular site for the larger
memorial can be fully considered?
The Unchoked Male
Rumors that the long choked male
is about to throw off his shackles of
linen and starch bear out what the
professor would call the economic
interpretation of fashion. Neither
art nor comfort ever availed to free
'mankind from the stiff linen collar,
but the last raise in price has set
the spark to rebellion. Rather than
pay 35 cents for a scrap of linen
men are threatening to take up the
despised and comfortable soft collar.
For these crusaders we suggest
the motto: "What woman hath done,
men can do again." Let them look
upon the army of woman arrayed
in unrelieved blue serge and take
courage. It is on}/ in the most con?
servative circles that women to-day
cling to the white collar. Fashion,
of course, made the first suggestion,
but the battle was won only when
the great conscript army of economy
took the field.
Not only has the white shirtwaist,
greatest thief of a working girl's
time and money, been relegated to
the ragbag, but even the white
organdie frill and the "bit of lace at
the throat" have been sacrificed to
the cost of living and laundry.
There will be few stenographers
to sympathize with masculine wails
over collars which cost 35 cents.
Women's collars cost 50 cents for
the most flimsy and worthless scraps
of cheesecloth, and from that mini?
mum soar swiftly to $5, or $25 for
a small piece of real linen hand em?
broidered. If one wanted a collar
and vestee, something not elaborate
but a bit dainty, last summer, the
cost was fifty or sixty dollars in the
best Fifth Avenue shops. A million?
aire husband or a faithful grand?
mother at home is essential if one
is to be freshly organdied and em?
broidered each day.
The complete emancipation of the
woman from %vhite collars has come
about, then, in the twenty-five years
sin.ce the bicycle and the Gibson girl
first brought'in the mannish shirt?
waist and the stiff collar for woman.
With the stiffness woman made short
shrift. With the whiteness she dallied
longer. But it is now vanished.
With all due deference to the slow
moving processes of masculine psy?
chology, and yet with a vast awe for
the high cost of living, one dares
prophesy that men, too, will yet
breathe the air of freedom unchoked.
The New Audiences
There is no question that the new
theater has arrived. For one indi?
cation, try to buy a seat for "Jane
Clegg," if you have any doubts.
Here is a tragedy, of wisdom and
beauty, presented off the beaten
track by a company largely un?
known; and it plays to crowded
houses. This in New York, where
the tired business man was supposed
to sink exhausted into a parquet seat
at the theater as at an intellectual
Turkish bath, to be rubbed and cod?
dled into forgetting the stock market.
Ho'w did this miracle happen?
How has the theater of ideas Jthus
suddenly become a thing of popu?
larity and success? Many collabo?
rators must unite in such a produc?
tion. There must be plays ami play?
wrights. There is the modern notion
of scenery as an integral part of the
idea of the production. There must
be a new naturalness of acting. All
these elements united to create
"John Ferguson" and "Jane Clegg"
on the stage; yet one further essen?
tial was needed, an audience to at?
tend and understand. "To have
great poets there must be great audi?
ences, too," wrote Whitman. The
assertion is peculiarly true of the
theater, which cannot exist at all?
speaking artistically, not economi?
cally?without audiences.
It is these audiences which the last
year or two has added to the theater.
Looking backward, it is easy to see
somewhat in perspective certain out?
standing milestones. The Irish play?
ers were forerunners so strange in
their methods and matter that they
were a storm center from the hour
of their arrival. They gained audi?
ences more out of curiosity than
anything else. Since then the move?
ment has broadened and discovered
itself in untold quarters. The little
theaters have made chiefly a special
appeal to small groups ; but their in?
fluence has unquestionably, been
great To-day they are active in a
score of cities, from coast to coast.
The new scenery is now a common?
place of Broadway. For most New
Yorkers It was few enough years
ago, in Robert Edmond Jones's set?
tings for "?he Man Who Married a
Dumb Wife," that the- idea of
scenery as anything more than a
dead frame or a showy dress first
made itself real.
