there will be no obstacles to the most advantageous relations between the two peoples. Mr. Hughes not only does not demand any specific act from Mexico, he is at pains to point out that if, as is said in Mexico, there is no intention to construe or enforce. the objectionable provision of the Constitution so as to do injustice to Americans, then it should be a simple matter to offer guaranties of this purpose by Mexico: He expresses the willingness of the United States to make a treaty of amity and commerce provided that the point is guarded in some satisfactory way, but by no means demands previous execution of a treaty. When, he says, "it appears that there is a Government in Mexico willing to bind itself to the discharge of primary international obligations, concurrently with that act its recognition will take place." Like others of Mr. Hughes's state papers, when read as a whole, this statement is well-balanced and sound. It is not the United States which is pressing for a treaty. We can wait perfectly well both as to treaty and as to the recognition desired by Mexico until a properly constituted Mexican Congress unites with its Executive and, if necessary, with Mexican courts in taking measures satisfactory to the United States to insure the safety of American life and of American property. lose a strong and loyal friend. The first thought of Colonel Galbraith since his election in 1920 had been for the relief of men disabled in the war and for the rehabilitation of those who can hope to return to a normal life. He fully recognized the difficulty of the situation and he was as just as he was active in his endeavors to spur the Government on in its monumental labor. He criticised, but he also co-operated. Colonel Galbraith was killed in an automobile accident in Indianapolis. His place will not be easy to fill. presbyteries. This is said to be the largest number in the history of the Assembly. Many of them related purely to matters of organization, but some were indicative of the spirit of this virile group of evangelical Christians. Everywhere the layman was asserting himself and imposing his views upon the Church. This lay voice is in some matters a conservative voice. The presbyteries are not ready yet to have women put upon a basis of complete equality in the Presbyterian Church. The General Assembly will, this coming year, send down a new proposition which would open the office of deacon to the women of the Church. This modest proposition has some chance of carrying. Notably in the matter of union the spirit of the Church is at this time conservative. The plan for organic union which was formulated in 1918 was rejected by many presbyteries under the misapprehension that it involved union with "liberals," such as the Unitarians, or that it opened the door for union with the Catholics. The proposition is still alive, however. The best prospect of union lies in the proposals to unite the great denominations that hold to the presbyterian system of church government, both Presbyterian and Reformed. The sound sense of the lay mind is to be seen in the pronouncement on the subject of mass evangelism. A proposal that the Assembly indorse the work of the Rev. William A. Sunday and other popular evangelists was defeated, though Mr. Sunday was invited to speak before the Assembly. The official action on evangelism declares for those methods of pastoral and personal influence which will bring the steady and permanent results upon which a great church can build securely. The lay vote knows what to do with the ecclesiastical politician, for the man trained in the rough and tumble of ward contests is always more than a match for the preacher-politician. There is great impatience in the Church with self-seekers. When the Rev. L. C. Mudge, of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, was elected as Stated Clerk for five years, it was the most important election held in a generation. The late Dr. Roberts was Stated Clerk for more than thirty years. All the men who had sought the place were eliminated, and a man elected who had never dreamed of being a candidate. Dr. Henry Swearingen, of St. Paul, was made Moderator. The "fundamentalists," an interdenominational group that holds that no evangelical Christian is orthodox without believing in verbal inspiration, blood atonement, and premillenarianism, came up to Winona Lake breathing International LORD BYNG, CANADA'S NEW GOVERNORGENERAL threatening and slaughter against the Chinese missionaries. The Presbyterians have had enough of heresy trials. The protests of agitators were buried in committee. The Presbyterian laymen may be conservative, but they are practical-minded enough to know that self-appointed regulators of orthodoxy encourage more heresy than they ever cure. THE NEW GOVERNOR-GENERAL OF CANADA A LL Canadian soldiers who fought in France must feel a distinct satisfaction at King George's appointment of Lord Byng, the hero of Vimy Ridge, to be their Governor-General, in succession to the Duke of Devonshire. Indeed, some Canadians prophesy that the new Governor-General will prove to be the most popular of any. Lord Byng is fifty-eight years old. He is the seventh son of the Earl of Strafford. Lady Byng is known as the author of "Barriers" and of "Anne of the Marshlands." The former Sir Julian Byng, a cav alryman's beau idéal, commanded troops in the Sudan, in South Africa, in Egypt, and in France. In the recent war he led the British Ninth Army Corps, then the Seventeenth, and, finally, the Canadian Corps.. He it was who directed the famous "Battle of the Tanks" at Cambrai, and it was under him that the Canadians in capturing Vimy Ridge performed one of the most gallant deeds of the entire war. His men have always had confidence in Byng. The confidence shown on the field of battle will, we believe, be transferred to the Dominion's fields of peace. If Admiral Sims has at various times in his career been charged with verbal indiscretion. We have never seen the slightest indication that he was not ready at all times to take the consequences of his remarks without any attempt to dodge the issues involved. Admiral Sims says that his London speech contained nothing which he had not already made public on American soil, his word to that effect can be taken without question. Nothing