But he offered nothing at all as a substitute.

It is fair to assume that he had no programme prepared and was unwilling to have any one else make a tentative one for his consideration.

It left the American Commission without a chart marking out the course which they were to pursue in the negotiations and apparently without a pilot who knew the channel.
Six days after the enforced abandonment of the plan to prepare a skeleton treaty as a foundation for a definite and detailed programme, I made the following note which expresses my views on the situation at that time: "_January_ 16, 1919 "No plan of work has been prepared.

Unless something is done we will be here for many weeks, possibly for months.

After the President's remarks the other day about a draft-treaty no one except the President would think of preparing a plan.