New Britain herald., 1915-05-21
WAR FOR UNCLE SAM
 ]. ;. F GERMANY WINS
Pineh't Says ]. 5. is Barrier Be- tween Kaiser and World Empire.

Milford, Pa, May 21.-In a state 1 r1ent issued here Clifford Pinchot ] said:
 I What strikes me most in getting
 back from Europe is that the de- /, liberate murder of men, women and
 children on the Lusitania has brought
 the war home to the United States.
 l do not believe that our people have | realized until now what this war is
 or what it means to us The right of men to rule themselves is at stake. Our countrymen on the Lusitania were killed because an autocratic military l empire is trying to seize the domina- 1 tion of the world at the expense of the seif-governing nations.
 Democracy and Imperialism.
 This war is, a death struggle be- tween democracy on the one side and armed imperialism on the other
 France is our sister republic; Eng land is a great and free democracy; Russia itself is on the high road tow ard democratic government. Ger many, on the other hand, is not ruled by the people, but by Prussia and the kaiser. The victory of Germany would not be the victory of her peo- pie, but the successful effort of a restricted military caste to get more power Bernhardi expressed the be- lief of this caste when he said that Germany must control the world O.. go under.
 If the people did rule in Germany the invasion of Belgium, the calculat- ed atrocities committed on helpless people and the murder of our citizens would not have taken place. The people of Germany would never have done these things on her own accord. They, were done because they were ordered to be done by military au- tocrats. In remorse for killing woman and child. a wounded Ger man said to his nurse, sister-in- law of a man I know: Do you suppose it makes any difference that my officer held his pistol to my head until did it?'
 s Conflict With Germany.
 If the German war lord should win, which it has long been evident he cannot do, we should have to face the certainty of a conflict with Ger man militarism, because we should stand between it and world empire. just as the allies do today. We should then be forced either to have our rights treated as the rights of hu- nanity have been treated by the rul- ing German military class in this war | or to defend them.
 we should have to take our turn in protecting the principles of self government against imperialism i'll arms or lose our self-respect. In that event, of course. we should have to fight, but if the allies win no such choice will be forced upon us. Their ]! success will not mean war for the United States; on the contrary 1t will I mean victory for the free institutions which we hold dear and the chance 1 for every nation to work out it's own l destiny in peace.
 Fighting for Our Principles.
 The allies are fighting for. the prin- | ciples for which we stand and our 1 people are right in hoping and be- lieving that they will win. It is | almost as important for us that they l should win as 1t is for the allies them- selves.
 .HThe worst calamity this war could | bring upon the world next to the suc- cess of military imperialism would be l half baked inconclusive peace-a peace which would permit the Ger