The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-08-12
M|L|TAR|SM MUST BE GIVEN BLAME FOR EUROPEAN CONFLICT Rev. s. A. Ebinger Makes Thoughtful Contribution
 to Current Discussion
SYMPATHY GOES OUT
 TO VICTIMS OF WAR
Every Nation Has It's War Party Which Should be Curbed Be- fore the Crises Are
 Reached

One of the most thoushtful and sympa-
 thetic contributions to the present discus
 sion of the European war Is that of the
 Rev. s. A. Ebinger, pastor of the German
 Evangelische Friedenlsirche of Birming
 ham. MT. Ebinger was asked by The Age
 Herald to submit his views and he re-
 spends as follows:
 Almost all papers and almost every
 body seems to be bent on saddling the
 responsibility of this world war on the
 shoulders of Emperor William and Ger
 many, It is ludicrous to note how all
 other nations lift up their hands in pro-
 test and how loudly they assert their inno-
 cence.
 The fact is that all great and near
 great powers wanted this war and that they all prepared for 1t during more than 20 years. The truth Is that there has been | in every one of the eontending nations a strong war party filled with the spirit
 of milltarism, and that this war party has
 won't out everywhere. Jaures of France
 Is dead Of him the Current Opinion Au-
 gust number) says: 'Jaures never hides his theory that France coulds do letter with Germany than she has ever done with Russia. He appeals perpetualy to the socialists of England to promote Franco-German pact in the interest of that universal disarmament for which he fights so hard, not only from his seat in the chamber but with his pen in the Humanite Only Poincare stood out for the militarist policy and he was threat
 ened with the loss of the presidency Read what Jaures wrote in the London Chronicle: This mad race of armaments Is developing revolutionary situation in France as in other parts of Europe But Jaures is dead and the men of France are led on the battlefields of Flu rope as sheep are led to the slaughter house.
 Alas. poor mothers of France! Docs not England have a peace party2 Indeed 1t has. but 1t has lost out 10 the War party. And the war party wanted | this war and prepared for this war, and | was ready for this war. l quote from the | Birmingham News of August 10, page {. | 7. here 1t says: The greatest fleet eyer as- sen,bled in the world was mobillzed at | Spithead, England two weeks before the
 outbreak of the European war Alas and the bloom of Englands man
 hood is lead to the battlefield of Europe | as the sheep are led to the slaughter. | housel
 Alas poor mothers of Englapdl Has Germany a peace party? Oh, 1t | has, and l claim seven-eighths of the common people belong to 1t. and If those brilliant articles in Golfers about Emperor | William and the Morocco affair are true. l even William belongs to It. Yet Germany | has her war party as well as Russia and all the rest of the powers. and therefore | the bloom of Germanys manhood is led
 to the battlefield as sheep are led to the ] sla ugnter house.
 1 Alas, poor bleeding mother hearts of | Germany
 And there are some men whose hearts are of stone: they even rejoice to read of
 the horrible carnage. l, as an American
 man, Iove to think of good Captain Philip /, and his famous words, Don't shoot. the | poor delivs die. There are some men who make their 1 reports as bloody and as brutal as pos sible, just for the sake of selling sone extras, and there some men who be- lieve everything they see in print even
 a story of how the Germans took out of a train F innocent children and shot them, and theie' are men whose hearts
 are set siiame reading such reports, so that they even rejoice when they hear that thousands of men are cut down in the flower of manhood. Is it necessary that we make all reports more horrible by false statements'just to fill some hearts with hate?
 Let us think of the flood of blood. of the streams of tears, of the agorIies of the WOunueus iet us Sythpdtnt1e "iti tho | poor mothers of France, of England. of | Germany. of Russia and Austria. Neither they nor their sons wished for war and | let us swear that we shall put our foot | on this modern Moloch right here in | America.
 By the way. only the Czar Is an auto crat. all other crowned and uncrowned heads rule with the help of a Parliament. and thus neither William nor George. neither Poncaire nor Franz Josef can
 be personally held responsible for this
 war Let us lay the fault of this war where 1t beiongs-to the spirit of militar-
 ism. to the ambition and pride of those
 who ought to consider the welfare of the people and who never do it. We have this very spirit in our midst also, and we as wise men ought to learu | in time that when. the spirit of miltr (Coatlnued on Page Elevenl