Looking back thus?at the varied
elements of writing, of paint of act?
ing, of the box office, which have
"Bomehow got themselves arranged
for this great day?one may wonder
just how large a part any ono influ?
ence has counted. Was there per?
haps a time-spirit which ordained
that here in the first quarter of the
twentieth century the theater should
achieve a new beauty and exercise a
new sway? Perhaps. But time
spirits seem to help ages that help
themselves; and let ue give credit
and support to every courageous pio?
neer who fought the fight The
Greenwich Village Players seemed
to arrive nowhere in particular; yet
the Theater Guild, which gave us
"John Ferguson" and "Jane Clegg,"
the high-water mark of the theater
in America to-day, was the indirect
descendant of these experimenters.
? We think an especial word of
praise is due the Drama League,
which was never so flourishing as
to-day and never offered so many op?
portunities for spreading the light.
It is now eight years old. It offers
its members a drama calendar, a
theater bookshop, children's per?
formances, lectures ; it provides ? a
little theater exchange of informa?
tion and advice, and it plans for next
year a course on scenic design, light?
ing, etc., with laboratory perform?
ances by way of illustration. ' (Will
some one perhaps provide a labora?
tory theater some day?) If you like
good plays well acted go to them.
That is the best way to help create
a "great audience." You can do an
added bit if you will by supporting
the Drama League, which seeks in
an open-minded way to organize the
friends of the theater in behalf of
their faith.
Pro-Anderson
Anti-Saloon League and Its Head
Officially Defended
To the Editor of The Tribune.
Sir: I read what you had to Bay in
your editorial of this dato regarding
Mr. Anderson. It is nothing new to
have editors wish he were out of the
way. He is everything which the liquor
traffic does not like.
New York City, being called by the
"wets" the "Liquor Gibraltar of Amer?
ica," needed just the fearless type of
man. which you know him to be. In
your opinion he is a "rowdy" and a
"vulgarian," a "bos?" and a "dictator."
Reduced to it? simplest terms, he 'has
been just rough enough to jar things
loose In the metropolitan center, and
because he was just about to force the
retirement of the big "wet" champion
in the United States Senate, James
Wadsworth jr., a lot of Republican ed?
itors are joining with German-Ameri?
can brewers to furnish an alibi for the
Republican party if it fails to pass an
enforcement law and insists on offend?
ing the temperance forces by jamming
through the candidacy of Mr. Wads
worth.
Mr. Editor, if Mr. Anderson has
seemed to hit hard enough to be called
a rowdy, it is because only strong licks
would break tho strangle hold of the
liquor men on the Wadsworth wing of
the Republican party; and if ho has
used the word "liar" any too frequent?
ly for the refined taste of ?aur good city
it is not at all due to his fXndness for
the name, but to the commonness of
the variety.
ANDREW B. WOOD,
Assistant State Superintendent Anti
Saloon League of New York.
New York, March 8, 1920.
To the Editir of The Tribune.
Sir? The statement of James O
Tryon that the persons "who are active
in the Anti-Saloon League are in if
for what they can got out of it finan
cially and politically" is untrue. OJ
course, we all eat and we eat well. The
liquor men have realized that from tht
energy with which wo prosecute th?
work. But there is none of us after any
political job. It has been one of th?
principles of tho league for a great
many years that its workers will nol
accept political jobs.
The shock which Mr. Tryon experi?
enced when ho overheard the remark o?
some person that ho was in the emploj
of the league as a collector an'd making
more than over, would not have jarree
him so if he had known that we hav?
overheard similar jocular remarks fron
persons not at all connected with th?
league, and avnong persons who an
employed by the league It is a standinf
Joke between them and their friend:
that they are getting big money. Anc
?3ven if they are, who says they haven'
earned it? , A B. WOOD,
Assistant State Superintendent.
New York, March 4, 1920.
Why lake a Chance?
To the Editor of The Tribune.
Sir: Is it not about time the authori?
ties took steps to check the mad en?
thusiasm of aviators who risk their
lives daily, not for any worth-while
reason that can be discovered, but
simply in the silly effort to "break tho
record" in speed or in height or dis?
tance made by some one else?
What purpose is served by this folly?
We ask, In all seriousness, why should
not an aviator deliberately risking his
life for no useful object be arrested
and put under restraint as a would-be
suicide? Human lives are worth more
than this. E. H. CLEVELAND, M. D.
