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About The North Platte semi-weekly tribune. (North Platte, Neb.) 1895-1922 | View Entire Issue (April 16, 1918)
THE MWt-WftKKLY TMBUMC, NOWVM NMMtASHA. PRESIDENT HURLS DEFI SI GERMANY 'OPENS DRIVE AT BALTIMORE WITH REMARKABLE ADDRESS. II. S. WILL FIGHT TO THE END Utmost Power of Entire Nation Shall Bear Down On World Oppressors. Sinister Purpose of Kaiser Re vealed fo Universe. Bultltnore, Md., April 8. President "Wilson at a great Liberty loan colt 4rutlon hero Saturday gave America's .answer to the German drive on tho western bnttlo front; to the renewed propaganda for a Germnn-muda peace, 4o all proposals to end the war before Germany Is awakened from her drenm f world domination. Hollowing Is the full text of the president's nddress? Fellow Citizens: This Is tho an ailversury of our acceptance of Ger many's chnllengc to light for our right to live and be free, and for the sacred fights of free men everywhere. The nation Is awake. Thero Is no need to call to It. Wo know what the war must cost, our utmost sacrifice, the lives of our llttest men, and, If need he, all Hint wo possess. The loan we nre met to discuss Is one of the least parts of what wo are called upon to lvo and to do, though In Itself lm jieratlve. The people of tho whole ountry ure alive to the necessity of it and nre rendy to lend to the ut most, even whero it Involves a sharp wklmplng and dally sacrlllce. They will look with reprobation and con tempt upon those who can and will not, upon thoso who demand a higher rate of Interest, upon those who think f It as a mere commercial transac tion. I have not come, therefore, to urgo tho loan. I have come only to lvo you, If I can, n more vivid con ception of what It Is for. Tho reasons for this great war, tho reason why It had to come, the need to fight It through, and tho issues that Jiang upon its outcome, are . more clearly disclosed now then ever- be fore." It Is easy to see just what this particular loan menns, because the causo wo aro fighting for stands more sharply revealed, than at uny previous crisis of the momentous struggle. Tho jnnn who knows least can now seo plainly how the cause of Justice stands, and what the imperish able thing is. .ho Is, asked to Invest ;ln. Men in America may bo moro surq than they ever were before that tho cause is-their own, and that, If U should bo lost, their own great na tion's place and mission in the world would be lost with It. I call you to witness, my fellow countrymen, that at no stage of this terrible business have I judge ' the purposes of Germany intemperntely. I should be ashamed in tho presence of affairs so grave, so fraught with tho destinies of mankind throughout nil the world to speak with truculence, to use the wenk language of hatred or vindictive purpose. We must judge as wo , would bo Judged. I hnvo sought to learn tho objects Oermnny lias in tills war from the mouths of Its own spokesmen, and to deal as frankly, with them as I wished them to deal with me. I have laid bare our own ideals, our own purposes without reserve or doubtful phrase, and have asked them to say as plainly what It Is that they seek. We have ourselves proposed no In justice, no nggresslon. Wo aro ready whenever the final reckoning Is made, to bo just to the German people, deal fairly with ho German power, as -with all others. There can be no dif ference between peoples In tho final Judgment, If It is Indeed to be n righteous judgment. To propose any thing but justice, even-handed and dispassionate Justice, to Germany, al nny time, whntover the outcome of tho war, would be to renounce and dishonor our own cause,. For wo ask nothing that wo are not willing to nc--cord. It has been with this thought thnt I have sought to learn from 'those -who spoke for Germany whether It wbh Justice or dominion and the ex ecution of their own will upon the other nations of the world that the - Germnns leaders were seeking. They hnve nnswered, and answered In un mistakable terms. They have avowed thnt It was not justice, hut dominion and the unhindered execution of their own will. The nvowal hns not come from Germany's statesmen. It has come from her military leaders, who are Tier real rulers. ITcr statesmen have snld, that they wished peace, and were ready to discuss its terms whenever their opponents wero willing to sit Best Kind of Play Is Work. One of the best kinds of play Is work. Many