During the war his great talents were dormant. He merely
came and went, a curious little detached figure apparently quite
unresponsive to the emotions which swept the country during that
eventful period.
With the signing of the armistice he aroused himself from his
apparent torpor. Although he was quite without feeling during the
stress and storm, the situation created by the presentation of the
Treaty of Versailles with its interwoven League of Nations stirred
his intellectual interest. He became the leader of the little band
of "irreconcilables" who girded their armor to prevent what they
regarded as a catastrophic sacrifice of American interests. At the
same time Mr. Knox narrowly missed another opportunity to lift
himself conspicuously above the heads of stump speakers who, for
the most part, to-day comprise the Senate.
During that memorable fight Senator Lodge incurred the enmity at
one time or another of every faction in the Senate. He could not be
trusted to maintain the same position over night, shifting as
expediency demanded until most of his colleagues, particularly the
irreconcilables, were exasperated beyond endurance. At one of the
most critical periods Senator Borah appealed to Senator Knox to
wrest the leadership from the Massachusetts Senator, with
intimations that he would have the support of the "bitter enders"
at the forthcoming convention at Chicago.
Pages:
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176