New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-08-18
COMMON PERIL, COMMON DUTY
Why Entangling Alliances Are Not
Invaria bly, Avoidab BILE.
To the Editor of The Tribune.

To the Editor Of The Tribune.
Sir: A, and c. are cutting wood, A and
near together, C hundred yards off.
and are attacked by two highwaymen.
Ought to come to their aid or should he
say, 81 am not in danger as long as and
hold out. | will keep on cutting wood? d
and are trying to stop an incipent fire in
their double house. Should F, whose house
is fifty feet away, aid them, or should he
say, 81 shall not be in danger unless the Gre
gets beyond their control. Let them attend
to it. When it really threatens me | will
lend a hand? In short, if danger is IN
mediate as regards two parties but as re-
CARDS a third is contingent on the failure OF
the two to master it, ought the third to aid
the two in fighting it?
We may well ask such questions, and ask
further whether we can in self-respect fail
to seek by all reasonable means the true an
swer for our own guidance.
|, of course, have in mind those who take
Won Bernhard and OSWALD seriously, md
say: "Militarism, as embodied in Teutonsm,
intends if possible to conquer The world and
to extingush democracy. If it can conquer
the present Allies it will. after rest and
after organizing for its own use the re-
sources of the vanquished be able to over
come easily the far weaker resistance which
the remaining civilized countries, ourselves
included, could offer"
Do not interest and honor CAL on the con-
tingently endangered woodman to fight the
contingently threatening highwaymen, the
contingently endangered householder o igh,
the contingently dangerous fire and the con-
tingently endangered countries to aid '.e
Allies in this life and death struggle with
mlitarism? Should not this question be dis
cussed and not ignored to the end that, if
neutrality is our duty, we may really know
this through our own judgment and not
merely accept it as an unexplained, unrea
soned and possibly unreasonable public ju1g-
ment? The evasive answers which | get
from the many whom have asked indicate
that our people have not faced these qres-
tons squarely. Even in your columns | find
no such facing as these questions demand.
| do not ask whether Won Bernhard oughs
TO be taken seriously, nor whether the con-
tinuation OF democracy is really cOntin-
gently endangered. | ask for information
as to the duty of those who believe tlat this
contingent danger exists.
Your words in your editorial of July 30
"the defeat of Germany was essential TO civ
ilization, humanity, liberty" certainly suggest
that you believe thus Is our present con-
tribution of money our full share, when our
defenders are giving blood? Are we in.
measure letting others pull our chestnuts
out Of the fire, letting them save US with
their blood from our apparent peril, while
we give only aims and good wishes?
Bloodless Intervention on our part might
be greatly TO Germany's benefit. This war
apparently can end only through exhaustion.
The worst possible form of exhaustion is
that of men. Should we intervene by aiding
in all bloodless ways to prevent all impc-ta
ton into Germany; for instance, through
Scandinavia and Holland? Then the war
might be ended by her exhaustion of some
one of the necessities, such as ammunition,
petroleum, rubber, nitrate or copper.
The real exhaustion may not be of men.
but Of munitions. With Germany and Aus
tria having only their own factories to sup
ply them and the Allies now organizing the
rest OF the world into an ammunition incus-
try, the German supply may fail while that
of the Allies holds out. II this is 10 be he
end, il is to Germany's interest that il
should be reached as soon as possible .haS
her supply should fail soon as possible
and thus that the smallest possible lumber
Of her men and amount of her money should
be wasted meanwhile.
That human nature has a strong altruistic
strain is proved by the hold which such a
religion as Christianity has upon IT, The
fact that this altruistic strain, which in IT.
self seems a handicap, has survived through
the competition with perfect selhshness md
egoism in the struggle for existence during
the eons of evolution, can be explained ,a!y