The Taihape Daily Times AND WAIMARINO ADVOCATE FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 1919. AMERICAN EGOISM.

Taihape Daily Times, Volume XI, Issue 3342, 21 November 1919, Page 4

The Taihape Daily Times AND WAIMARINO ADVOCATE

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 1919. AMERICAN EGOISM.

I" With which its incorporated . “'L‘ he Taihape Post and Waimarino I Newa.”

It has been said that -the Americans are a quick-wit-ted people, but experiences in this connec‘tion in entering a war against civilisation does not bear out that claim. It took the Americans three years toagree among themselves ‘fh'a.'t lto ‘draw ‘their swords against Pruvssianism was the correct thing to do in their own interests, and it appears that they will requireijust as long a time ‘to discover that the League of‘ Nations covenant is destined to more vitally favour the'Uni.ted States than any other nation owingfto its being barrier be‘?t.ween the"Anlericans rand the Far Eastern peoples, between‘ whom there is .a.lread_v a feud that no. Statesman on earth can now guess thecnd of. ‘The wrangling period that must seemingly intervene before ~Amel-icans can suttieienltly agree «to adopt any unusual change of national polity is probably due to them being an ad.nli.xt,lll'c of Val'iOll_s races, :1 veritable human medley that is not equal-‘ led as such in any other continent. Fromreading reports of debates in their legislature one is perplexed to know whether cosmopolitanism or patriotism predominates 3.. therein. Analysing what seems to be an intensely patriotic oration, one finds thatwhich momentarily appeared to _ be patriotism was nothing more than impracticable idealism, unsound rhetoric, merely sophistry, an admixture of dc-1 clamation and plausibility for party; point-gaining. rather than an earnest} effort to a.'chieve the blast (from ai patriotic standpoint. The speeches in: the Peace_Ra.tification debate are par-1 ticula-rly notable for W 101? 51311140115‘ patriotism. America professedly en—‘ tered the -war in support of national; ideals, but who will deny now that the Almighty Dollar does not. stand out, entirely overshadowing the ideal, rendering it pure humbug? From cable-1 grams received yesterday, the United States has cut adrift from the Allies; the attitude o£ American statesmen ini consideration‘ of Peace Ratification and the League of Nations Covenant-Ll strikes a B‘ritisher as being‘ Small. ,Their utterances suggest that ‘there is only one mantand one country in the v»'ol'ld, and tllavt is American. America. is superior to Cverything and every: body. In his speech in the Senate Ml- - said, “the League of Nations‘ was merely an ideal.” Ridiculous 38 that ideal might be thought by Mrl Lodge, he sets upon another which can only be reg'.lrdc(l by British people ase fudge and balderdash. He continued, “My first ideal is my country. We have our own ideals, even’ if they differ ‘ from the ideals of ’those who havel tried to establish a monopoly of ideal-I ism. To us, America should come before anything else.” Is it not apllal‘ ent tlrat the country adopting such al motto is guided. by unadulteratedl selfishness and pride No other peoples t can fraternisc or be on terms Of? friendship with a people that -seriously , claims such superiority. Was it 1103‘ a similar claim‘ by the Kaiser for Prussian-‘ism that {brought ‘J'lli",a ‘and left! Germany a. _ lderelict, deSol'-W5; isolated nation_? Nothing in either the ,Peace terms, "the League of Nations’ Covenant, on the Franco-American fßritish Pact Conflicts with the American ConSfitution, and yet because the world does not regard with Senator -Lodge, America as the ego, the one ideal, Americans sever peace and Deaguc relationship with other -nations, pie fer a little peace of their ‘om; making, and they will only consent to‘-a s'Le¢a.g'u{3’ of’ Nations Covenant‘ that iaecepts

America as the dominating “I Am.” There is little probability of Americans coming ato any definite agreement amongst themselves as I‘ogßl‘dS Peace Ratification for at least a similar perliod as it took to ‘decide upon war, therefore. all other -nations will have to proceed without the American ideal and make the League of Nations _operative, leaving Americans and everything. American out of consideration. When Senator Lodge and his an-ti-League Republican friends see how international polities drift in the Far East. through Far Eastern nations being in the League, Shantung will loom lvery large in their eyes. Perhaps the ‘gravest possibility is that American isolation and egoism may precipiI tate a war in the Pacific before Britain and her Pacific Dom-inions are ready for if. The most depressing feature of Yankee egoism is that it is mainly the outcome of lust for political suprelmacy in the elections that are forthlcoming, and it may be that saner counsels and more honest counsels will lprevail lamongst American politicians "when the future Government is decidled. In the meantime thdre is to be lpeace and a -League of Nations in 'which Americans have no part, exlcept that little peace of their own making. Americans’ ideal is “America.,.” and even a league of all other nations must not be allowed to» overshadow such an ideal. Germans state that American decision for War was prompted by the almighty dollar, and it is now apparent that Americans are not satisfied to be limited in dollarlmaking in ravished nations by League 11-ules; they want all that the League provides for in trade. -and insist upon a. free hand to get whatever else -they can. After reading reports of debates, and noting the attitude of a. large number of American politicians, it is difficult -to come to _-any ether conclusions than above indicated.