which Admiral Sims has ever said or published in regard to the attitude of Sinn Fein adherents towards Americans during the war need give the slightest offense to any loyal American, nor could it give offense to any Irishman who hoped for the victory of the Allies in the World War. In every utterance of Admiral Sims which we have seen he has carefully and emphatically discriminated between the type of Irish fanatics who mobbed our sailors in Cork and the type of Irishmen who gave their all for the defeat of Germany. Promptly upon the receipt of the cabled reports of Admiral Sims's remarks, Senator McCormick, of Illinois, called for a Senatorial investigation, and the Secretary of the Navy cabled Admiral Sims, as was his right and perhaps his duty, for the facts in the case. A reply not being received immediately, the Secretary of the Navy then cabled Admiral Sims that his leave of absence had been revoked and peremptorily ordered him to return to America. The Secretary made this cable public, and its tone was of such a nature as to lead the readers to suppose that Admiral Sims had been proved guilty of an offense against naval discipline and the interests of America. Every officer, whether his rank be that of ensign or admiral, is entitled to have the charges against him judged by the facts. To publish such a cable as was sent to Admiral Sims will undoubtedly leave in the popular mind the impression that Admiral Sims has been disciplined, and the general public is not any too par (C) Keystone LADY BYNG, CANADA'S NEW "FIRST LADY" ticular to inquire further into the rights and the wrongs of such a case. Outside of the Hearst papers, there seems to be a very general feeling that Secretary Denby has in this instance acted with ill-advised haste, and in so acting he has been guilty of unfairness to a distinguished officer who was his subordinate. It is doubly unfortunate that this should have happened in a case involv ing the relationship between Sinn Fein Irishmen and America, for it can only serve to strengthen the belief of these alien-hearted agitators that they can bend to their will American politicians and the course of American politics. I A SUPER-GOVERN- would not be easy even now for an idealist to work out upon paper a better scheme for a super-government to insure justice and maintain peace than that which was attempted in the Middle Ages. What that ideal was is described in a volume of the Ford Lectures at Oxford in 1905. These Lectures give in scholarly detail and in a judicial spirit an account of the relations of State and Church, chiefly in England, during the Middle Ages, especially in the middle of the thirteenth century. The Roman Empire had broken up into various independent nations, each with its own customs, its own political government, and, except for the Super-Government, its own sovereignty. That Super-Government was exercised by the Papacy, which was "no other than the ghost of the deceased Roman 1 Church and State in the Middle Ages. The Ford Lectures Delivered at Oxford in 1905 by A. L. Smith, Balliol College. The Clarendon Press, 1913. It Empire, sitting crowned upon the grave thereof." This Super-Government had no considerable military power. ruled by the consent of the peoples whom it governed. Its power was the piety, the conscience, and the public opinion of the various peoples. It rendered some real service to the world. It preserved the great public libraries, encouraged in a small class a love of literature, carried on public worship and a certain kind of education, and kept alive a smoldering faith in God and the future life. To it reformers looked for the moral power available for the abolition of abuses. It was "the intense conviction of the best minds of that age that on the connection with Rome depended the security of the national Church [in England] as against the secular power, the internal discipline and purity of that Church, and the whole prospect of further Reform." The result has its lesson for our own time. Neither the altar rails of the cathedrals nor the walls of the monasteries were able to keep out from the Super-Government ambition, covetousness, gluttony, and lust. The Fourth Lecture in Mr. Smith's volume reports "Protests Against Abuses" made in the thirteenth century and records corruption which is almost unbelievable. One illustration must here suffice: The Pope appointed collectors of taxes, ravening wolves in sheep's clothing, a Roman historian of the time called them, who "were armed with 'thundering Papal bulls, and traveled about on excellent nags, with boots and spurs, a scandal to their order.'" The lesson is written so plainly that willing students of history ought to be able to read it. No ideal scheme will secure justice and peace in the world if it fails to take account of the infirmities and the sins of mankind. No supergovernment can secure justice and peace for the world, whether it is administered by an official body of ecclesiastics, or by a committee of national statesmen, or by a parliament of national governments, or by an Internationale of workingmen. A better safeguard than either-indeed, the only real safeguardis the liberty of the nations and a developing spirit of conciliation and co-operation among them. picked up one day from the family bookshelves. To him Will Wimble and Sir Roger are old friends. Yet he is only a lad of thirteen, no bookworm, just an average mischievous youngster who reads Laurence Driggs in The Outlook for knowledge of aircraft, and "everything Harold Pulsifer writes because I don't agree with him on the fishing question." I quote the lad's own words. As a teacher I have found even the "commonest" children ready to read nearly everything within reach, especially if not "must-be-reads." As a daughter and mother, I find the best way to introduce a child to good reading is merely to leave it around. Possibly a little conversation may lead them more quickly to the sort of curiosity that devours. I frequently find it so. But I pray for the time when a fine print, badly printed, poorly illustrated volume shall never come within a child's grasp. R. I. We have not the least intention in the world of disclosing this boy's name. If we did, he would be pestered to death by editors urging him to place his name upon their subscription lists. Obviously. at