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About The commoner. (Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-1923 | View Entire Issue (Nov. 1, 1915)
The Commoner VOL. 15, NO. n K w m RSI Wh m'i wmm What the War Proves Tho Washington Tost has learned that a num ber of congressmen, estimated at iifty, are pre paring to opposo tho appropriations for pre paredness which the manufacturers of muni tions aro now demanding, and it calls upon them to show themselves. It need not ho impatient; not only the fifty congressmen but a great mul titudo of un frightened Americans, as well as a considerable number of the unsubsidlzed papers, will plainly manifest their opposition, not only to the expenditure demanded, but to the theor upon which it is demanded. Tho Post says: ."The European war has shown that no man can predict an era of peace. Every country that loves its honor and wishes to protect its citizens must bo prepared on land and sea. Thoso who aro against preparedness must have some sub stitute to offer in case a strong enemy should at tack tho United States. What is this substitute? Is it surrender? Let tho intrepid 60 answer." Strange that one could be so blind to tho les sons taught by tho European war as to see in it an argument in favor of tho "get ready" policy. Does the war prove that no man can predict an ora of peace? No! It simply proves that peace is not to be expected BY NAT-IONS THAT ARM THEMSELVES TO THE TEETH AND THEN MAINTAIN A STATE OF PREPAREDNESS ON THE THEORY THAT THE ONLY WAY TO MAINTAIN PEACE IS TO MAKE PEOPLE AFRAID OF YOU. Tho war in Europe exposes this theory and shows that preparedness pro vokes war instead of preventing it. But any person acquainted with human naturo ought to havo known that tho theory of keeping peace by force was false; ho ought to havo known it even before receiving tho conclusive proof furnished by tho war in Europe. Tho European war is the natural result of a false philosophy a philosophy which if applied to individual lifo would repeal the statutes against carrying concealed weapons and equip every citizen with a -braco of revolvers. Tho Post says that "every country that loves its hon or and wishes to protect its citizens must be prepared on land and sea." Why not apply tho logic to tho individual and say "every cit izen who loves his honor and wishes to protect himself must be armed for self defense." Why does it not lay aside tho veneer of civilization and retreat into the woods? Does it not know that the disposition that leads one to carry arms ia tho disposition that gets him into trouble? The same impulse will lead to tho same conduct, whether it controls an individual or a group Tho stock argument of the jingo is that the individual does not need to arm himself because ho relies upon tho protection of his government, but this argument is very much over-done. The protection afforded by tho government of this country, local, state and national, does not pre sent either theft or crimes of violence. The government does not furnish a guard to walk with each citizen and keep him from being mo lested, neither does furnish a watchman for each man's house. simply says that any per ion who violates tho law will be held to account ability it provides a punishment that is applied AFTER tho crime, i a watchfulness which will prevent tho crime. And has not this nation the same seourlty? Is it not known to every other nation that wo havo an hundred millions of peo ple vfith unconquerable spiritl inhabiting tho richest country in tho world, abundantly sup plied with every material necessary for defense Is not this knowledgo a restraint upon other na tions?. Is there any nation so ignorant as to sup- poso that it could inflict injury upon this nation -with jlmpunity? Is there any nation foolish enough to invito or desire war with this nation This nation has tho same security against injury from Without that the peaceful citizen has against injury from his neighbor, namely, the :deiro to live at peace with tho world and the determination to do justice to all nations, and t Jt also has the power to protect itself whenever protection is needed, and to tho extent that it is needed. Men And what they look for in this world those,,who look for trouble find it a proposition , that an bo verified by the examination of the fr isolice records of any city. Thoso who are not r, looking for troub.lo are generally able to live . on, terms of. friendship with all about them as evidenced by comparing tho small list of crim inals with tho much larger list of honest, respect able citizens. ' Tho philosophy of tho jingo is either false in its application to nations or else it should be ap plied to tho smaller units of society down to the irdividual. Tho trouble is that tho jingo has not learned that thero is no limitation to a moral law. Tho attempt to limit the law against steal ing to petty thefts has given us tho reign of the pirato and the plunderbund, and so the attempt to limit the commandment against killing to in dividual murder has led to tho riot of war. When upright men are brought face to face with the question of carrying concealed weapons they seo that they can not oncourago the practice with out taking responsibility for tho deaths that follow, and so some day the upright citizen will realize that those who, by adopting the false philosophy of Europe, encourage preparedness with the hatred and the war spirit that accom pany it, must share tho responsibility for tho bloody tragedies to wliich these things lead. Thero is a higher standard of honor than the standard of tho duelist; yes, a higher standard even than tho standard of the militarist who knows of no remedy for intellectual error except the cutting off of the head of the man who errs, and no remedy for the mistakes of tho heart but tho stilling of the beat of the heart that makes the mistake. The higher standard is the stand ard set up by the Man of Galileo; His mpral code may be to the manufacturers of munitions a stumbling block and to the jingoes foolishness, but it is tho growing philosophy of tho world. W. J. BRYAN. A PROTEST AGAINST PREPAREDNESS "Chicago, Oct. 29, 1915 To the President of tho United States, Washington, D. C. "Dear Mr. President: Feeling sure that you wish to get from all sources the sense of the American people in regard to great national questions, officers of the Woman's Peace Party venture to call to your attention certain views which they havo reason to believe are wide spread, although finding no adequate expression in the press. "We believe in real defense against real dangers, but not in a preposterous 'prepared ness' against hypothetical dangers. "If an exhausted Europe could be an in creased menace to our rich, resourceful repub lic, protected by two oceans, it must be a still greater menace to every other .nation. "Whatever increase of war preparation we may make would compel poorer nations to im itate us. These preparations would create ri valry, suspicion and taxation In every country. "At this crisis of the world, to establish a 'citizen soldiery' and enormously to Increase our fighting equipment would inevitably make all other nations fear instead of trust us: "It has been the proud hope of American cit izens who love their kind, a hope nobly ex pressed in several of your own messages, that to the United States might be granted the unique privilege not only of helping the war-worn world to a lasting peace, but of aiding toward, a grad ual and proportional lessening; of that vast bur den of armament which has crushed to poverty the peoples of the old world. "Most important of nil, it is obvious that in creased war preparations in the United States w&uld tend to disqualify our National Executive from rendering the epochal service which this world crisis offers for the establishment of per manent peace." (Signed) JANE ADDAMS, Chairman. LUCIA AMES MEAD, Secretary. .'. ANNA GARLIN SPENCER, V.-Sec ALICE THACHER POST, V-Sec ' S. P. BRECKINRIDGE, Treasurer. The above, protest against the proposed pre paredness was sent to the President by the officers of the Woman's Peace Party, with head quarters at Chicago. Other organizations should do likewise. - TWO IiAWQ NEEDED 1st. An act making it unlawful for a belliger ent ship to clear from an American port with American passengers. . 2nd. Making it unlawful for any American ship carrying passengers to clear from wSS lean port if it carries ammunition wheXr ready for use or only partly manufacturlS These two laws would go far toward keening us. out of conflict with tho bellig7rQnts "Stw . should citizens be allowed to ZIS Why ment'into this unpreSted war W. J. BRYAN. Preparedness a Re publican Plan If any democrat doubts that the preparedness propaganda is a part of the republican program let him read ex-Senator Root's speech before the Union League club of New York. He is quoted as saying: "Tho war in Europe is not the cause of a movement for preparation for defense. That cause has long existed; the war in Europe is but the demonstration striking the imagination and convincing the judgment of the people of tho United States upon the necessity for the ad equate preparation for defense." Yes, the republican leaders have had it in mind for a long while the larger army for use in labor troubles and the larger navy to carry on trade wars. They have been waiting for an excuse, and they seize upon the war as an excuse. Mr. Root is also quoted as saying that the de fense program "will include a universal military service of all able-bodied men." There you have it. We are all asked to go back to frontier conditions. The people will not turn back to the old days their eyes are looking forward. The 600,000 against Mr. Root's New York con stitution will be nothing to the majority against compulsory service and European military stand ards. W. J. BRYAN. MR. BRYAN'S JOHNSTOWN ADDRESS In another part of this issue will be found Mr. Bryan's address on "The War and Its Lessons for Us," delivered at Johnstown, Pennsylvania, on November 1st. The readers who havo fol lowed the statements made by Mr. Bryan since his resignation and tho addresses delivered by him will recognize a number of passages. In the beginning he issued statements or made speeches on different phases of the subject, but as he had leisure to. make a more complete re view, of the question he arranged the matter in logical order and for some weeks has been pre senting the subject substan'.ially in the form of the Speech made at Johnstown. Those who aro in the habit of making speeches will recognize the method usually employed, and see how ideas presented at different times are finally woven into a connected address. WHO'D A BIN HER?" A minister, visiting a family in which there were-four sons and no daughters, ventured to say at the table: "What a pity one of these boys was not a girl." The oldest promptly replied, "Who'd a bin her? I wouldn't a bin her, and George wouldn't, and Jim wouldn't and Bill wouldn't. Who'd a bin her?" vAnd so it will be when the jingoes begin look ing for a source of revenue from which to col lect the amount needed for frenzied prepared ness. No source can be found that will he acceptable. WA1VS WHEEL OF FORTUNE War has been variously described, but just now it resembles a wheel of fortune more than anything else. No matter which side turns the wheel, it is uncertain at which number it win stop. At one time Germany approaches Paris, only to be driven back; next, Russia pushes for ward to the Carpathians only to be forced bacK toward Petrograd. And now a drive is being made through Bulgaria to rescue Constantin ople but the wheel is still whirling, and it is a gambler's guoss where it will stop. In tne meantime, men die and women weep; debts pt up and hatred sows the seed, of conflicts yet to come! It was once said of a speech that any sentence in it would have been a good place to quit; is i not so with war? When will the nations turn from combat, the instrumentality of barbarf, to co-operation, tho instrument of clviiiza tion? When will they learn the truth, economic as well as moral, that it Is better to help eacu other than to kill each other? And yet tnew aro Americans who would; have this nation tu ter this -war!' - '" VAr , - ..v. J. BRYAN. U