AMERICA’S PRESIDENT

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLIII, Issue 2223, 6 January 1921, Page 1

AMERICA’S PRESIDENT

HOW BRITAIN IS AFFECTED.

CAUSE FOR CONTENT

In Great Britain the election of Senator Harding need cause only content, says the New York correspondent of: the Morning Post. Even those Englishmen who pin Their faith to the League of Nations have no reason, it seems to me, to regret the result of the “solemn referendum.” This may appear paradoxical at first glance, but possibly if they look back to the winter of 1918. and contemplate wluit may be called the excessive manifestations of “the Wilson spirit” of that time, the paradox may become intelligible. After the/gblack week in March, 1918, there was no staying the loyal insistence of the American people. Under this stimulus there came “the war to end war,” a promise utterly beyond human power to fulfill; also the war “to make the world safe for democracy,” with no qualifications regarding the quality of the demos, inspite of the appalling object-les-son in Russia. There may have been a question whether >uch a “eru--1 sade” atmosphere was necessary to five American enthusiasm, but there could have been no possible question of the certainty of a swift reaction.

Assuredly the falsity of the excessive altruism of the winter of 1918 has been strongly revealed by the deverity of the reaction. It seems only necessary to recall the days of Mr Balfour’s mission to America, when it was as much as a mail’s good health here was worth to ..peak ill of the Allies. How few were the months before Italy was Honied, France scolded, and Japan anathematised; before avowed enemies of the British Empire were Immured with long lien films in legislative Chambers in America's Capitol!

Britons, it seems to me. may be profoundly thankful to the American people for their wondertul aid in the past years, thankful to Mr Wilson for bis helpful efforts, mid to Ihe many thousands of voters for. Cox. who intended their voles to mean good faith, solidity with their recent Aliies, and-the Peace of Versailles; hut most thankful of all for the “new deal all round,” an expression often heard here lately, and now realised by the ballot-box, it has been proclaimed by his opponents that Mr Harding was a “weak” candidate. Perhaps so, but my observation of a quarter of a century of American politics is that a candidate for the Presidency who can coolly declare from the platform that he does not know what he is going to do about the League of Nations until he has consulted bis colleagues after his election is ill-de-scribed by the word-“weak. fur-. Ihcr, that a Presidential candidate, who can publicly assert that Ireland's not a matter for the consideration of the American Government will not, after election, he easy man to stampede for any cause whatever.

For 00 years Great Britain lum always got along well with the Republican Party, which is essentially the party of business and sane conservation. This also in spile of high tariff, for be it remembered that British trade has never flourished more-than in many of the years of American high tariffs. As for ob\ious rivalry and competition, they ore to be expected, if indeed, not welcomed its pace-makers in the world race, so long its the level tiuth is realised that it is not at all necessary, even if desirable, that anyone nation should dominate the whole earth, and that i-ealisatimi is now more likely to be “in the air.”