the age of thirteen he has a strong claim to be held as that ideal subscriber for whom editors have long been looking. He reads broadly. He reads, at times, for information. And, most important of all, he is willing to read the work of writers with whom he disagrees. The heaven of which editors dream is filled with just such readers. But their mails are filled with letters which begin: "Please stop my subscription; I totally disagree with you in your outrageous and unsocial belief that Camembert is superior to Roquefort cheese." THE SHIPS OF THE NATION fact that Albert D. Lasker Twas reluctant at first to accept the important position of Chairman of the United States Shipping Board does not detract from his quali fications and the zeal with which he will undertake the big job. Mr. Lasker is a hard worker, a pusher and organizer. As head of the advertising firm of Lord & Thomas, of Chicago, he has had opportunity to become acquainted with methods of conducting many kinds of business. A number of business concerns that have grown to great proportions credit their success to Mr. Lasker's counsel and advice. Whether he can make the unwieldy Shipping Board, now in a terribly chaotic condition, take on new life and pull itself out of the depths to which it has fallen remains to be seen. Certainly if energy and enthusiasm count, Mr. Lasker will do much. His is a pleasing personality. He is quick to grasp situations and outline policies. He is not unused to doing big things, even to sending to "junk" outworn policies and outworn materials and making new starts. That may be a good part of his work as Chairman of the Shipping Board. Immediately following his appointment, Mr. Lasker announced that John Callan O'Laughlin would be his assistant. Mr. O'Laughlin's long experience as a Washington correspondent, then, for a short time, as Assistant Secretary of State, and latterly as an official of a large exporting company, qualifies him for the close relation he will bear to the Chairman and to the Board. There could be no better contact man. He is well known and well liked. Among the appointees to the Shipping Board the weightiest name is that of ex-Senator George Earle Chamberlain, of Oregon. This, or a similar appointment, was expected as soon as the country heard with regret of his defeat for re-election to the Senate. The particular announcement was withheld only until the entire Shipping Board should be named. The Senate paid Mr. Chamberlain the deserved compliment of confirming his appointment as soon as it was presented, and in open session at that. Senator Jones, of the State of Washington, Chairman of the Committee on Commerce, interrupted the debate on the Army Bill and asked consent for the immediate confirmation of Mr. Chamberlain. "For twelve years," said Senator Jones, "Senator Chamberlain was a distinguished member of this body. He was one of the ablest of Senators, and his appointment to the Shipping Board by President Harding is a splendid one. I move that the Senate in open executive session confirm the One As two representatives of the Shipping Board must come from the Pacific coast, so two must come from the Atlantic coast, and these are Edward C. Plummer, of Maine, and Admiral William Shepherd Benson, of Georgia. member must come from the Gulf coast, and he is Frederick Ingate Thompson, of Alabama. One member must come from the region of the Great Lakes, and he is T. V. O'Connor, of New York. One member must come from the interior, and he is Mr. Lasker. The Republican members of the Board are Mr. Lasker, Mr. Lissner, Mr. Plummer, and Mr. O'Connor; the Democrats are Mr. Chamberlain, Admiral Benson, and Mr. Thompson. The new Board will have the advantage of two men from the Atlantic coast well acquainted with shipping affairs, Mr. Plummer and Admiral Benson. In especial, Admiral Benson brings to the Board the experience of his work as Chief of Naval Operations during the war, as a member of the Commission appointed by President Wilson to confer with the Allied Powers, as our naval representative in drawing up naval terms of armistice with Germany and the Central Powers, as Adviser to the American Commission to Negotiate Peace, and, finally, as recent Chairman of the Shipping Board. He will be able to point out to the new members 'of the Board certain mistakes of the old Board, to be avoided by the new one. Mr. Thompson is an influential newspaper man of the South. He is the chief owner and publisher of the wellknown Mobile "Register" and the Mobile "News Item." He is also interested in publication enterprises elsewhere. (C) Moffett A. D. LASKER, NEW HEAD OF THE SHIPPING BOARD Mr. O'Connor should be a particularly valuable member of the Board by reason of his long and fruitful service as a labor leader. All in all, the personnel of the new Board has made a distinctly favorable impression on the public. The nominations have now been confirmed by the Senate. The members of the Board, we are informed, are a unit as regards the endeavor to stop losses and to operate a merchant marine on business principles. They should be. For the problem of our merchant marine affects every agricultural and industrial worker just as much as it does every sailor. l'armers and factory people cannot enjoy steady employment unless their products have a steady sale. Our home market cannot absorb all their production; the rest goes abroad. Hitherto we have sent our goods abroad and have brought back the products of foreign countries required for home consumption mostly by foreign ships. This is because we cannot afford to build, man, or provision vessels as cheaply as can England, Norway, Sweden, France, Italy, Spain, Japan. True, we are now carrying a larger proportion of products in our own vessels than we have done. This is gratifying, not only because it discloses a lessening of the difference in ship-building between America and other countries, but also because it proportionately relieves us from employing the carriers of our competitors in trade. For foreign trade, let us remark, does not fall automatically upon us like manna from heaven; we have to struggle against competitors for it. Foreign trade is therefore the life of overseas shipping. The two are interdependent. Our overseas shipping is partly privately owned and partly Government |