of the elements of play enter Into work if It Is performed iu the right spirit. The most satlsfjag forms of play are those lu which In terest Is excited; competition, with doslro to succeed and .x accomplish some definite end, makes the game worth playing. Work is fatiguing and -distasteful when it Is lucking In these elements. Natural Gas. N'nlu -al u;)s Js probably formed in down at tho conference tublo with thsm. Ilcr present chancellor hus sold In deflnlto and uncortaln terms, Indeed, and lu phrases that often seem to deny their own meaning, but with as much plainness ns ho thought prudent that ho believed that peace should bo based upon the principles which we hnve declared would bo our own In tho final settlement. At Brcst-Lltovsk her civilian delegates spoke in similar terms; professed their desire to conclude a fair peace and uccord to the peoples with whoso fortunes they were dealing the right to choose their own allegiances. But uctlon accompanied and followed the profession. Their military masters, tho men who net for Germany and exhibit' her purpose In execution, pro claimed a very different conclusion. We cannot mistake what they havo done lu Russia, In Finland, In tint Ukraine, lu Iloumanta. The real tost of their justice and fair play has come. From this we may Judge the rest. They are enjoying in Russia a cheap triumph, in which no brave or gallant nation can long take pride. A great people, helpless by their own act, lies for the time ht their mercy. Their fair professions arc forgotten. They nowhere set up Justice, but everywhere Impose their power and exploit everything for their own use and aggrandizement; and the peoples of conquered provinces are Invited to be free under their dominion. Are we not Justified in believing that they would do the same things al their western front If they wero not there face to face with armies, whom even their countless divisions cannot overcome? If,' when they havo felt their check to bo final, they should propose favorable and equitable terms with regard to Belgium and France and Italy could they blame us If wo concluded that they did so only to assure themselves of a free hand in Russia and the east? Their purpose undoubtedly is to make all the Slavic peoples, nil tho free and ambitious nations of the Bui tic peninsula, all the lands that Tur key has domlnnted and misruled, sub. ject to their will and ambition and build upon that dominion an empire of force upon which they fancy they can then erect an empire of gain and commercial supremacy an empire as hostile to tho Americas as to tho Europe which It will overawe an em pire which will ultimately master Per sia, India and tho peoples of. the far east. In such u program our Ideals, the ideals of justice and humanity and liberty, tho people of the freo self-determination of nations upon which all tho modern world Insists, can play no part. They are rejected for the Ideals of power; for tho prin ciple thnt the strong must rule the wenk, that trnde must follow the flag, whether those to whom It Is taken welcome It or not, thnt the peoples of tho world aro to bo made subject to the patronage and overlordshlp of those who have the . power to en force It. That program onco carried out, America and all who care' or dare to stand with her must arm and prepare themselves to contest tho mastery of the world, a mastery In which tho rights of common men, the rights ol women, and of all who aro weak, must, for' the time being, bo trodden under foot and disregarded, and tho old, age-long struggle for freedom and right begin again at its 'begin ning'. Everything that Amerlcn has lived for and loved and grown great to vlndlcnte and bring to. n glorious realization will hnvo fallen In utter ruin and the gates of mercy onca more shut upon mankind. Thov thing Is preposterous and Im possible. And yet Is not thnt what the whole course nnd action of the German armies has mennt wherevei they hnve moved? I do not wish, even In this moment of utter disillu sionment, to judgo harshly or un righteously. I judgo only what tho German arms havo accomplished with unpltylng thoroughness throughout every fair region they hnvo touched What then, aro wo in do? For myself, I nm ready, ready still, ready oven now. to discuss a fair and just nnd honest peace at any tlmo thnt It Is sincerely purposed n penco In which the strong and the wenk shall fnre nllke, hut the nnswer when I proposed such a peace, came from the German commnnders In Russia and I cannot mistake the meaning of the answer. I accept the challenge. I know, that you accept it. All the world shall know thnt you accept It. It shnll nppenr In the utter sncrlflcc and Nolf-forgetfulncss with which we shall give all that we love and nil that we have to redeem the world, nnd make It fit for freo men like our selves to live In.