New York,?Feb. 28,1920.
, A Cabinet Candidate
(From The Toledo Blade)
In any ease, President Wilson's type?
writer follows his mind willingly.
The Conning Tower
John 7,84
Among forgotten Yankoe legends, one
Is of the Reverend Joseph Huntington.
If byssua, amber, myrrh and nard were
mine,
Then might I fittingly therewith en?
shrine
The gentle memory of this old divine.
"Pattern of learning" long ago was he
Among the churches round .confessed
to be;
'Examplo of extensiv? charity"??
So did they epitaph him when he died,
With many words of eulogy beside.
(Tis said that certain stricter brethren
found
His views of Hell war? not precisely
sound.)
His mighty homilies are all forgot,
And not a soul now cares a single Jot
If he was truly orthodox or not;
Naught save its linkage to a greater
fame
Preserves the casual mention of his
name.
For in the roomy manse that rises still,
Though altered Bince his day, on Cov?
entry hill,
Through Sallust's "Wars" or Vergil's
epic tale
The worthy pastor led young Nathan
Hale;
Turning, one fancies, from the stately
text
Sometimes, to speak of how the land
was vext;
And how, in evil days, who loved that
land,
Having done all, would in whole armor
stand . . ?
One day a stranger reached the
manse's door.
So oft swung wide to needy ones be?
fore;
HimseJf a member of the cloth de?
clared
Who thus to friends In Massachusetts
fared;
Pictured his many miseries; and, In
brief,
Besought of Parson Huntington relief.
' 'Tis Saturday," the kindly parson
said?
'Then o'er the Lord's Day, brother,
take a bed,
Sit by our hearth, and break with us
our broad."
(In those far times the constables
would frown
On Sunday travelling from town to
town.)
No further words were needed to pre?
vail
Upon the stranger, who then told his
tale.
He came, he said, from Susquehanna's
vale.
All his possessions were abruptly laid
In utter ruin by an Indian raid;
He had escaped the tomahawk through
night,
And, much afflicted In his sudden
plight,
Had thus far made his way as best he
might.
The kindly dominie, now much Im?
pressed,
Was doubly gracious to his cleric
guest,
Inviting him the pulpit to adorn
And preach the sermon of the morrow
morn.
j " Twould 111 become me in the garb I
wear
To do so much as make the Bhorter
pray'r,"
Replied the stranger. "Pray you, have
no fear
Upon that score, for I have garments
here,"
The pastor said, "not long since made
for mo,
But never worn. They'll suit you to
a T."
The clothes were quickly brought, as
quickly tried?
"A signal fit!" the host admiring,
cried.
The .stranger voiced both gratitude
and pride:
Then forthwith said: "If I do not pre?
sume,
My generous friend, permit that to my
room
I may for meditation soon retire."
"By all means, sir." Pen, paper, ink
and fire
Were punctually supplied. "And should
I keep
Late vigil, will that Interrupt your
sleep?"
"Nay, sir, now you shall toil and I
shall rest."
The parson said; and both laughed
o'er the jest.
Betimes next day the household was
astir.
The parson, with a loud "Good morn?
ing, sir!"
Rappvd vigorously upon the guestroom
door.
No answer?and ho listened for a
snore,
Then stepped within, and in a startled
stare
Terceived the stranger was no longer
there.
Some shabby raiment tossed upon a
chair,
Remained?and also, on the mantel
spread,
A sheet of sermon paper, at whose
head
In bold, round script these Unes the
parson read:
"The text I give to those I leave be?
hind me,
Is: 'Ye shall seek me, and ye shall
not find me:
And where I am, thither ye cannot
come.'?
John 7, 34." A moment dumb
The good man stood; then, with a
hearty peal
Of laughter, hastened to his morning
meal. G. S. B.
Visiting British poets .who want to
read American ?tuff are likely to be
recommended to far worse essays than
G. S. B.'s. If we were a publisher, we'd
as soon lose money on a book of
G. S. B.'s verso as anybody else's.
Examination in Journalism
Q.?What does a person do when he
advocates, desires, is mildly in favor
of, wishes, craves for, wants, fails to
oppose, or thinks that perhaps he might
not object to, a certain thing?
