It was gratifying to observe that a number of W.I.L. members were among the various delegates to the Conference on the Cause and Cure of War, and especially that five out of the seven women speakers, and one presiding officer, of the Conference, were also W.I.L. members. The National Chairman took the opportunity to mention these facts to Mrs. Catt after she had seemed to some of us to refer to the League in disparaging terms and stated that when she, as Chairman of the Woman's Suffrage Association, handed over the organization to the President in case of war, she was expelled from the Woman's Peace Party, which was our name at that time. The statement is misleading because it was a local Branch which took whatever action of the kind was taken, and it seems to be the understanding of the Branch itself that it was only a protest in any case. The National Chairman reminded Mrs. Catt of these facts, and inquired later just what part of the W.I.L. programs she does not approve at present. Members will be interested that Mrs. Catt wrote in reply:
"The objection that I have to the general program of the League is that it has advocated steps which are, in my judgment, impractical and therefore mean waste motion; as, for instance, a revision of the Treaty of Versailles ... ↑(A)↓ ... The general tone of the aims of the League seems to me to indicate idealism without a practical road to achieve it. My impression about the psychology of peoples is that it is best to graft on to any present state of mind a next step and thus lead onward to the ideal. We are pretty well agreed to the principles of what we ought to be, and we know pretty well what is; but the road from the present to that future state of mind is so very controversial that it blocks our way. I wish we might all come nearer together than we are now.
"If you thought that I meant in any way to discredit the League, you are greatly mistaken ... I think the League is more likely to be the power that will blaze the trail than any other group in the field, but when the trail is blazed a road must be found out of it, and the more conservative groups will have to do that.
"Before the peace of the world is established the many groups in this country now working at cross purposes will have to come together and form one great Peace movement -- of this I am certain."
To the last sentence we can all say "Amen," and only be thankful that Mrs. Catt found it possible to get together representatives from so many organizations to [center] their minds upon our great Cause. ↑International↓ Peace itself will be greatly furthered when we can all stand shoulder to shoulder with eyes fixed upon the goal, and stand up loyally ↑support↓ for each other even though we may be taking different roads or finding each other at different stages on the same road toward the great common end.
As to what Mrs. Catt says of our efforts for a New Peace, it is unnecessary to make comment to our membership except to publish the fact that a new peace is actually being made year by year in the adjustments and readjustments ↑to↓ which ↑time and experience have proved↓ it is necessary to make, for the Treaty of Versailles itself has proved to be the "impractical plan" and the one which does not work. I will Suffice to declare that we do most certainly aim to be far in advance in this long race. ↑Nor↓ [illegible] shall we stop nor faint because we are called "impractical." Two years ago upon our return from The Hague Conference which advocated a New Peace, we talked a loan to Germany which was a part of our plan of a New Peace. This was greatly scorned by masses of people at the time as "impractical and sentimentalism" and yet a little more than a year later we find it incorporated in the Dawes plan, proclaimed to the world as a necessity, and is now in operation.
Doesn’t pioneer work after all have its own compensation and prove ever so much more interesting than just jogging along at even pace with the rest of the world?
What new discoveries await the W.I.L.'s advocacy within the coming year? [page 2] Of course this was strongly urged by delegates from all the former enemy countries; but that Treaty can only be revised when the Allies give up their consent, and that I am sure they will not do. It seems to me a waste of energy to protest against something which is unlikely to be changed.
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