OCR Text |
Show WEST HIGH STUDENTS ELECT a a . CLASS CONTESTS ARE CLOSE i ERXAL V. FUXK (left), who was elected president of tho junior class of the West high school yesterday, and Eay Wiiliensou, who wasi: l selected to guide the senior class during the term. j; I r T A- . ' . 'v. t yi - i Activities for Year Are Planned by Seniors and , Juniors. ELECTION of officers of the senior and junior classes at the West high school yesterday were close. Eay "Wilkenson, son of Mr. and , Mrs. II. E. "Wilkenson, was elected to guide the seniors through the year, while Jliss Frieda Burke was chosen vice president of the class. Miss Ma-! Ma-! rion Ilusbands was chosen secretary, I and '"Wilford liobinson was elected trea's-! trea's-! urer. Arvo Luoina was chosen re"re-i re"re-i tentative on the student bodv council, j The affairs of the class will be con-i con-i ducted by means of an activity card ! system, which entitles all students to admission to class socials, entertainments entertain-ments and athletic events. Tho card will be given to each student unon payment of his class dues, which will probably be $2. Vernal V. Funk, son of Mr. and Mrs. E. B. Funk, was elected president of tho junior class. Funk was the first West high student to enlist in the navy in April, 1017, when war was declared, and lias 'only recently been discharged! He is captain of the football team. Miss Lorraine Christof crson was chosen vice president and Miss Frances Watson was elected secretary. Emral A. Thomas, president of the class last year, was chosen secretary. Douglas J. Vincent was elected to the student council as class representative. Dues i for the year were made $2. be unless reservations are adopted substantially sub-stantially like those presented by the ' foreign relations committee. Abuse and ! villification even from the highest forces of the land will not change the minds of men who have given long, conscientious, deep thought to the subject, and believe ratification in the present form of the league of nations is a betrayal of this country. "In standing for reservations they are not standing against any plan to carry out the terms of the Paris conference; they are not contemptible quitters, nor are they mere time servers. They are trying to Americanize this league. They may reply to presidential billingsgate, to the charge of 'contemptible quitters,' that the most contemptible quitters in the history of the world were those who, assembled with high ideals at the Paris conference, permitted Japan lo take over Shantung in violation of some of the fourteen points and in violation of the doctrine of self-determination and in vi-' vi-' olation of God's eternal justice." and complete control of the United States. "This covenant of the league of nations is an alliance and not a league, as is : amply shown by the provisions of the ! treaty with Germany which1 vests all essential es-sential power in five great nations. Those same nations, the principal allied and associated as-sociated powers, also dominate the league through the council. Wars Foreseen. "The committee believe that, the league as it stands will breed wars instead of securing peace. They also believe that the covenant of the league demands sacrifices sacri-fices of American independence and sovereignty sov-ereignty which would in no way promote the world's peace but which are fraught with the gravest dangers to the future safety and well-being of the United States. The amendments and reservations alike are governed by a single purpose and that is to guard American rights and American Ameri-can sovereignty, the invasion of which would stimulate breaches of faith, encourage en-courage conflicts, and generate wars. The i measures, for the protection of any other, country, whether a member of the league or not, against external aggression or for the purpose of coercing any other country, or for the purpose of intervention in the international conflicts or other controversies controver-sies which may arise in any other country, coun-try, and no mandate sha'l be accepted by the United States under article XXII, part 1, of the treaty of peace with Germany, Ger-many, except by action of the congress, of the United States.' "This reservation is intended to meet the most vital objection to the league covenant cov-enant as it stands. Under no circumstances circum-stances must there be any legal or moral obligation upon the United States to enter en-ter into war or to send its army and navv abroad or without the unfettered action of congress to impose economic boycotts on other countries. Under the constitution of the United States the congress alone has the power to declare war, and all bills to raise revenue or affecting the revenue in any way must originate in the house of representatives, be passed bv the senate. I United States can serve the cause ot peace best, as she has served it in the past, and do more to secure liberty and civilization throughout the world by proceeding pro-ceeding along the paths she has always followed and by not permitting herself to be fettered bv the dictates of other nations na-tions or immersed and entangled in all the broils and conflicts of Europe. "We have heard It frequently said that the United States 'must' do this and do that in regard to this league of nations and the terms of the German peace. There is no 'must" about it. 