A.?He urges.
Q.?What is the money asked in s
breach of promise suit?
A.?Heart balm.
The President is growing impatient
at his proscription from golf; but his
impatience is directed against Rear
Admiral Cary T. Qrayson,* and not, as
with most of us here, against the
weather. The President however,
could practice strokes in the White
House; the corridors are long. . . .
Yesterday we exhumed a racket and a
ball, but the amusement and exercise
were wholly our cat's.
* President'? personal physician.
Well, If the bonuses are granted I
there will be jobs in Washington for
a lot of civil service clerks, who will
work with intelligent conscientiousness
verifying the service records of j
4,000,000 men, getting the present ad?
dresses straight, and figuring the
amount of the chocks. This, for a few
Washington civil service clerks, will
be the work of a few days.
Man wants bat little here below
Of forecasts reading "Rain or Snow."
?. P. A.
The uproar now in progress in Britain
over tho more or less definite agreement
of Lloyd George to consent to the con?
tinued occupation of Constantinople by
the Turk has its amusing and its an?
noying aspects. The fact that the Turk
' is in Constantinople is due to British
policy pursued from Napoleonic times
to th? World War. To keep the Russian
out, which necessitated keeping the
Turk jrh, Britain fought the Crimean
War and was propared to light still
another war whan the Russians came
to San Stefano. At the Congress of
Berlin Britain, through Beaconsfield,
barred Russian pathway to the open
seas.
During the World War, however, in
the era of the secret treaties, Britain
consented to Russian possession of the
Btralts, as she agreed to Italian expan?
sion along the east shore of the Adri?
atic and in Asia Minor, as she agreed
to French occupation of Syria. With
Russia gone, however, the ultimate dis?
position of Constantinople remained
for the Paris Conference to agree Upon.
An American Mandate
The conference, moreover, agreed
that' the United States should occupy
tho Golden Horn, provided only that
the United States would (and both the
President and Colonel House were of
tho opinion that America would) take
this mandate. France, Britain and
Italy were all willing America should
take it, while all thero were solidly
against the possession of this vital
point by any European country.
But the United States having pretty
clearly indicated an unwillingness to
act as mandatary, despite the sugges?
tion that the President would return
to' Europe and attend a new conference
to settle Asiatic matters in the spring,
it became necessary to settle the ques?
tion. France took tho ground that,
since America would not occupy Con?
stantinople, the wisest and simplest so?
lution was to leave the Turk, taking
due precautions against the fortifica?
tion of the straits. The French were
moved by three circumstances. They
held the larger part of tho Turkish
debt, they were, os a Mahometan state
opposed to risking religious disturb?
ances in their colonies incident to the
removal of the Sultan and, finally, they
regarded any other solution aa likely
to amount to a British control of the
straits,
The British on their part were op?
posed to a French mandate, and not
a few of those familiar with the Ma?
hometan question as it affected India
Mesopotamia and Egypt agreed witl
the French that it would be wiser t<
leave the Turk in the city, carefullj
restricting his real powers. To make
the town an international city appcalec
to neither the British nor the French
because this merely meant to creat*
another center of international fric?
tion, such as Tangier had been beforc
the war.
Compounding a Felony
But not a few Englishmen felt a
once that the retention of the Turl
was compounding an ancient felony fo:
new reasons of expediency, and the de
mand has steadily increased that th?
Turk be forced to quito Europe "baj
and baggage." This is relatively sim
pie, but who is to be placed in hi;
stead? Opviously not the Frenchman
the Italian or the Englishman. Thi
American has declined, An interna
tional city means a new and even mor?
acute Eastern question.
There is left the Greek; his clain
is obvious. Except for the Turk th>
Greek clement is largest in the city
and the Turk would go with his Sultan
Constantinople as the capital of th
Byzantine Empire was Hellenic fo
centuries; tho population on bot!
shores of the straits and the Sea o
! Marmora is Greek. But to give Con
stantinople to Greece would be to pav<
the way for a Greek renaissance o
Bag and Baggage
By Frank H. Simonds
Unchastened Germany
i ;
Another Example of the Teu?
tonic Mind in Action
To the Editor of The Tribune.
