The Peace Negotiations: A Personal Narrative

A senior American participant gives a first-person account of the Paris peace negotiations and the internal debates that shaped proposals for an international organization. He recounts discussions over the form and scope of guarantees against aggression, offers of substitute articles, tensions between judicial arbitration and political diplomacy, and efforts to reconcile the president's plan with constitutional and congressional concerns. Chapters analyze self-determination, the mandate system, international arbitration, secret diplomacy, controversial territorial settlements, and recurrent disputes among delegates. Appendices reproduce key drafts and presidential statements, while the narrative explains the author's pragmatic approach and the diplomatic challenges of translating ideals into treaty language.