- This now Is the mennlng of all thnt we do. Let everything thnt we any, my fellow countrymen, everything that we henceforth plnn and accomplish, ring true to this response, until the majesty and might of our concerted power shall fill the thought and ut terly defeat the force of those who flout and misprize what wo honor and hold dear. the earth by a process of natural dis tillation from tho animal and vege table remains of past geological ep ochs, and is nearly the same product as is distilled from conl In the retnrts of gas factories, only Instead of tho heat of fires the Internal heat j of the earth, aided perhaps by chemical de composition, hns caused Its formation on a mugnlficeut scale. Automatic. "Do man dat talks ile loudest," said Uncle Eben, "generally lets his voice keep workln' while Ids mind rests." 1 Lieut. S. Campuznuo, n Cuban aviator who has won fame on tho French front nnd hns returned to Instruct the Cuban esquadrllle. 2 The beautiful city of Bassano on the Brcntn, in northern Italy, which Is believed to be nn objectlvo of the invudlng Teutons. 3 Americans on the watch In tho first lino trenches In France. NEWS REVIEW OF THE PAST WEEK Germans Resume Drive Toward Amiens But Pay Heavily For Small Gain. FOCH'S PLAN NOT REVEALED Hundred Thousand Cheering Ameri can Troops Moving Up to Battle Front Count Czernln's Stu pld "Peace Offensive" Exasperation Against Disloyalists Is Increasing. By EDWARD W. PICKARD. Halted by the magnificent defense of tho allies and, according to their own statements, by the bad weather prevailing, the Germans mnde Httlo ef forts during tho first part of the week to push farther ahead in Plcnrdy. Then, on Thursday, they launched n series of furious attacks In the region nortli of Montdldler. evidently nlmod at tho Amlens-Cnlnls railway. Ten times the Huns, 100,000 strong, ad vanced agnlnst the Franco-British lines, only to be met with a devastat ing gun fire, and in the end they hnd gained but a few hundreds meters of terrain, with three small villages, at the cost of many thousands of lives. At tho same time tho British be tween tho Somme nnd Avre rivers and near Albert, north of Amiens, were subjected to heavy attacks. In the former region General Hnlg reported thnt he hnd yielded n little ground, and on Friday tho fighting still was severe, with the allied lines holding well. Earlier In the week there wero dnlly local operations at many points on the bnttlo front, but these wero mostly undertaken by tho British nnd French for the purpose of Improving their po sitions, and usunlly were successful. Tho recapture of Ayette, south of Ar- :ras, the center of n fiercely contested sector, by the British, and the retnk ing of Hnngnrd-en-Santerro. by the Franco-British forces were apparently the most Important of theso enter prises. In both of them the Huns lost heavily. The period of comparative quiet was utilized by both sides In strengthening their lines and bringing up re-enforce-monts nnd supplies for the renewal of the battle, which was regarded as In evitable. No intimation was glven of the plans of either the Germnns or the allies, nnd there wns considerable won der in America at lenst that the ex pected counter-attack by tho allied re serve army did not begin. It may be that General FAch Is planning to strike at some sector yet ungucsscd. He Is recognized ns one of the best of strat egists. a Since the kaiser hns promised his pcoplo u big victory, thero is every prospect of a long period of bloody fighting, with further henvy losses for the Germans. Already the casualties of the Huns have been staggering, the estlmnte of the French bclmj between 350,000 nnd 450,000. Those of the Brit lsh nnd French have been unexpected ly light, perhaps not moro thnn 1.10, 000, including the considerable num ber of prisoners. Artillery work wns almost continu ous during the week, and especially vigorous In tho Montdldler region and north of thnt toward Amiens.' Tho Germnns admit they hnvchad much difficulty In getting their henvy guns to tho