Sir: The letter in to-day's Tribune
about the unchastened German and the
editorial thereon make me think that
a recent article In a German paper
may prove of interest as another ex?
ample of the working of the world re?
nowned Hun mind. It appeared in the
"Wochen Ausgabe des* Berliner Tage?
blatt" on the 21st of January, this year.
It is entitled "Why America Entered
tho War," and the author is given as
Dr. C. Dencker, of Chicago. In part, it
is as follows:
"Does any sensible man believe that
a great country declared war because
a few citizens of another state over?
stepped the law? America was driven
into the war (1) because President
Wilson is heart and soul an English?
man, (2) because tho ruling class in
America is Anglo-Saxon and English at
heart, (3) because of widespread
propaganda going back as far as 1898,
by which England stirred up inflamma?
tory feeling against Germany. . . .
"The Yankee, that is, the Anglo
American, rules the country. President
Eliot of Harvard University said at
tho outbreak of the war between Ger?
many and America: 'Wilson had al?
ready determined in August, 1914, to
go to- England's help in case ?he
could not manage Germany.'
"And Wilson, who is Wilson? Born
in America of English parents, edu?
cated in English kultur and during his
whole calling a teacher of English
history. It is, said that Wilson hat
spent twenty-seven summer vacation;
in English lands. His every fiber i?
English; he is no American. What
does it mean to be an American?
"During the war I have observ?e
Geroian-Americans whose forefather:
had been in the country for three gen
erations and who were just as Germai
in feeling as any of their countrymei
at home.
"Wilson was and ia just aa Englisl
as I am German. Just recently he sai?
first rate magnitude. A-sia Minor was
once Greek to the Armenian boundary;
at least two million Greeks now live In
the country, and it is by no means un?
likely that in another half century
Greece would be able to fix her civili?
zation upon hor ?ld Byzantine prov?
inces and become a great power again.
// Greece Wins
Such ? a development would rudely
shatter Italian aspirations in the
/Egean and in the Gulf of Adalia. More
than that, it would mean the rise of a
Greek state which could challenge Ital?
ian aspirations in the eastern end of
the Mediterranean. Greek and Italian
aspirations conflict In Albania, in the
/Egean Islands, in Asia Minor, and in
all three regions Italian policy is based
upon a desire to prevent the Greeks
from acquiring that territory which
should go to them alike by racial and
historical consideration. If Greece- ac?
quired Constantinople, then the Italian
hopes would go glimmering.
It is doubtful if the British or the
French have any real hostility to G?reek
aspirations, but both have to reckon
with Italy, and are eager to make any
concessions in Asia which will per?
suade Italy to give way In the Adri?
atic question, and the French have to
think of the vast sums owed them by
the Turk, which will be lost if the
Turkish Empire Is liquidated. All in
all, French and British policies agree
in any compromise which will be ac?
cepted by Italy.
But will President Wilson accept the
proposed solution? It lies within his
power to veto it. He has shown him
j self hostile to Italian claims on the
; eastern shore of the Adriatic which
: ha? far more justification than Italian
! claims in the /Egean and on the Gulf
of Adalia. He has manifested impa?
tience with French claims in Syria,
and the whole problem of British ex?
pansion in Mesopotamia offers him an
admirable opportunity to take direct
issue with the British, as he has al?
ready with all the other associated
nations.
Only a Compromise ?
No one can mistake the fact that the
whole Turkish problem is being dealt
with on the basis of expediency rather
than principle. The great powers are
trying to close up the war settlements
with as little friction and as great i
speed as possible. The possibilities of
cla.shes between France, Britain and
Italy in Turkey are obvious, there have
been difficult moments already and any j
arrangement now seems more attrac- ;
tive than prolongation of the tension. ;
But?bny compromise now can be only
a compromise, a dodging of the real
problem, a postponement. The Turk
will massacre Armenians, the dangers
of rivalries at the straits and in Con?
stantinople will remain and, if Russia
regains unity and strength, Russian
policy will certainly resume its old
pathways. Not to reach a sensible and i
permanent settlement now, based upon
actual conditions rather than tempo?
rary complications, Is to lay up new
trouble for the future and for a future
relatively close at hand.
