THE BEE: OMAHA', SATURDAY, APK1U 16. 1921.
JL
i
mi
Daniels 'Describes Momentous Sessions
Of Cabinet Preceding the Declaration of
War When Policies Were Decided Upon
Two ammtmmia prrtar eablnst aatUnfa RapnaaM amotion niarVi iw(ra of uhlnrl th.J
, mbl One thouli domtnalaa tit ajlnila "Parla la no loou poaaiMa' Prwtdent raadi Carman
not aloud Dwlalon to break relation U nnaalaipua Danl.la. cmrlnrfd BoattllUa in tar. nndi
warning lo narrMeetinf of March JO brinri auprcrat rioelalnn Teo turn voto for war Spacial
attain of ronirraa advanrrd two warka ,-I want to do rtjht, whether H M poi",' or uol" Mayo
ordered to trim ailantlo fleet to Hampton road.
By JOSEPHUS DANIELS
rainajf Sacratary at tha Navy.
Corjjrrljht. 19S1, rr John V Dili. Copjrlitit b Vatlonal Vawanaper SarriM. OpirrifM lr. C,nl
Hrllaln. Canada and thmiunout Eurepa. AH rli'iit rcarrrad. lncJudim tramlttioo into fore.tn
lanmaga, including Scandanavlan. Vnautborlicd r.iulutlfli for any jmrpoa forbiildeu.
ARTICLE 2.
"I want to do right, whether it is popular or not."
The words fell solemnly and deliberately from the lips of President
Wilson as his eyes searched the souls of the grave-faced men gathered
about the cabinet table.
Already the clamor and counter-clamor was rising from the country
The sympathies and prejudices of men were finding voice; passions were
being stirred to utterance. The echo of the tumult could not be excluded
wholly from the cabinet room. Each of us felt the vibrations of popular
sentiment and demand; each of us needed the steadying words of our great
leader.
I give them the place of prominence in this article, which is to tell
the story of two momentous prewar cabinet meetings, because I believe
they express, better' than anything I could say, the spirit and attitude of
Woodrow Wilson from the first davs of America's crisis to the hour when
he resigned the cares of office
It is my'-conviction, as a result
of close association with, him tq
times ofsuprentc stress, that in,
every great question the ' principle
embodied in his simple but pro
found utterance controlled the,
course he ultimately decided to take.
When he made up. his mind that a
thing was right, that h: should be
(onc, he did, it, regardless of its ef
fect on his party or, his . personal
fortunes. , . .".. , .,
Navy Was Ready, ;
As I intimated in my first article,
the navy was ready for mobilization
within 24 hours after Bernstorff had
delivered his U-boat ultimatum in
fifect it was thaf 4o the State "de
partment. The word had gone to
every ship and station on;-Thurs-day,
February .1." '--;" '' -
A cabinet meeting "was called for
the afternoon of Friday, Feb. 2.
A s we assembled not one of us
failed to realize the significance of
the occasion. Tjie hour had come
for a tremendous decision. The
time for negotiation and parley was
in the soul of every man who rose
to greet the president when he en
tered the room. ' '' '
The solemnity of the moment had
intensified the austerity which those
who do not know him well mis
takenly suppose to be his prevail
ing humor. As I shall show later,
Woodrow Wilson is a-man of gen
iality and humor, , , ' '
But this was a" day when only
serious thought could hold place in
any mind. The destiny of 100.000,
000 people lay in the hands of the
president of the United States per
haps the destiny of the world.
No man there had failed to read
the text of the German note which
was the occasion of our meeting,
but the president, in measured
tones, giving weight to every sig
nificant syllable, read it to us again.
Cabinet Is Unanimous.
J have no doubt his mind was al
ready made up as to the right course
to take, but. before expressing an
opinion,; he called upon his collea
gues to declare their views. , Each
man spoke freely and frankly what ;
he thought. Expressions varied in
I tone and in approach to the main
problem, but all agreed upon one
thing the time had come when
diplomatic relations with Germany
must be severed., , , t
This was the president s belief.