front, owing to the mud nnd the destruction of ronds by the nllles. Also their transport Is so slow thnt they nre short of food nnd ammunition. Presumably In order to help In clear ing up the congestion nnd preparing for n resumption of tho checked ad vance, Field Marshal Von Mnckenscn went to the west front from Berlin Wednesdny. B Of vital Interest to tho United Stntcs Is tho part our soldiers aro to play In the continuation of the great battle. Offered to tho allies without reservation by President Wilson nnd General Pershing, their aid was Joy fully welcomed by tho British nnd French nnd Amcrlcn's unselfish "nctlon fn relinquishing Independent command for the time being was highly praised. One hundred thousand thoroughly trained American troops nt onco began moving toward tho places selected for them, singing nnd cheering ns they ploughed their way through the mud, happy that they were at last to havo opportunity to take n real part In tho mighty conflict. Whero they were as signed to duty nnturally has not been revealed, but wherever they may fight, there Is not the least doubt that the high opinion of them held by the Brit ish and French officers will be fully Justified. The American aviators In Franco have been giving Invaluable aid nnd have won unstinted praises by their boldness and skill during the battle. Attnched to the Service of tho nllles, they have helped them mnlntnln com plete command of tho air. The Ameri can Red Cross, It Is almost unneces sary to sny, hns covered Itself with ndded glory, for Its physlclnns and'nm bulnnce men nnd nurses who wero In the battle zone hnve devoted them selves with bravery nnd solf-sncrlflco to the enre of lhc(woundcd and to help ing the refugees. As our trained hundred thousnnd mnrched away from the sectors they had been holding In France, their places were tnken by less sensoncd troops who enviously cheered them on. From this time forward the flow of Americans to France will bo continu ous, for the government plans to send about 100,000 In ench rcmnlnlng month of this year. This means thnt by 1010 we will hnvo 1,500,000 men over there. As they go. the training enmps will be refilled by drafted men, for It Is the Intention to call out 100,000 of these every month. Tho plnn now ndopted of tempor arily brigading American troops with tho British and French permits the sending of Nntlonnl guard and Nation al army divisions that arc not yet adequately trained and whose ranks are not full. Of course the success of tho Ameri can program depends largely on the tonnage available. It Is good to know that this probably will he sufficient, with tho seized Dutch shipping, the 450,000 tons Japan is to turn over to us nnd tho now vessels being built under the direction of the shipping bonrd. Tho launchlngs of new vessels nre in creasing, In spite of lack of steel nt tho big nog Island plant nnd lnbor troubles at other shipyards. Tho shipping bonrd Is planning to build a number of 10,000-ton vessels on tho Great Lakes. Tho situation in what once wns Rus sln Is If possible moro confusing thnn ever. In Flnlnnd tho allies aro snld to be nldlng tho revolutionary Red guard; tho Germans have Innded n large number of troops presumably to assist tho government's White guard; the Swedes are helping the White guard, who have been shelling Tnm merfors; Russian troops, Including the famous Prcobrashcnsky guard, havo arrived and taken up n position on the Knrellnn front. In Siberia the bolshe vlkl forces hnve asked the allies to aid them In fighting the Cossncks who make Incursions from Chlnn nnd re tire thero; the Jnpnncse still hold back from Intervention nt Vladivostok; tho bolshovlkl declare Slbcrln never will submit to Germnny, but a Gennnn army occupied Irkutsk. In Russia proper, according to Trotsky, tho bol shevlkl hnvo crushed nil their enemies but ve cannot consider their power last ing, owing to the disorganization of the country. They nre still trying to raise a great volunteer army. In the Caucasus the Armenians and Georg ians are fiercely fighting the Turks. In Turkestan and In Kiev serious nntl Semitic riots hnve broken out nnd hundreds of Jews hnve been killed. In Ukraine tho Germnns persisted lu ndvnnclng nnd at Inst reports were nenr Ekaterlnoslnv, while Hie Turks nnd Kurds were threntenlng Scbasto pol. Anyone who thinks he can figure out what all this portends In welcome to try. Russia and Roumanln have conclud ed n peace treaty by