Necessarily the bargains in Turkey
bear little relations to Mr. Wilson's
fourteen points. There Is justification
in the fact that the United States did
not enter the war with Turkey, but Mr.
Wilson can, if he chooses, find good war?
rant for intervention in the name of
world order and his principles, and
there is, therefore, fair possibility that
after Fiume his next declaration to Eu?
rope will be over Constantinople. Such
a declaration would enlist much British
approval, but would necessarily arouse
fresh bitterness in France and Italy,
provided it is not accompanied with a
promise that America will undertake
responsibilities in the East while in?
sisting upon being consulted.
(Copyright, 1920, by the McClure New_
papor Syndicate)
before a Senate committee that he
had gone into the war on England's
side for moral reasons, as Germany
had not committed any hostile act
against America. And there he cer?
tainly told the truth. Had a German
or an Irishman been President every*
thing would have como out differently.
The long drawn out (British propaganda
would not have been tolerated. Eng?
land would not have been able to block?
ade neutral harbors; an ?*? argo on
ammunition would certainly Viavo been
put in force. But, alas! Woodrow Wil?
son was President, and the result was
Germany's destruction. It is unbe?
lievable that one can still argue in
Germany over the author of the war.
"Here in this country there is no
doubt about it. Behind it all was Eng?
lish politics, which for 800 years has
caused all coalition wars. And Eng?
land had, sinco 1898, prepared for this
war in the American press. I have
observed that clearly, year by year."
Seems to me there has been an
article or two about giving credit where
credit was due for accomplishing the
downfall of that most noble, chosen
of-the-Lord nation across the sea. How
delightfully simple the answer: Wil?
son, that's,all. H. S. B.
Brooklyn, March 4, 1920.
Clemenceau and Heaven
(From The London Morning Post)
The latest Clemenceau anecdote that
is going the rounds of the boulevards
is to the effect that the Premier was
annoyed because a tree in the neigh?
boring garden overshadowed his. The
tree was the property of some Jesuit
fathers, on whom M. Clemenceau
called, politely explaining that his at?
titude to the Church was unchanged,
but he would regard it as a personal
favor if the Jesuit fathers would cut'
down the tree, "because it prevents me
from seeing the heavens." The Jesuit
father who received him was very cour?
teous and wa3 much flattered by the
Premier's call. He promised that the
offending tree shculd be speedily re?
moved, but he added, with the suave
smile of the ecclesiastic,??"! am afraid,
Mr. Premier, that, just the ?ame, you
will not see hsaven."
At the ThreshoUl
House Cleaning Should Stm
in Naturalisation Court
To the Editor of The Tribune.
Sir: The naturalization court
you please, it the laboratory 0f .
country. There the process of
simulating the "stranger withia
gates" is consummated. There ?a
foreigner and the n?en are ?u^,.
with the rights and obligation!
American citizenship and becom? am
and parcel, bon? and tissue of onr i
tional life.
When the great F.oman Empir? ??
in its heyday of national po??, ni
before the decline cf that robu? g,
man senae of civic dut;;, this pro?,,
of citizenizing the alien was ind?s?e<]
solemn affair. The foreigner who ??
finally inducted into Roman citizen^,
conned the "toga," or whit* rob?
symbolic of civic purity.
This halo and atmosphere of unie
peachable. Incorruptible integrity
conspicuously lacking: in our naturt.
zation court. Please do not mi?aj.
strue me. I am no ?tickler for a?*,'
forms, and am not advocating that o?
newly-created citizens be required \
don a red, white and blue, star-spar.r.?
robe to solemnize the occasion.
I do believe that the '. ,'ooratory tf
American citizenship should be irr?.
proachably honor-white ir. its method
and probity. Let m<! present a pictan
of conditions with which I happen
to come in intimate acquaintance.
I know a candidate for citizenship
who came down to the r.p.taralizati?
