The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1914-11-12

where, but stab is their Shiboleth.
Among this element the willy Kaiser,
he with the mailed fist, has for num-
ber Of years had faithful retainers Who
have on all possible occasions aRitated
for German-Swedish alliance. Pam
germanism has become the watchword,
the magical spell by which the German
Nero and his bloody handed, man.
butchering crew would bind the one.
time warrior nation of the North to his
skull and crossbone standard. This
alliance is necessary. they pretend, to
keep the Slsv hordes from overrunning
the western countries, and to save Ger
manic civilization and culture.
Germanic civilization and culture in
deed The great mass of the Scandin-
avian people pray to be saved from
such civilization and culture as the
German savages are now praeticing
and spreading in poor tortured Bel
gium. You have probably read all
about il. Most likely you get II served
at your breakfast, dinner and supper
and some between meals. Does it
whet your appetite TO read about-be-
cause the little country's neutrality
was guaranteed only by piece of pa
per signed by the Kaiser's own govern
ment how the industrious, frugal and
peaceable Belgians are being butch
cred, their wives and children slain,
their fair and fruitful country tramped
to mortar in their own blood, their
churches, colleges, universities, and
great libraries with tens of thousands
of the most rare books and manu-
scripts and treasures of art wantonly
destroyed, their homes turned into
bleckened ruins and lastly, as though
all this hellish work did not satisfy
their tormentors, they are enjoined un-
der the penalty of further death and
destruction to pay 1900 million francs
tribute to these German vandals, the
goth century Huns, these fiends in the
guise of men.
But know the tribe the word I'VE"
stands for in this instance. | have
personal friends. even near relatives
among them.
get almost beside myself with rage
when | think of this war. the most
atrocious crime ever committed against
the poorest, the weakest and the lowi-
est of humanity-the war against the
Belgians, the destruction Of an entirely
innocent nation.
We hear and read about the enthusi-
asm and patriotism among the soldiers
on all sides, but ! want to tell you that
the enthusiasm is all in the newspaper
dispatches, clumsy attempt to hypno-
tize the masses and keep them in sub
lection. Had the decision been left to
the people" Of the various nations
now butchering each other, 80 per cent
would have been against the war, even
in Germany.
But the war lords of the house of the
Hohenzollerns made the decision. II
makes fine sport for them in this beau.
tiful fall weather; the rivers of red
human blood meandering through the
lovely landscape which they are ''re-
generating" harmonizes with the au-
tumn colors. the pallid cheeks and
gurgling breaths of their millions of
lacerated and dying victims as they are
moved down by the hundreds of thou
sands does not appall them. They are
dining and wining and banqueting each
other-as the dispatches are joyfully
telling us-in the palaces of the con-
quered and blotted out nation.
And these same autocratic annointed
butchers of Europe are each one call
ing on his god to witness that the
slaughter is one for the sake of down
trodden humanity-in the other fell
lows realm. Each one feels certain
that God, his god, is taking particu-
lar interest in his case and shall bless
/ hte IN
final victory. And these are called
Christian nations
In Swedish maritime circles England
is considerably censured for not keep
ing out of the mix up. You see, it in
terferes with the shipping on the North
Sea and that strikes hard blow on the
pocket books of my good friends, the
sea captains and shipowners. Sympa-
thies cannot be bought directly, per-
haps, but we are next thing to it.
We have read considerable about how
public opinion in England was against
the English government for leading the
British nation into this horrible world
fire, but such stories all emanate from
Germany and are SO per cent pure fic-
tion.
A short time ago the English labor
unions in a manifesto to their members
closed with these significant words
upon the issue of this frightful con.
fiict depends whether we shall be able
to maintain democratic government
and democratic institutions in Europe
or fall back into despotic militarism."
The same cry is heard also from the
labor leaders in France and Belgium.
This proves that more than war they
dread the deadenng and soul murder
ing system of the mailed fist. If a
tenth part of German militarism was
applied in the American army, navy
and state militia the people would rise
in rebellion as one man. From the
German side the bitter hatred towards
England is increasing from day to day
because the Germans feel instinctively
that that country is an enemy far more
dangerous that France. That this Bit
terness is reciprocated in England can
not be denied. These anti-German
feelings have their root in that notori-
Gus and i'll advised telegram which
the Kaiser. sent to Kruger during the
Boer war. The Kaiser in this telegram
gave openly and arrogantly both COM
fort and encouragement to the enemy
of England. hoping the Beers would
soon be able to drive their English op-
pressors out of the country. Had not
Russia about that time put damper
on the clustering Kaiser's ardor Ger
many would surely have gone to the
Beers assistance with all her might.
You see. Germany at that time was
not what she is today, or she would
have struck anyway, ,dunder und blixen !
England has long beep convinced
that had Gearmny at the outbreak of
the Boer war had strong feet, navy
such as she is aiming to build, she
would not have hesitated to lend the
old autocratic Kruger helping hand.
After England had declared war the
German newspapers sneered and scoffed
at the English. calling say they were
nothing but nation of shop keepers,
that the so-caled English army WASH {
worth transporting across the channel.
True, England is not and has not been
military state since the time the op-
pressive hands of the Stuarts were for