Middletown transcript., 1915-05-29
WILSON'S WEAK COURSE

express appreciative words upon several
of the wise acts that marked the first
year of his administration. He has
since done number of things against
which every patriotic American must
enter his protest.
/. In the vital matter of the Panama
Canal, Mr.. Wilson on the stump en-
dorsed his party platform, and promised
to carry out its policy opposing repeal
of the Canal Bill; but recreant to both
platform and promise, he has done the
very opposite, fairly dragooning sub
servient Democratic Congress into stul-
tlfying itself and himself, as well as
defeating the popular will, by unpatrioti-
cally subordinating the interests of his
own country to those of England
One wonders which view is really his,
Mr.. Wilson's before election, or preSi-
dent Wilson's after! By a tremendous
majority the press and people of this
country have endorsed the first view,
and disapproved the second. Should
Mr., Wilson, in breach of still another
anti-eleetion promise, venture again to
to seek an expression at the polls of
that opinion of his fellow citizens, he
will then have no doubt whatever of
their disapproval
2. President Wilson's two and half
years of ''watchful waiting in Mexico,
has proved a costly, aye, CHASTITY joke.
8. In truth, this weak, dilly-dally do
nothing, has been pretty much all the
foreign policy he has had, both as to
England's insolent disregard of our
shipping rights upon the ocean that has
resulted in serious damage to our
foreign trade, and also as to Germany's
repeated assassinations of our citizens
lawfully travelling upon the sea under
our own and other flags.
Mr.. Wilson has for many months
tamely submitted to England S unlawful
''papel blockade outrages with little
more than a perfunctory protest-so
feeble that England has so far treated
it with a contemptuous refusal to re-
spond But the insolent seizures go on,
and yet wider paper blockade" has
been established by England!
When IN 1892 this was small, weak
nation, not yet recovered from an ex-
hausting war of eight years, President
Washington resented the same sort OF
unlawful usurpations upon the part Of
England, and our spirited forefathers
were with difficulty restrained from
once more with arms resenting Eng
lands tyranny.
So again in 1867, arrogantly assert
ing another ''paper blockade, Eng.
land, through her repeated ''Orders in
Council" in total violation then as now
of all international law and neutra
rights, sought to forbid our ships using
their lawful privileges upon the higt
seas. These illegal acts, plus the
cowardly attack by the British war
ship Leopard upon the unarmed Chesa
peake, wherein three American seamer
We're killed and eighteen wounded
''ought to have been followed by war"
says an eminent historian, but Jeffer
son, a Democratic president like thu
present one who did not believe in pro
tecting the lives of Americans, swallow
the insult and left the outrages un
avenged.
Quite naturally, this encouraged Eng
land with fresh "Orders in Council, IT
commit in the four years following NOR
and greater outrages upon the propert,
and lives of Americans, until finally il
1872 war was declared, and, as ever
schoolboy knows, our plucky tars drov
the naughty Englishmen off the ocean
Mr.. Wilson'S course both as regard
England's continuing outrages upon ou
commerce, and. Germany's repeate
assassinations of our citizens, has bee
marked by unmanly weakness.
Not until 46 days after the frs
American, Thrasher, was assassinate
by Germany and two other simila
slaughters had occurred, did Mr.. Wilso
act, even then he only issued his bol
demand upon Germany after his sill
''peace-at-any- price" speech at Phila
delphia had been repudiated by tn
whole nation.
And now, after two weeks, no answe
from Germany to the simple question
'Will you st)p assassinating our cit
zens?"-only a plea for delay and a
attempt to sink the liner Transylvanii
and kill more Americans We fear thi
until forced by an indignant public sci
timent, Mr.. Wilson will do nothing
save, perhaps, compose a few mol
bellicose phrases, meanwhile lapsin
into his favorte do-nothing policy {