' court at 9 a. m., th?? classical hoor?:
which governmental business wa.
menees. He found a Une of for
other applicants for "first papen'
After joining the tail of the process!?
and waiting for some time a rather
curt voice from the intenor sanctua
was heard to call out; "No more fits?
papers! Goodby!" No world of et.
planation, but abrupt, discourteom dis?
missal. The line of waiting men ttl
maintained its position in a sort i
dumb, outraged apathy, and a rath?
corpulent "gentleman" then mad? fc:j
appearance?with hat on head and t
cigar in his mouth?and bellowed os:
with unbending steraness: "That's a!,
for to-dayl Come again to-morrow'
Those seekers of American citizenship.
who speak a broken English and whoo
the mere semblance of authority ter?
rifies, broke ranks and went home.
These men have sacrificed time froa
work, and if their persistence is
broken and if they can afford it thin I
will try again. The others give up i:
hopeless resignation.
My friend is a college man, who mi?
grated to this country when he was ye:
two years of age. ? Unless you believe
in prenatal influence you cannot dif?
ferentiate him from an out and oa:
American citizen. He has the Ameri?
can zest for a "square deal." and he
came up to expostulate with the said
official, but gained no satisfaction. H;
later observed, however, that a belated
newcomer, also a candidate for citizen?
ship, but having the company an!
"pull" of a lawyer or politician, go:
immediate service. My friend had t:
come five times In order to secura hit
"first papers," and he learned from ex?
perience that in order to get a pdaee
in line he must come with the scrub?
women, at 7 in the morning, and then
"hang around" In t'he in-lighted hall for
two hours or more waiting for the ?i
grust dispensers of citizenship to ar?
rive. One man on thu une alleged the! I
he had come seventeen times for h!-1
citizen papers.
The spirit of Americanism ghoalc
not be cheap mouthing and thin vapor.
Let us start cleaning house at the bot?
tom?the threshold of American citi?
zenship! S. J. S.
Brooklyn, March 4, 1920.
A Coalition Government
To the Editor of The Tribune,
Sir: If this country* should adopt th*
proposed plan of a coalition governor
I would venture to suggest the folk*
ing names for the leading offices of the
administration:
President ? Herbert Hoove* Im?
pendent.
Vice-PrasidentH-Wllllara H. Tai\ **?
publican.
Secretary et Btata?vEUhu Boot )>
publican.
Secretary of the Treasury?(kneil
Charles Dawes, Republican,
Secretary of War?Theciore Boo*
velt. Republican.
Secretary of th? Navy?F. D. Boo*
velt, Democrat.
Secretary of Agriculture?SeereUiT
Meredith, Democrat.
Attorney General?Claries E. Hu*1?!
Republican.
Postmaster General?Franklin D'OU?1'
of the American Legion.
Secretary of the Interior?Franko
Lane, Democrat.
Secretary of Labor?Raymond Bobina'
Independent Republican.
Secretary of Commerce?Secretary >*
F. Houston, Democrat.
The people respect ex-President T?:
Hi3 experience and Judicial mind vom
be helpful to a President willing to tal?
counsel from his equals. Elihu Eo?;
has, above all prominent public men, t?
experience and prestige a real Si*^
tary of State should have. G?n?*
Dawes, as banker, ex-Comptroller of <*?
Treasury and purchasing offleer oft*
A. E. P., ia the most logical mao Jj
the Treasury. Theodore Roosevelt, ??
younger, has had extended war tiPf"
rience on the firing line and was ? "
markably efficient as well as a br?"
commander. He has, of course, a trv>
ing few have had In the inner workiaP
of the work at Washington. f>_*
Roosevelt has apparently been t** *v
rapable Assistant Secretary of the N?*?
we have had sin? his more '*,t0
namesake left the position. As ?*?
iorney for the public interest, no ]**!
approaches the record of Justice Ho?**
Franklin D'Oser is a capable bus?*?
nan; he had a wonderful record ?
Quartermaster's Corps of the A. ??"
ie might put the Postal Departs*^
igain on- an efficient basis. The o
proposed appointees are equally ?wr
danced and capable in their ih??*
ROBERTS WILLIAJ?
WUkea-Bajfte, Pa*?, M?weh % W*)