The Daily News. TUESDAY, MAY 3, 1921. AMERICA'S PROBLEMS.

Taranaki Daily News, 3 May 1921, Page 4

The Daily News. TUESDAY, MAY 3, 1921. AMERICA'S PROBLEMS.

Great as Amei,<i .Vinsidered herself to be before the late war, she appears to be swelling herself like the frog in the fable. Having “won the war”—according to the boast .of some of her people—there follows, as a logical sequence, the right to settle the affairs of the world generally, notwithstanding the principle enunciated in the Monroe Doctrine. In an individual the possession of a swollen head is not calculated to be of benefit to his fellows, and the malady is greatly aggravated in the case of a nation, especially when (that nation is habitually given to tall talk and boastfulness. It might be as well, however, if America measured iher own shadow, for there can be no doubt she would find it no longer than it was before the war was won. The immediate cause for thus commenting on' the evolution of American greatness and selfimportance is the recent statement made by Senator Lodge, that “the Allies made peace in a treaty Which they have not asked our leave to enter into’ This assertion is a striking example of the latest phase of American over

lordship, and denotes a marked advance by the Republicans on the road to autocracy. That the charge is devoid of truth is only a small matter compared with the 'claim that, the Allies should ask America’s permission before concluding a treaty. As a matter of fact, the President of the United States, when the treaty was made, took a prominent part in its construction, but the people he represented have chosen to nullify his good work, and have now decided to conclude a separate peace, with Germany, Austria and Hungary. That is their affair. They ought T>y this time to be well aware of how far the Allies can be trusted, how much the Peace Treaty is worth to the world at large, and what will be

the probable effect on Germany of the action America is now taking. Senator Knox claims that America has the same right to make peace for herself as the Allies had. Even so, there is a vast difference between possessing a right and exercising it wrongly. There are certain ethics of honor and morality that govern the exercise of national rights. Tested thereby, America will be found wanting, and no amount of specious sophistry will justify America’s policy in this matter. Apparently America must be top dog in the pack or hunt with the wolves. Let her take care that the latter do not turn and rend her. Her wilfulness engenders pity rather than anger, for it is generally admitted that, a close bond of unity in policy and aims between the two great English-speaking peoples would furnish the greatest security for the world’s peace that could be obtained. In separating herself from the Allies over the Peace Treaty, America may have pandered to her own selfimportance, but without counting what may result from such selfishness and ill-advised isolation. Equally unfortunate is America’s action over the Yap mandate and her general policy towards Japan. There is no valid reason why there should not exist a perfect understanding between these two great nations bordering the Pacific, nor why Japan should not

be trusted to co-operate with instead of being antagonistic to the United States. A recent statement by the president of the Japanese League of Nations Society accurately expresses the only commonsense view that should be held. “There may,” he said, “be mis-chief-makers who wish to see these nations come to a clash, but we must guard against them, not only for our mutual benefit, but for the noble and mighty mission which Providence has placed upon the only two progressive nations bordering the Pacific.” That is the spirit which should actuate both America and Japan, and then a clear understanding could be arrived at that would be to the advantage of the world s peace. America has serious internal

problems of her own to solve, not the least important of which is the spread of Communism and the active manner in which this pes-l tilential propaganda, is doing its I subterranean work. It may be that the United States is passing through a critical phase of political blindness that may prove detrimental to her future, but the country is in that peculiar mood which betokens irrationality. So much greater is the reason why she should pause and take careful note of her position.