The Democratic banner. (Mt. Vernon, Ohio) 1898-192?, 1914-09-18
CROWDS
Assembly To Discuss War
News
Thousands Before New York
Newspaper Offices

New York, Sept. 1.-THE great Eu-
ropean war has accomplished one un-
expected and astonishing result in New
York, the establishment of peoples for
ums in all parts Of the greater city.
where primarily the news of the con-
fiict is discussed, but where almost ev.
cry other possible topic of conversa-
ton is aired and exhausted i'm the
course of an evening.
in the informal gathering places.
mainly around newspaper bulletin
boards, the most amazing circumstance
is that the war discussions are among
men of all races and nationalities, of
conflicting ideals and sympathies, yet
the talk is always friendly and amic-
able. There seems to be an entire
lack of bitterness.
Where one would expect, in these
troublous times, to see ugly temper
displayed, resulting in fisticuffs and RI
OF, the utmost good nature prevails.
Germans, Frenchmen, Englishmen.
Irishmen, Austrian, Italians, Russians.
Jews and Americans join in the argu-
ments and oppose each other heatedIy.
but ill feeling is conspicuous for its
absence
Every night now there gathers in
front of a newspaper office at 42d
street and Broadway a group of sever
al hundred men. They congregate in
front of the war bulletin boards, but
close observer will notice that they
pay little attention the bulletins. They
give them a cursory glance and then
look around them, apparently for fam
iliar faces. And that is another re-
markable feature of the forum gather
ings, the same people are there al
most every night.
The discussions always start with
the war. Usually some elderly man,
recognized as a leader of that partic-
ular informal meeting place, will tell
what the newspapers have related that
day. He will also comment on it at
length. Then others will tell what
they think it means, and the argu-
ment is well under way.
For instance. one man severely crit
ioized the Germans for invading Bel
GUM. Immediately a German spoke
up and said that the Germans only
beat the French TO it, that the French
would have violated Belgium neutral
ity if they had had chance.
Stick to the facts" cried an old
man in the end of the crowd. "We
are talking about what Germany did.
We cannot say what France would or
would not have done. It's a question
Of what has been done"
And for a quarter OF an hour this
discussion will keep up, with each
speaker talking, as though he were
on a platform, loud enough for the
crowd to hear. Each creaker is lis
tened to respectfully ant gwen all the
time he wants to voice bis sentiments.
But very soon the TAX gets away from
AAN wal AGAC dAE iAi tAOadh
OF every religious creed and political
faith, Socialists. Anarchists, Atheists,
Catholics. Protes ,ants and what not.
Usually. and strangely enough. the
night discussion gets around to reli-
giOn aud then the argument is wide
spread. Il is fact that nearly every
man i'm the crowd has a religion of
some sort and he is ready to defend it
by argument.
In all the crowds. too, there is a
sprinkling oil women. Some of them
speak up. too. and the men listen to
them defereEtially but do not hesitate
10 dispute with them IL their utteranc-
es are not in accord with the mems
ideas.
The remarkable fact is that the
European war has brought these for
ums into being. Apparently there were
in New York thousands OF people an
xiOus to get together with their fel-
low citizens and discuss the affairs
of the day, but there were no conyen-
lent places until the war provided them
in the shape of bulletin boards. In the
first heat OF the conflict. men rushed
by thousands to the bulletin boards.
Soon their interest in the war tagged
a little bit. but they had found a place
to air their views and now they are
nightly visitors.