Nor do I think it was any surprise
to him that his colleagues were
unanimous in unit for the dismissal
of Ambassador Bernstorff and the
ending of all further traffic with
the empire of the Hohenzollerns.
Although the session lasted-for
several hours, this decision was
reached . comparatively early. It
had required no debate. The un
answerable argument was before us
in the . German note defiant, per
tidious, barbaric. . -
The remaining time was devoted
to discussing what should be the
next step in the various depart
ments of the government, more par
ticularly in those of state, -war and
navy. The severance of relations, it
was realized would create an exceed
ingly critical situation, and uo One
tried to deceive himself with the sup
position that it was not likely to lead
m a few weeks at most to open war.
Hence the importance of mapping a
program for immediate action. . .
Assured of Congress Support.
From the cabinet meeting the
president went to the capitol, and
discussed the ' situation with mem
bers of the senate committee on for
eign relations and other senators.
He was assured of their support in
any steps he considered necessary.
I returned to the Navy department
so thoroughly convinced hostilities
were imminent that I sent the fol
lowing telegram "Six Alnay. ; In
view of present international, situa
tion take every precaution to protect
the government plants and; vessels."
"Alnav" was the code word for
"all the navy." , " ;
1 pass now to the second , of the
two prewar cabinet meetings which
had to do with big decisions. Much
happened between February 2 and
March ifll ot aDsorDing interest ana
importance, but I will reserve the
telling of it for a subsequent erticle.
March 20 Fateful Date.
Tuesday, March 20, has been, over
looked in the war chronologies "so
tar as I have observed. But the day
should be there and underscored as
a day fateful for America and man
, kind, s ' r f: '
Eleven days earlier the president
had called congress to meet in spe
cial session, on April 16, "to receive
such communication as may be made
, by the executive,"
But events 'were moving rapidly.
Four American vessels Jiad been
sunk without warning the Algon
quin, City of Memphis, Illinois and
Vigilancia with. the loss of Ameri
can Jives. German U-boats were de
stroying shipping, neutral as Veil as
belligerent, by the hundred 1 thou
sand tons. On March 12 we had
begun arming merchantmen, but it
was already evident this defense was
insufficient.
Shall congress be called in session
at an earlier date?
If so, what message should the
president send in view ot th.e 'situa
tion?. . ', . .J ; :'
These were 'the two vitally impor
tant questions the meeting of March
20 was called to answer. rt
Wilson Explains Situation. -..
With an even greater solemnity
than had marked his utterance fol
lowing the receipt of the U-boat
note, the president set forth the sen
Ms character of the situation. He
told what had been done to protect
American lives; he reviewed the fail
ure oftthcse measures to insure ab
solute security; he seemed disin
clined to take the step which would
alldw of no recall, but. with a sort
of detachment from the emotional
phases of the problem, he submitted
it to the cabinet and invited an in
dividual expression of opinion. "
There were those present Who' had
been ready for some months , to enter
the struggle; there. were others who,
sharing, the eagerness of the presi
dent to protect American rights, if
possible without recourse to war,
had come reluctantly to the decision
that, there was now nothing left to
do but to. defend those rights with
the full power of the nation ; what
ever cost it might involve.".
It was curious to listen to. man
after man present his views. Every
man of the 10 was making for th
same goal, the same terrible but in
escapable objective, and every man
approached it by a different path.
Only One Course Open.
The arguments varied; the meas
ure of emotion varied: but in the end
10 men looking into the eyes- of th;
president of ihe United States said
to him there was only one course
open to America she must throw
the weight of her great power
against the character of war that was
being waged by Germany.
Ten men said it to the one man
who would "bear in heaviest measure
the burden of that decision.
And the one man who never
evaded responsibility shared the
view of his associates, and put his
shoulders under the burden. From
that hour he bore it with unfalter
ing courage. In the end it broke
his health, but it never broke his
spirit. :
Decision to call congress in ses
sion on April 2, instead of on April
16, was quickly reached in the light
cf the bigger decision.
