WOMEN'S INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE FOR PEACE AND FREEDOM
12, Rue du Vieux-Collège, Geneva, Switzerland
March 28, 1928.
Dear Miss Addams,
I am sending you two letters, one stating the Congress position, but this one to tell you a little about our international Executive, the first one for which I have been responsible. It was of course very strenuous, in fact I think these half yearly Executives are the greatest strain the international secretary has to bear, excepting of course that of preparing a Congress, but I am glad to say that on the whole this one went off well. In signing the Minutes of the last day Fräulein Heymann corrected the word "excellent" which had been used to describe the prevailing spirit to "good," as she said that the spirit had not been very good. But I think it was an improvement on September partly because we had the really valuable presence and influence of Miss Balch and partly because I think people were really frightened. The ebullitions of feeling at the last Executive had been so painful and the controversies arising since so acute, that I know that several of the sections felt the existence of the League was at stake. Nevertheless some of those present, and present for the first time at any Executive, received a very painful impression. One of them told me that she was deeply disappointed and grieved with the spirit prevailing in the Executive. On the other hand, another was very agreeably impressed and interested by the vitality and activity shown and said she would go back to her country full of fresh enthusiasm. The question of the Constitution does seem to excite very intense feeling and it will be a great relief if we can get it settled. Personally I do not feel that it will alter it very much. If the changes are made we shall have a meeting very much like the one we have just concluded, that is a very large Executive with all countries represented who are able to send delegates and all of them voting. I am afraid that nothing will make things right but some change of personnel on the Executive. They are all such fine women, so sincere, so able and so hard working, but in the case of two or three so absolutely unable to understand or [page 2] [sympathize] with each other's point of view and the intolerance that keeps blazing out makes things very difficult. If we always had Miss Balch (or, I need hardly say, you) things would be very much better. I cannot say too much of Miss Balch's valuable influence. When I was here in the house seven years ago working for the Fight the Famine, I had a great admiration for her character and ability and that impression is confirmed by seeing her here now. If she should happily be appointed to the vacancy on the Mandates Commission it would be a wonderful thing for our League as we should then have her often in Geneva and could arrange our meetings to secure her presence. She has such a really wonderful grasp of political problems and such an extraordinarily conciliatory temper that she inspires confidence and respect in all who come in contact with her and her highly trained mind and not least her extremely good command of French and German which enable her to express herself with real precision, are tremendous assets and if she should be engaged in League of Nations work that would not be too exhausting or absorbing, I think it would be a very great blessing to those with whom she works in the League and also to us. I wish in some way, at any rate, we could secure her presence among us. I am very glad indeed that Mrs. Hull is going to be in Europe and we shall hope to have her at the next Executive which will be in Lyon at the end of September.
We managed to get the Swanwick episode settled but only by the skin of our teeth. After extremely delicate discussion in which I feel bound to say -- really think Mrs. Innes behaved and spoke really angelically, we hoped the matter was just saved, but it burst out again on the last morning when a small number collected simply to sign the Minutes of the previous day. However I hope that has been laid for the present but unfortunately I am afraid that the censorious spirit which made the difficulty is still active. However, I do think honestly that Mrs. Swanwick was provocative. But I think we shall all be very careful to try to avoid these pitfalls in future and I rather think the English Section feels that on another occasion they will simply take no notice and go their own way.
I am sorry we did not have really time enough to devote to the reports of the China delegates. I think the Executive should have been more fully informed of the work they have done but we shall try to get Edith Pye to come to Lyon and report in person. We gather that she has had a very strenuous and trying time but kind Tano Jōdai of Japan writes that she is trying to give them a rest there. I am glad you will see Edith Pye and will hear from her direct.