which tho latter agrees to evacuate Bessnrabla and to .defend the Russian reuublleeu f titer ntlon against attacks, while Russia agrees to deliver to Roumnnln the sur plus of grain In Bessarabia. Ra Teutonic diplomats seem to bo the stupidest on earth, and R'oldom hnvo they been more stupid thnn In their Intest "pence offensive." This wns launched by Count Czernln, tho Aus- trlnn premier nnd usual catspaw for Germany In such matters. It appar ently wns designed to separate the United Stntes from tho allies, for tho count undertook to show thnt France's clnlm to Alsnce-Lorrnlne wns tho only real obstacle In the wny of peace, no said Premier Clcmenccnu hnd Inquired through nn lntormcdlnry whether Austria-Hungary was ready to negotlnte and on .what terms. To this Clcm enccnu replies merely: "Czernln lies." Tho Austrian lender snld nlco things about President Wilson's pcaco alms, but declared his country would not beg for peace but would enforce It by mor al right and physical strength. Tho Teutonic lenders aro blind If they cannot seo that neither America nor the entente nllles will for n mo ment consider n pcaco settlement that leaves their military power unbroken or thnt docs not carry, as n prerequis ite, the evacuntlon by Germnny of tho Invnded territory sho now holds. Only n few days ngo President WJlson, In n letter to American Methodists, relter- ated his determination to carry on tho war until the German power Is crushed ten With n rush that promised to carry all before It, the Third Liberty loan camprilgn stnrted Snturdny. In every town and hamlet In tho country tho event wns celebrated with pnrndes, salutes and speeches, nnd tho enthusi asm was such thnt the success of ttho $1,500,000,000 loan ennnot bo question ed. Helping to make It a success, with money and with work, has been es tablished as n test of patriotism, and few will care to cvado the test. Most appropriately, tho opening of tho cam paign coincided with the first anniver sary of America's entranco Into tho wnr and Saturday wns mnde n day of remembrance and action that will not soon bo forgotten. fca Warned by their constituents thnt intolerance of pro-Gcrmnnlsm Is so In creasing that It will soon take the form of lynch law, tho members of tho sen nto have awnkened, and on Tuesdny three separate measures wero Intro duced providing for dealing moro dras tically with disloyalty. Ono would greatly enlarge the scope of tho es pionage act and Increase tho severity of the punishments provided; tho sec ond would bar from tho mnlls nny pub lication printed In nn enemy alien langungo; tho third calls for the dis missal of any government employee who unwnrrnntnbly criticizes tho gov ernment or makes disloyal utterances. The governors of the stntes, nt the first session of their conference on Amerlcnnlzntlon of aliens, nlso were roused to speech and nctlon concern ing the prevalence of disloyalty. Res olutions culling on congress to provide for the enforced naturalization of all aliens of draft age and to suppress nil German langungo newspapers for the period of the war wero Introduced nnd probably would have been adopted If Secretary of the Interior Lane hnd not Intervened with n pica against bit terness and for n campaign of educa tion. Mnny of tho governors did not like this, nnd next dny they resumed their demands thnt the government denl more drastically with disloyal ists, spies and the Herman language pres.?. In Colllnsvllle, 111., n mnn of Ger man birth, who wns accused of mak ing seditious remarks, was hanged by nn exasperated mob, and In mnny oth er places pro-Germnns were roughly handled. fa in the Wisconsin senntorlnl election, In which Congressman Lenroot was elected, the Germans of the state did not show up any too well, for they gave tho Indicted Socialist. Berger, n sizeable vote, especially In Milwaukee and other German regions. Also Mil waukee r-i-elcetcd Its Socialist mayor. There mny bo nothing ngalnst such men ns Socialists, but the very nnmo now smacks of treason. Chicago did bptter than Wisconsin, for In Its nldermnnlc election every Socialist and nntl-wur cnndldnto met defeat. SLAYS ipim BY VOTE OF 18 TO 13 8ENATE KILL8 PROHIBITION BILL MANY BILLS PUT TO SLEEP Report of Mockett Law a Move Without Precedent It Passei on Third Day ') "Two wldoly divergent schools ot thought," as Senator Doty ot Soward politely calls them, had a thought contest; In tho utnto sonnto Monday. Ono Bldo was