It was when these matters had
been settled that a member of the
cabinet read aloud a sheaf of tele
grams conveying the improssion that
the people of America were clamoN
ing for war, and it was in response
to this display of feeling that the
president spoke the words with
which I began my narrative.
"I Want to Do Right."
'"We are not .governed by opinion
in our conclusion." said he. "I want
to do right, whether it is popular or
not."
The next morning the president
issued his proclamation summoning
congress for April 2, "to receive a
communication by the executive on
grave questions of national policy
which should be taken immediately
under consideration."
In the meantime, returning from
the cabinet meeting to the Navy de
partment, I had ordered the fleet
to proceed at once from its
maneuvering ground in Cuban wa
ters to Hampton roads, flf war was
coming we wanted our ships nearer
home. But the details which have
to do with the. navy program in
these immediately pre-war days be
long to another story.
(Tho third artlclo by Former Secretary
Panleln. talllngr of tho mobtlliatton - ot
the navy, will be printed In Tha Be to
morrow.) Twenty Omaha Hikers
Plan Trip in Rockies
Twenty members of the Omaha
Walking club expect to make a 100'
mile 'hike through Rocky "Mountain
National park this summer. The
dates set for the hike are July 17 to
31." according to Elizabeth Parsons,
secretary of the club.
The hikers expect to make 10 or
11 miles daily and seven nights will
be spent in the open. R. B. Gray,
Lois Robbins, Margaret Flickinger,
Mrs. Marie Caldwell, Ralph S. Dowd,
Norman J. Weston and Miss Eliza
beth Parsons make up the outing
committee.
The party will leave Omaha, July
17, for Denver and Copeland Lodge,
where the hike begins. A ' noted
guide has been engaged to conduct
the tour. '
Primary Cost "Fortunate 14"
Less Than Beaten Candidates
W. G. Ure and James C Dahlman
were close to one another in the mat
ter of primary of primary campaign
expenses. Aside from their filing fees
of $10, Ure spent $25 and Dahlman
spent $26. Both were nominated.
The affidavits of expenditures were
filed with Harley G. Moorhead, elec
tion commissioner, Friday. Affi
davits filed show that it cost a ma
jority of those defeated more to
make the race than it did those of
the "fortunate 14."
Slave girls are still sold for from
$10 to $20 each in Constantinople.
OLLOW THE BEATON PATH"
Beaton's ffy
Specials
Remember Tour Nearest Drug Store is the
Telephone Why Not Beaton's?
Our Motorcycles Are at Your Service up to 10 P. M.
. - Phones: Douglas 0081 0082 0083 0084
Free Delivery to All Parts of Omaha.
DRUG WANTS
SOc Lavorls 20t$
CSc Bandoline, Beaton'. , .25
30c Bromo Seltzer 226
SOc , Pond's .Vanishing Cream
for ..".22
50c Stillman'8 Freckle Cream
ior 39
60c Daggett's & Ramsdell's
Cold Cream 484
SOc Hind's Honey and Almond
for 47
$1.50 Goutorbe Face Powder
tor ....986
75c Pinaud's Tivoli Face
Powder 594
'50c Pepsodent Tooth Paste
for ......396
SOc Pebeco Tooth Paste... 394
SOc Woodbury's Facial Soap
tor 216
30o Cuticura Soap........ 226
SOc DeMar's Glycerine or
Almond Soap, per cake... 9
Per dozen '$1. 00
25c Palmer's Lotion Soap. 17
35c Cutcx Nail Preparations
tor .....296
11.50 Lilac Vegetal, Pinaud's,
tor .......986
65c Glover's Mange Remedy
tor .........496
SOc Colorite .226
$1.25 Llsterine 794
35c Eagle Brand Milk ,,..256
$L10 Nuxatcd Iron....:.. 894
$1.35 Lyko Tonic gg
$1.25 Pinkham's Vegetable Com
pound
40c Castoria .............246
SOc . Laxative Bromo Quinine,
tor 226
35c Sal Hepatica ..296
$3.73 Horlick' Malted Milk,
tor S2.89
75c Miona Dyspepsia Tablets,
r ...............494
25c 4 01. Peroxide Hydrogen,
for ,106
SOc Orazin Tooth Paste . . .346
60c Cocoanut Oil Emulsion.394
20c Venida Hair Nets. 2 for.256
60c Herpicide .394
25c Mentholatum ........176
CIOAES
15c Mozart Americano. 106
10c Mozart, Excellante,
4 for 30
15c Kol Tans, special.. 106
15c Rothenburg 106
Get Our Special Box Prices
PERFUMES
$2.00 Djorkiss Extract,
per oz ......tl.lfi
$1.35 Jicky Extract, oz...856
Ideal Extract, Houbigants.