It was really quite unfortunate in some ways that our Executive took place at the same time as the important Disarmament Commission of the League of Nations so we were unable to attend it. Louie Bennett and Yella Hertzka got credentials from daily papers and did attend many of these sessions and found them extremely interesting, discouraging from the point of view of the League of Nations doing anything and not altogether inspiring confidence in the Russians who seem to be intent on preserving the means of making civil war. It is difficult to know where to stand on this question. On the one hand we feel bound to support all proposals for disarmament; on the other hand we are accused of being Bolsheviks in supporting the Russian proposal and it is said that the Russians' only object is to get the [page 3] other countries to disarm and at the same time to leave revolvers in the hands of their citizens so that revolution may be promoted. We are much interested in the Kellogg proposals. On our first evening we had a representative of the Outlawry of War association to speak on the Kellogg notes. We find that the League of Nations Secretariat is very strongly in [favor] of accepting and developing the Kellogg proposals and thinks that it will be disastrous if they are not accepted. The American proposal coming at the same time as the Russian disarmament proposal make a critical situation. It seems as if both Russia and America were to be either drawn closer to Europe or still further alienated. By the way, I do not agree with what I see in the report of Madeleine Doty's campaign in which it is stated that England hates and fears the United States. I feel sure that is neither a true nor a wise statement. I feel there are causes for friction and they were exacerbated by the Sacco-Vanzetti affair but it seems to me quite wrong to tell people in one country that they are feared and hated by another country and not at all true, but the sort of thing that you can make true by saying it.
I am proposing to take my summer holiday in May as I have to go to a [Czechoslovak] watering place for treatment. We have an extremely good and efficient staff in the office at present and I feel sure that things will go well. In particular Anne Zueblin is extremely competent and has won golden opinions from the members of the international Executive. She took the Minutes unaided and managed always to get the exact sense of the discussions and resolutions in whatever language they were put. She certainly will be invaluable to the League and we only hope she will stay with us. I think she can run the office perfectly in my absence and if responsible decisions have to be taken, of course I can be consulted by letter. Of course we can run an international Executive infinitely more efficiently if it is held in Geneva and the British Section is strongly in [favor] of having all Executives here because they consider that the object of an Executive and a Congress is the transaction of League business and not propaganda. My own feeling is that of course from the point of view of efficient transaction of business there is no doubt that Geneva is preferable, but if it is considered that propaganda is really promoted by having the Executive in various towns (a point on which I am not convinced as I think the proceedings of our Committee could have a very detrimental effect) then the members of the Executive must not expect to have everything done in the smooth and efficient way which is possible when you have your complete office staff on the spot. As for preparing the Congress in Athens, I quail, to think of it. How one is to get the absolutely necessary minimum of secretarial help in a city of that kind I cannot imagine. Of course you cannot there secure typists to transcribe your resolutions in English, French and German. We should have to take our whole staff with us it seems to me, and that would be immensely expensive. And of course there are no local helpers on the spot who are trained in Congress business or would be of much help. However, I must not go back on that.
What I think would be very valuable would be to have summer schools in Yugoslavia or Bulgaria, possibly later in [Romania]. It seems to me those countries profit more by a fortnight's continuous study when misunderstandings can be explained, than by detached speeches which always seem to be misunderstood. One of the British [page 4] Section had a painful experience of such misunderstandings. She has devoted months of hard work and considerable money for work in the Balkans and is whole-heartedly trying to do peace work there but the Macedonians, who are extremely sensitive as you know, got hold of a speech she made in Bulgaria and which I believe was entirely mistranslated, but anyhow it caused intense resentment and has led to all sorts of regrettable consequences and extremely unfair criticism of the speaker.
As soon as we hear from you what you advise about the Congress we must start in preparing for it. I hope in any case that you will allow the Committee to make arrangements to take steps to prevent the Congress from killing its president. Would you not be willing (this of course is only my personal suggestion) to preside at only one meeting a day? I have felt ever since the Dublin Congress that the life of the W.I.L. president is of more peace value than the rest of the W.I.L. and that we must never let another Congress be such a strain on the president as the Dublin Congress undoubtedly was. I believe I am one of the members of the Congress Committee for arrangements and I should certainly like to urge that the president only take charge of one session a day.
With very kind regards and good wishes for your improved health and that you will consider it in fixing what will suit you for the next Congress,
Yours affectionately,
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