New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-12-13

~ "A
ton" said Sophomoricus Theo-
logcus, SIS SIM" So we may say
that the prerequisite OF peace
making is war wherefore consideration OF our
century of peace with Great Britain must Degih
with some thought of the war which preceoeu
II. To that conflict we may apply the COM
nent of the German Crown Prince upon the
nresent European struggle. Such STUPID
war; 1t was stupid, indeed, on our part True
IL was marked with two or three heroic per
fornances on land--and twice as many un-
speakably disgraceful exhibitions OF incapaci'y'
noltroonerv or worse-and on the water with
some of the most thrilling and brilliant ex-
nIo;ts in the naval annals of the world But II
-. h.y,,n without due cause, under false pre-
fences and without any statement OF redS0hs'
Il utterly failed of its purpose; and IN the peace
making at its end neither its real nor us pro-
fessed objects were so much as mentioned Out
were all left as before, precisely as though
there had been no Lundy's Lane and no Lake
Erie and "Old Ironsides
We were. as we had been tor a score OF
years the victim of European ENVIRONMENTS
between the upper and neither millstones OF
Great Britain and France at this time grind
inc exceeding small in the last desperate turn
;ngs We were at least ostenslbly STRIVING 10
maintain neutrality, though our efforts were
Unmarried by the savage and insensate prevalence
os such factionalism as mad not before ana
bann;Iv has not since marred our domestic
history.
THE SOMEWHAT VIOLENT AMERICAN
NEUTRALITY OF 1914.
I.s.rson's old hatred of England and love
for France had vanished in the Louisiana ep,-
sode. and he regarded the two imparually' WIN
"a perfect horror at anything like conhectne
ourselves with the politics OF Europe, anu
with a policy of peace, commerce and honest
friendship with all, entanglng alliances WITH
none" That policy he transmitted to his I'M
derstudv and successor, Madison, VINO ialtn-
fullv maintained it, with occasional touches OF
the variability and inconsistency which hao
marked the Sage OF Monticello. 10 cherlsh
peace and friendly intercourse with all nations
having corresponding dispositions was the
kevnote of his inaugural address, and more
sincere man than he never filled the Presioen-
tial chair.
England and France were, however, engaged
in life or death struggle, in which they were
both unwilling to handicap or to embarrass
themselves by too scrupulously regarding 'he
rights of other nations, especially OF nations
which were supposed not to be strong enough
effectively 10 resent such disregard inter
arma." Cicero had said, "leges silent, even
international laws. Moreover neither OF those
mowers had adopted the advanced and en-
l;ghtened principles OF the United States con-
corning neutral rights, but both chung to the
medieval doctrines which ignored neutrality
and held that whoever was not for them was
against them. Still more, there is no doubt
that many British subjects and deserters did
enter the service of our navy and mercantile
marine: and we must remember that neither
England nor any other nation but our own at
that time conceded the right OF voluntary
expatriation.
BRITISH AND FRENCH INTERFERENCE
WITH AMERICAN COMMERCE.
There consequently prevailed tor many years
systematic and increasingly intolerable Brush
and French interference with our shipping.
Our coasts were infested and our harbors were
watched by privateers, some of which COM
nitted acts of sheer piracy. They nave
captured in the very entrance of our harbors,
said Jefferson, mot only the vessels OF our
friends coming to trade with us, but our own
also" Yet he persistenty opposed the build
ing of navy, beyond few small gunboats,
which could be put upon wheeled trucks and
carted inland to get out of harms way. So
British search Of our vessels went on, with not
only the seizure Of British deserters. but also
the impressment of innumerable native Amer
lean seamen, whom England wanted to man
her own ships in her war with France. There
were Orders in Council. too, and Berlin and
Milan DEGREES, in which the two great rival:
seemed to vie with each other in depressing
and DESTROYING American commerce
The policies of both countries were severe
as war measures usually are. But that Of
France was by far the worse. The British
policy forbade us to trade with France, but i
gave us fair warning; it permitted traders to
90 elsewhither with their cargoes, and 1t paie
for whatever was seized.
ARBITRARY CONFISCATION WAS THE
FRENCH POLICY.
The French policy was that OF arbitrary con-
hscation An American merchant ship, for ex-
ample, which was caught by British pri-
vateer, taken into a British port against its