Norwich bulletin. [volume] (Norwich, Conn.) 1895-2011, 1915-12-08
NATIONS SECRET FOES
SHOULD BE CRUSHED.
GraVest Danger to Country Comes
From, Within Our Own Borders.

From Within Our Own Borders.
1 have spoken to you today. gentle
men. upon single theme. the thor
ouGh preparation Of the nation to care
for its own security and 10 make sure
OF entire freedom to play the Impair
tial role in this hemisphere and IN the
world which we all believe TO have
been providcntiaily assigned TO II.
have had in ny mind no thought of
any Immediate or particular danger
arising out OF our relations with other
nations. We are ut peace with all the
nations OF the world. and there Is rea-
son to hope that no question In con-
troverSv between this and other gov
breach of an,icable rela tions. grave as
some differences Of attitude and policy
have been and may yet turn out TO be.
! am sorry to say that the gravest
threats against our national peace and
safety have been uttered within our
own borders. There arc citizens of the
United States. | blush to admit. born
under other lags, bur welcomed under
our generous naturalization laws to the
full freedom and opportunity of Amer
lea, who have poured the poison of ais
loyalty into the very arteries of our
national life. who have sought to bring
the authority and coed name Of our
government into contempt TO destroy
our Industries wherever they thought
1t effective Tor their vindicive pur-
poses to strike at them and 10 debase
pVTr- ttnIfrIaS - 70. in,
trigue. Their number IS not great as
compared with the whole number OF
those sturdy hosts by which our ma
ton has been enriched in recent gen.
eratiols out of virile foreign stocks,
but IL is great enough to have brought
deep disgrace upon Us and to have
made 1T necessary that We should
promptly make use Of processes of law
by which we I2ay be Purged OF their
corrupt distempers.
America never witnessed anything
possible that men sworn into its own
citizenship, men drawn out OF great
free stocks such as supplied some OF
the best and strongest elements of that
little. but low heroic. nation that in a
high day of old staked Its very life to
free itself from every enlargement
that had darkened the fortunes of the
older nations and set up 4 new stand
ard here-that men of such origins and
such free choices of allegiance would
ever turn in malign reaction against
the government and people who had
welcomed and nurtured them and seek
to make this proud country once more
bottled of European passion. lit
tie while ago such a thing would have
seemed incredible Because it was in
credible we made no preparation for
It We would have been almost
ashamed TO prepare for it, as If we
were suspicious Of ourselves. our own
comrades and neighborsI But the ugly
and incredible thing has actually come
about, and we are without adequate
federal laws to deaI with it. | urge
you to enact such laws at the earliest
possible moment aud feel that in doing
so am urging you to do nothing less
than save the honor and self respect
Of the nation. Such creatures of pas
sion. disloyalty and anarchy must be
crushed out. They are not many, but
they are infinitely malignant. and the
hand of our power should close over
them at once. They have formed plots
TO destroy property. they have entered
Into conspiracies against the neutrality
Of the government, they have sought
10 pry into every confidential trans
action OF The government In order to
serve interests alien to our own lis
possible to deal with these things very
/ need not suggest the
terms in which they may be dealt with
l wish that it could be said that only
a few men. misled by mistaken senti-
ments of allegiance TO the governments
under which they were born, had been
guilty of disturbing the self possession
and misrcpresenting the temper and
principles OF the country during these
days Of terrible war. when 1t would
seem that every man who was truly an
American would instinctively make 1t