The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-05-24
A VIEW.
Germany the Best Killer and There
fore She VIII Win.

great war that has not been struck.
1t Is the note of sympathy for our Ger
man neighbors here in America. Imag-
inc the feelings. OF the hundreds OF Ger
mans settled in American surroundings
who are hearing all the time terrible
news of their families and friends. and
who know that their country. which has
stood to them for everything that they
have missed here and to which OF course
they are still devoted. Is UP in arms for
a cause that engages every thought Of
their people to the last man! They are
simply wrapped up. absorbed, in the con-
sideration OF the conflict and their "
feelings about It. They cant speak
calmly or think coolly even OF their W
AFFAIRS. let alone calmly consider the
American point Of view.
And the Americans, in what must APP
pear to an utterly heartless
n unsympathetic manner. just because
we're not In the affair and so can make
sweeping statements with cold delibera-
ton, malien their Kaiser, whom all ira
dition and custom taught them to re-
we're say that all are blinded
and deceived by him. when that would
mean a lack Of intelligence that would
he impossible In such a free thinking
and intellectual mass OF people. and
most of all ridicule and speak with con-
tempt or derision of the Germans here.
their opinions and their manner Of liv-
ing and talking. Everything that can
possibly be used as an object OF derision
or scorn against the Germans the Amer
leans are using recklessly and thought
lessly.
] cannot believe that our great men
could have so little brains as to he
swayed and allow their opinions to he
determined by newspaper headlines. or
that they could have so little Impair
TALLY or deliberation OF Judgment. I
have always thought that we should
look to such men as President Eliot for
our opinions, but ] would not now take
my opinion from him about anything,
after his wholesale and insulting state
ments against Germany In his news
paper articles.
That Germany Is wrong Is the Amer-
lean opinion. ] feel so strongly that our
country Is involving herself ny this
abandonment to one idea. instead OF
neutral and stable thinking. acting and
speaking, that | nave decided TO do what
little ! can TO bring a few people to the
realization ~ the horrible things they
say without thought OF their far reach
ing results to this country. see clearly
because I feel too and do not judge as
an outsider. I have read mort OF the
much discussed books on the war. They
have had an effect on the Americans
all out ~ proportion 10 their true i'm
~portance. Won B~crnhardrs book. for
instance. has been faunte about in
America as an expression Of German
sentiments. Won Bernhardi was hardly
known and was u~nrecognized as an au-
thority In his own country before the
war. The book was a statement of his
Individual views. II was written Just
as. for instance. some little known Gem
aral hAra tpiDht anita nhNnt "A rnnnnagt
of South America by us or a war with
Japan.
No one can decide who is right in
this case. | certainly don't attempt TO.
We might az well take any war In his
tory and argue on who was right. Roth
had some right on their side. And so
II IL now
Not any one country. assuredly not
any one man. can have caused such a
conflict or can he blamed for It. The
war Is here. a situation in which most
OF the men. most ~ the intellect and
certainly all the resources Of the world
are directed toward destruction Of all
that they have built up. II all that Is
good and noble and fine in the world
could not prevent and cannot check that
destruction. then all that Is base and
selfish must have caused Il. The cause
goes so much deeper. involves 80 much
more than Americans seem to realize.
IL is folly 10 use only the instances or
Austria and Belgium when forming a
decision that must depend on so much
more than whether or not Germany was
right In UNFOLDING the one and Destroy
ing the other.
The news is maliciously twisted. For
instance. the question of the shipment
OF ammunition and food. Before the war
there was no international law or agree
ment that would prevent our shipping
food 20 Germany. Rut since the war
England has prevented II. and the
United States has not insisted upon her
right as a neutral nation to ship food
stuffs there. SO Germany is shut off from
her supplies by a decree which England
has issued for her own irteres, and
which the United states weakly concurs
in TO the detrlment OF ours. Germany
protests against this, and Americans in
stead of seeing 1t that way. say that
Germany is furious because We are ship
ping ammunition to tho Allies. Ger
many has not denied that she would
herself buy ammunition of us IL re-
strictions were removed No intelligent
German hlamcs tho United States for
the shipment OF ammunition. That idea
was Made in America"
For my part | admire the brilliant
daring with which the Germans seize
upon every means lo lflNt nome 10 tnS
rest Of the world the fact that. being
desperate. they will stop ut nothing
which will the sooner show their un-
purpose and iuflexihle will,
When one gun can Kill hundreds Of men
in a few minutes II is no time to talk
of mercy or humanity, hut IL possible to
find still more terrible means of destruC-
tion and use them in still more in
human ways What is a fight hut a
trial Of who can hurt the most? And
what difference does IL make nov that
hurt IL administered?
Modern warfare has resolved itself
int" - question of vino can use the
most deadly means. Now If one side
ou'wit tie other IN acts of deadli-
ness the sooner and more deadly tn.
means the quicker il will he over. \
more accidents like the Lusitania,
a few more battles in Poland and
In which iermany's ability TO
triumph at any cost is shown, and per-
haps the others viii realize TINT they
are outwitted. tiermapy's graSpiug Of
The truth that only deadly means will
tell is shown by her wanton and lavish
sacrifice of her own men. Isn't that
enough to show how she outwits the
In seiging OH the main principle
~ modern warfare? The one who kills
most and quickest viii win. So Ger
Kills the most. both OF her own
men and others, and she viii win,
And when she does, then we here In
will have TO reform our opin-
.ons, retract our extreme and rash
statements, admit that we didn't
snow" and Il ought TO he "A very mn