The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1915-04-19
WAR ECHOES

New York World That British orders
in council may be amended and repealed
as we'll as issued is shown by the state
ment of the under secretary of foreign
affairs relative to cotton and dyestuffs
A little while ago cotton was contraband
Now it is free. A little while ago we were
told that the exigencies of war compelled
Great Britain to stop all commerce with
Germany, going or coming, directly or in
directly. Now we are informed that two
cargoes of German dyestuffs already
bought and paid for by Americans will be
permitted to leave a neutral port under
a neutral flag.
In principle we have here an acceptance
by the British government of the main
American contention. There is admin
sion that neutral commerce Is noncontra-
| banc goods matter what the ultimate
destination may be, is not lawfully SUBJ
ject to interruption.
This is not by any means a full recog-
| milton of neutral rights at sea- but it is
| an important move in that direction. How
long will it be before Germany will in
| struct its submarines accordingly? AK
Louisville Evening Post: The London
Times. in former days rather supercilious
in regard to all things American, speaks
in terms of unqualified praise of the va
! rious diplomatic notes of the United
States government since the beginning of
+, the war and observes that, while the po-
sition taken by the United States govern
ment has not always been as the British
government would have preferred, it is
| mi ossible to question the ability with
which the foreign affairs of our govern
ment have been handled during a period
of exceptional difficulty.
! Similar expressions are freely uttered
whenever and wherever men discuss, in a
spirit of fairness, what has been done by
our government in recent months in the
world of foreign affairs. Speaking at
the meeting of the Pilgrim society in Lon
don Thursday of this week, Sir Gilbert
Parker, the distinguished English novel;
list, is quoted as follows:
Never has a neutral nation had such
problems as the United States has faced
| with a temperatures, courtesy and mod
| Grafton, for which this country cannot be
| too grateful. The American government
has pursued the only course possible to
natior DESTROYS of preserving its deserv-
eddy high reputation in the field of diplo-
macy"
This correctly describes not only the
war, but the ability that has been shown
by this nation throughout this terrible
way but the ability that has been shown
by the men in charge. American diplo-
macy has for 100 years been the most sue
| cessfu Our UNFRAMED dlpomatsts
have negotiated treaty after treaty with a
skill that has been freely acknowledged
b. impartial historians of all nations. Our
representatives abroad have never failed
to rise to the situations that presented
then selves Our state department at
Washington has been managed with I'M
failing success, but it has never been man.
aged with more ability or with more sue
cess than in the matters that have arisen
in regard to the European war.
Infamed partisans on this side of the
ocean are slow to recognize these facts,
but the, are true nevertheless, and will
be ungrudgingly acknowledged by the
whole nation as time passes.
Louisville Herald Half the world is
busy fighting the other half. Hatred and
malice toward one another is spreading
through Europe as poison spreads through
the human system. Blasting, whitening,
destroying
The United States has kept out of the
trouble SO far. But millions of this coun-
try's inhabitants have kinsmen across
the sea. Fathers, mothers, sisters,
brothers or more distant relatives.
And when one has kinsmen, even dis
} tant kinsmen, killing being killed in
!, the trenches. It is hard to control the
feelings, to be neutral-to refrain from
, singing the hymn of hate-to refrain from
feeling bitter toward your neighbor here
whose kinsmen, perhaps, are part of the
, foes your kinsmen are fighting.
This Is the time then to be an Amer
: lean first
/ Nail Old Glory to the mast and then
stand by the flag. You are citizen of the
United States We do not want to NEEDLE
+. in this affair in Europe-except to bring
about peace if possible
Feel sorrow and pain that the petty ill
!, feeling of crowned puppets should caus,
the slaughter of millions of men--some
0 perhaps kinsmen of yours-but wher
. hatred begins to steal into your heart ano
! ! the blood-red haze of the battlefield rises
s before your eyes
: Stop and remember that:
: You are an American-first. last and al
i the time.