per oz. $2.49
RUBBER GOODS
$2.00 2qt Velvet Combina
tion Hot Water Bottle and
Fountain Syringe .$1.45
$1.40 Radiant 2-qt Fountain
, Syringe, for .: 954
PHOTO DEPT. ?
Ansco No. 3 Vest Pocket Jr.
Social $12.00
Good Box Cameras..........
......... $2.50 "d $3.50
Films Developed Free When
Prints Are Ordered.
CANDY DEPT.
Saturday
80c Fruit-filled, ' Assorted
Candies, per lb " 394
$1.00 Chocolate Covered Fit
berts, per, lb 59
Value
(In
Womea Wha
Their Beauty
Graham Beauty Secret
Kimpto
Immediate
reamlto.
TREATMENT:
i Apply cream thickly to fas aad
neck.
8 Allow it to flry, thoroughly.
3-Wuh eft with cold water.
4 Manage with Graham' 8Ua
Fare. . .
UESCLTS:
WrinklM euappear. .
Blackheada are eliminated. - -Coaree
porea refined.
Skin left fine, clear, and alowlnw.
For Sale at Bsaton's. .
Mail Order Receive Oar Prompt Attention
Beaton Drug Co.
15th and Farnam
April 22 Is Last Day
On Which to Register
Registration for the city electioa
May 3 will close at 9 p. m. April 22.
The election commissioner's office
in the court house is open from H
a. m. to 5 p. m. cauy. un April u.
21 and 22 the office will remain open
until 9 p. m.
Voters must be registered in order
to cast their ballot legally at ths
P"s May 3.
Doctor Sued for Divorce
Rebecca F. Green filed suit for di
vorce today against Dr. James L.
Green, alleging that he has threat
ened her life and failed to provide
proper support. She asks custody of
live of their nine children, these be
ing" minors. .They were married jn
1895, ' . . ' . . . ; . . s
Hearst on Way West.
' William 'Randolph Hearst will.hc
in Omaha ' . this morning .about
20 minutes when the Overland Lim
ited train, on which he is traveling
from New York to San Francisco,
stops at the Union station.
Jury Reaches No Decision
On Meat Market Burglary
Unable to reach a verdict, the
jury which heard the evidence in
the suit of Ray Wilkinson and E. J.
McGlone against the ' Employtrl
Libility Insurance company was dit
missed by District Judge Goss yesv,
terday.
The insurance company refused tot
pay $1,000 insurance for an alleged
burglary of the Omaha Market, Utfi
29, 1920. on the allegation that Will'
inson and McGlone had "staged" th
affair.
ONE MINUTE
STORE TALK
"Tit looked all orer Pitts
birg, Jfew fork, Detroit and
Chicago for s real anlt of
clothes and It may sound
absurd to people who dont
kaow your ttore as well as
I do by this comparison, but
here's a stock - of merchan
dise worth talking about.
There are thonsands ef
stores in America but when
It comes to a STOCK of
clothes you're In a class by
yonrgelf,' said a customer.
GREATER NEBRASKA'S
IDEA OF SERVICE
STARTS WITH VAST
SELECTIONS OF BEST
CLOTHES HADE.
