Virginia free press. (Charlestown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1832-1916, 1915-09-09
"Upholls President Wilson. M
tions Welfare Before hat Of
Private Citizen.


In answer to the recent article In
1 your paper By Mr. r. G. Green, in
I which he commented on certain state
menfs made by the writer in two
! former articles on the u. S.--Germany
situation, wish to say that Mr.. Green
is guilty of act, which lawyers explain
| by saying "he has garbled the evil
dence." In this land of the free, it
has always been considered the right
fof every citizen to express his views
upon the action of the President of
| the United States and such criticism
has never been, so far as have ever
heard, deemed to be an act of treason
never criticised the language of the
President In the second note to Ber-
| lin, from a literary standpoint What
Is did say was, "amid the manifold per-
piexities, distress, miseries and calami-
ties of war-cursed Europe, that any,
communication to any of the Euro
pean powers should be highly, dis
tinguished by that generous and polite
diplomatic expression which not only
does not weaken but does always
powerfully strengthen the arguments
of just and courageous people"
and that 1--WE who dwell apart and In
peace can well afford to deal with
our war-torn kindred across the sea
with wise and nobly generous for
bearance.p
The view then held, and the view
still hold, is that so admirably ex-
pressed by Cardinal Gibbons, 'sthet
loss of few American lives at sea
is a mere feather as compared with
the loss of tens OF. thousands that
would be sacrificed in waEn s4sa
IF England, during the war between
R0ssia and Japan, could in its mighty
dignity and power, issue warning
and a request for British subjects, to-
stay off the ships Of both warning
nations, we could well afford to do
likewise.
Possibly this international dispute is
not over yet. So far President Viii
son has won great victory, and
every true American can truly Re ioioe
| maintain that no loyal American
citizen should put his convenience or
his rights above his nations welfare,
and if American citizens refuse to
consider their own safety or the
safety of their nation, the question
arises whether the Government should
permit few persons to drag the
country into the terrible conflagia-
ton now spreading over Europe. I'll
is the business of neutral to stay
away from a place of danger
Germany does not want war with
the United States. The question as toI
endan9ering American lives ON Brit
ish ships, without warning, in the
danger zone around England, when
Great Britain was herself irving BIZ
her blockade, and is. still trying to
literally starve to death women and
Children, in Germany, has been tenn
porarily settled at least by Germany
agreeing to the demands Of President
Wilson. And there need be no furth-l
er discussion for the present on this
point. 1t is now a matter settled.
My contention is, that rather THAI
have war with Germany, this nation.
Ia devoted advocate of arbitration.
preached so loudly in Presidential
years upon the political stump, should
agree to an arbitration of the inter
national controversy rather than verge
upon war The reasons therefor are
too numerous to mention.
The doctrine advanced by President
Wilson has been fearlessly applied to
Germany; why not apply it also to
Mexico? Germany did not purposcly
kill American citizens; Mexico has.
The loss of American lives was, tiici-
dental to the submarine attack. .Ihe
loss of American lives in Mexicos has
been deliberate, repeated, day after
day, week after week and month after
month. We do not see how the
sentiments expressed toward GERMANY
and the high, threatening tone can be
reconciled with the long, patient and
submissive endurance of Mexican in
science towards our sovereignty, and
robbery, outrage and assassination of
American men and women,
GEORGE D. MOORE.