'Must' is not a word to be used by foreign nations or domestic do-mestic officials to the American people or their representatives. Would Welcome U. S. "Equallv unfitting is the attempt to frighten the unthinking by suggesting that if the senate adopts amendments or reservations reser-vations the United States may be excluded exclud-ed from the league. This is the one thing that certainly will not happen. The other nations know well that there Is no threat of retaliation possible wltn the United States because we have asked nothing for ourselves and have received nothing. We seek no guarantees, no territory, no commercial com-mercial benefits or advantages. The other nations will take us on our own terms, for without us their league is a wreck and all their gains from a victorious peace are imperiled. We exact nothing selfish for ourselves, but we insist that : we shall be the judges, and the only ; judges, as to the preservation of our '' rights, our sovereignty, our safety, and our independence. "At t)i is moment the United States Is free from any entanglements or obligations obliga-tions which legally or In the name of honor would compel her to do anything contrary to the dictates of conscience or to the freedom and the Interests of the American people. This is the hour when we can say precisely what we will do and exactly what we will not do and no man can ever question our good faith if we speak now. When we are once caught in the meshes of a treaty or alliance or a league of nations composed of twenty-six twenty-six other powers our freedom of action is gone. To .preserve American independence and American sovereignty and thereby j best serve the welfare of mankind, the I committee propose these amendments and reservations." Fight Over Reservations. The chief fight is expected to be over the reservations to the league of nations covenant. They are the right of unconditional uncon-ditional withdrawal of the United States from the league : refusal to assure for-eten for-eten territorial guarantees or mandates with the sanction of congress under article ar-ticle X; exclusive action in domestic and political affairs and interpretation of the Monroe doctrine solely by this country. There will be no secret consideration of the treaty by the senate. I In urging members on the Democratic 1 side to "come out of the valley of stub-1 stub-1 bornnes." Senator Kenyon declared in j his address today there were votes i ermugh in the senate to ratify the treaty with ' substantial reservations. ' ' Th e y are not h ere to ra t i f y it without," with-out," he said. "The votes are here to defeat, the whole t reaty. rega rd less of c"neiiULjn''es. if substant ial reserve t ions are U"t adopted. .Make no mistake about that. It cannot be ratified and will not I and receive the signature of the president. presi-dent. These constitutional rights of con-9 con-9 gress must not be impaired by any agree-J agree-J ments such as are presented in this trea-J trea-J ty, nor can any opportunity of charging the United States with bad faith be per-j per-j mi t ted. No American soldiers or sailors must be sent to fight in other lands at the bidding of a league of nations. American Amer-ican lives must not be sacrificed except by the will and command of the American Ameri-can people acting through their constitutional constitu-tional representatives in congress. Mandates Covered. "This reservation also covers the question ques-tion of mandates. According to the provision pro-vision of the covenant of the league the acceptance of a mandate by any member Is voluntary, but as to who shall have authority to refuse to accept a mandate for any country the covenant of the league is silent. The decision-as to accepting a mandate must rest exclusively within the control of the congress of the United States as the reservation provides and must not be delegated, even by inference, to any personal agent or to any delegate or commissioner. " "3. The United States reserves to itself it-self exclusively the right to decide what questions are within its domestic jurisdiction jurisdic-tion and declares that all domestic and political questions relating to its afirs, including immigration, coastwise traffic and tariff, commerce and all other domestic domes-tic questions are solely within the jurisdiction juris-diction of the United States and are not under this treaty submitted in any way either to arbitration or to the consideration considera-tion of the council or of the assembly of the league of nations, or to the decision or recommendation of any other power.' "This reservation speaks for itself. It is not necessary to follow out here all tortuous windings, which to those who have followed them through the labyrinth disclose the fact that the league under certain conditions will have power to pass upon and decide questions of immigration and tariff, as well as the others mentioned men-tioned in the reservation. It is believed by the committee that this reservation relieves re-lieves the United States from any dangers or any obligations in this direction. Monroe Doctrine. "The fourth and last reservation is as follows : " The United States declines to submit sub-mit for arbitration or inquiry by the assembly as-sembly or tho council of the league of nations na-tions proved for in said treaty of peace any questions which in the judgment of the United States depend upon or relate' tu its long-established policy, commonly known as the Monroe doctrine: said doc-I doc-I trine is to be interpreted by the United I States alone and is hereby declared to be wholly outside the jurisdiction of said i league of nations and entirely unaffected by iuiv provision contained in the said treatv'of peace with Germany.' "The puroose of th's reservation is clear. It "is intended to preserve the Monroe Mon-roe doctrine from any interference or interpretation in-terpretation by foreign powers. As the Monroe doctrine has protected the United States, so, it is believed by the eommit-tre eommit-tre will this reservation protect the Monroe' Mon-roe' doctrine from r he destruction with 1 I which it is th.re:t t.-ned by art!--,, m in I I t'i. covenant of th-- I- ;-"JC and h-avc it. where it has always been, within the sole |