thinking "wot," and tho othor sldo was holding tho "dry" thought, and thoy dlvorged sharply. Ono followed tho old familiar scont and tho other rushed in tho opposite direction. Tho "wots" won, not bocauso thoy thought any harder or hotter, but bo causo thoy wero moro numoroua. Tho drys had a bakor'a dozen, or thlrtcon In their Httlo school most of tho tlmo, but onco when Gates ot Sarpy and Wilson ot FronHor dodgod Into tho dry school thoy had tour toon. Tho wot school paddled along with 18. When thoso two wldoly divergent schools of thought got through think ing nnd school was dlBmissod for tho day, It was found that tho joint resolution passod by tho houso for, tho ratification ot natlonnl prohibi tion was doad and that with It died tho hopos ot any appropriations by this special session ot tho legisla ture for tho payment of salaries and omployoB ot both tho houso and sonato and for tho payment of Inci dental expenses. Tho doad ratification amondmont that had boon passod by tho house and sont over to tho senate for action, pulled down upon the heads of tho sonators throb appropriation bills, including a hill to pay tholr own salaries for services in the Bpe cial session, and bills to pay Inci dental oxponsos and employes' wages and for tho payment ot miloago ot monibors of tho legislature This did not appear to lntorost tho senators. Thoy say thoy did not oxpect to draw pay whon thoy camo to Lincoln. All appropriation hills woro di rected to bo returned to tho houso, for tho roaBon that tho governor had not Included such matters in his call for a special session, nnd under tho Honry resolution adoptodby tho son ato that body will consider no bust noBB not dosignatcd in tho governor's call. . , Tho bills that woro thus put to death aro: H. R. 11 For ratification ot na tional prohibition. H. R. 12 Appropriating $3,000 for tho incidental cxpotiBOB ot tho son ato. H. R. 13 Appropriating $3,110.20 for miloago of sonators and repre sentatives. Tho houso, Monday afternoon, attor Unboning to petitions asking for a homo guards law, passed tho follow ing bills: H. R, 2, providing for canvasBlng of tho soldier vote, Ayes, 07; nays, 0; absont and not voting, 2G. H. R. 3, providing for counting of soldier voto in primary olectlon. Ayos, 70; nays, 0; absont and not voting, 23. H. R. 0, creating a homo guard, fix ing a minimum age limit ot eightoon and providing that; county boards may, at thoir discretion, uso public funds to oquip and arm them. Ayos, 70; nays, 0; absent and not vofiing, 24. II. R. 10, suspending all actions brought by or against soldiors and sailors during tho war and six months thereafter. Ayes, 71; nays, 0; absont and not voting, 22. H. R. 11, Joint resolution ratifying, tho natlonnl prohibitory amondment. Ayos, GO; nayB, 7; absont and not voting, 20. H. R. 12, appropriating $3,000 to pay tho expenses of tho sonato, tor tho present special session. Ayes, G7; nays, 1; absont and not voting, 25. H. R. 13, appropriating $3,000 to pay miloago to members attending tho Bpocial session. Ayes, 07; nays, 15; absont and not voting, 21. Tho nays woro cast by Axtol, Dofoo, Howard, Roiftonrath and Trumblo. II. R. 14, appropriating $12,800 to pay each member attending tho spe cial session $100 apiece, at tho rato ot $10 a day for a limit ot ton days. Ayos, 55; nayB, 15; absont and not voting, 23. H. R. 1, providing a method of tak ing a mall voto at tho gonoral oloc tions of all soldiers and sailors, citi zens of Nebraska, absent in sorvlce. Ayos, 72; nayB, 0 The house had already passed three bills. II. R.'s 4, 7 and 8. This makes a total of twolvo in ono week. No. 4 1b tho Mockott law repoal and 7 and 8 small appropriation bills ' to tako caro of minor state ofllcors for gotten at tho regular session. Ot tho two remaining, No. 5, tho sedi tion bill, and No, 9, tho school land mineral right leaso bill, aro still In tho hands of tho Judiciary. State Auditor W. B. Smith saya ho will not Issuo stato warrants for salaries of members of tho legisla ture without nn order of court. At torney Gonoral Rood failed to glvo an opinion to tho houso on tho right ot tho logiBlnturo to 'appropriate funds for any of tho purposos named, whon Buch appropriation acts aro not deslg natod by tho governor in his call loY a special session. Ho merely advised tho house to ask tho suprpmo court what it thought about it. Ho said the court answered such questions for tho legislature many years ago.