:J0HN A. SWANSON, Pres.:
WM. U H0LZJ1AN. Treas.-
Entirely New Showing of New Styles
Young Men's Spring
A t the New Lower Prices
Clothes
YOUR insistent demands for out-of-tKe-ordinary styles is being
instantly met by this Greater Store. You're out in the world
for recognition today and plain matter of fact clothes won't do
-You know it, we know it, our clothes designers know it.
.Come Saturday and see tJie results of our keen analysis of the1
clothes situation: an uneqiialed entirely new style . show here.
The New
Suits
What a style reve-
1 i..
Qt JL jauou aim revutu-
dpOVt t i 0 n these new
models are making
in this, city today.
Months from now you'll see them
elsewnere today they're here and
exclusively here. New versions of the
belt and half belts, of the pleat and
tuck, of the patch and welt pocket.
Besides, a bewildering ar- .
ray of entirely new fabrics
and colors
The New
Sack
Suits
'35 to 60
Younger Young
Men's Spring Styles
In or ou of high school
means long trouser suitsand
what crimes are often commit
ted in the name of "youths'
clothes." Here you find the
master creations of Langham,
Society aBrand, Kuppenheimer
Junior and -a '; host of 'other
originators of younger young
men's exclusive spring suit
fashions- ' '
Men's and Young Men's
Trousers
A Great Value
Demonstration
Slso $750
' Iff iT a? --
v7 m
'
r 1 : :
I 4 f r It
V I
ts&kw m vol!
m w 1
Xot a familiar
thing about the
new models in
single and double
breasted suits for
young men. Our designers have
evolved new patterns and ingenious
style treatments that are a surprise
, and delight to behold and wear. New
pencil stripes, new checks, new over
plaids, herringbone nov
elty worsteds, tweeds,
'. cheviots, in blues, grays,
browns, tans, olive and
fancy mixtures
'35
to
s60
"Hard-to-Fit" Men
Your Clothes are Here
'".' r
.You're young, too when you
get the right clothes you feel
that way. Stout men, young
stouts, short stouts, big men,
tall men, heavy men,! slim
men, short, men. No limit to
our clothes selections. - Vast
stocks. Every size from the
smallest to 52-inch chest. . '
25 to $60
Spring Top Coats
Gaberdines
Motor Coats
From Chesterfields to
Ultra Novelty Styles
'25 to 0
Mea'a, Yang Men's, Yennsr Tonne Mcn'a Clothim; Entire Second Floor Both BalMlaga. -
Attend the Value Demonstration Saturday
WOVEN
. Madras
Spring
1VU
99
Shirts
WOVEN
' Madras',
That's right, look again' t
$1.40 that's the price on
dozens upon dozens of
"E. & W." Shirts for;
Saturday. ,'
In this lot you'll find high
grade Bnssian cords and
woven madras shirtings. The
sizes range 14 to 17. Stock
np for summer. 4
? " INCLUDING' SOME BEAU Br.'JMMEL AND' ACE SHIRTS IN THE ABOVE ,
New prices, new colors, new fabric from Manhattan,. Eagle, .Bates Street, Yprke, Beau
Brummel, including many new collar attached styles; silk, silk mixtures and madras,
at 92.00 to $7.50. , . . .V yaA ; 'X.U- '
New Spring Neckwear -
An arenue ot Silk Neckwear at Greater Nebraska
a Bilk neckwear exposition. Imported and Ameri
can vearei and knitted silks, ' 50c to 93.00.
: ; ! Men's j Sprini; Underwear
Happy man who selects from complete stocks his sea
son's requirements. Knitted and Athletic Vassar.
Superior and other best makes, 91.00 to $6.50.
NEW HOLEPROOF ;
' LISLE HOSIERY, 40
SILK, 75
pfimsfiaatfnaatV
nr.ECT APPAREL FOR MEN AND WOMEN:
NEW INTERWOVEN
SILK HOSIERY
. at 75c
1- a' ' .
1:
