The Washington times., 1915-04-21

that does not belong to us. Isn't ma
ton In that position free to serve other
La tjoEs. and isn't nation Ike tnat
ready 70 form some part OF the assess
i"Z opinion OF the world?
M. interest in the neutrality OF the
t,H."d states Is not the petty desire to
heep sat Of trouble. | have never
'"oF-d tor 1t, but ! have always found
tr1uGie. II any man wants scrap that
Is an interesting scrap and worth while.
an lis man. | warn MIN tnat ne Is
rot going to draw me INTO the scrap
INK i". trouble that is the trouble OF
I IN in general and ] can help little,
|h: then ] am in for 1t.
Interest In Neutrality.
"R3t I am interested in neutrality
;,.cr;.sr there Is something so much
a-e.ler 10 10 than fight. because there
j. something there is adlstinct!on wait
Ing for this nation that no ma tion has ever
vet got That Is the distinction of alb
solute self-control and self-mastery.
Whom do YOU admire most among your
friends? The irritable man Inc man
out Of whom you can get rise with
out trying? The man who will fight at
the drop OF the hat whether he knows
what the hat is dropped for or not
Don't YOU admire and don't YOU rear
IL YOU have to contest with him, the
self-mastercd man who watches you
with calm eye and comes in only when
you have carried the thing so far that
YOU must be disposed? That is the man
YOU must respect. That Is the man
you know has at the bottom much more
fundamental and terrible courage than
the irritable. fighting man.
News and News.
Now, l covet for America this splend-
id courage OF reserve moral force, and |
IN
simply this: There is news and news.
There Is what Is called news from
Turtle Bay, that turns out to b. false
hood at any rate in what it Is sad to
signify and which, If YOU could get the
nation to believe ii true, might disturb
our equilibrium and our se!f-posSession
We ought not to deal in stuff OF that
kind. We ought not to permit things
of that sort to use UP the electrical en-
argY Of the wires. because its energy Is
malign, iis energy is not of the truth,
its energy is OF mischief. l. Is possible
to sift truth.
Il have known some things to go
out on the wires as true when there
was only one man or one group OF men
no could have told the oriGinators OF
the report whether it was true or not
AMI they were not asked whether II
was true or not for fear 1t might noi
Dc true. That sort of report ought
| rot 10 80 our over the wires.
Plea For VerificatiOn.
There is generally. II not always
somebody who knows whether that
! thing il so or not, and in these days
above all other days. VIC ought to take
| p8 rite ulur pains to resort to the one
small group OF men or to the one man
! II there be but one. VINO knows whether
| those things are true or not. The world
| ought to kaOW the truth, but the worlo
| ought .'ot at this period OF unstable
| equilibrium to be sturbed by runor
| ought not 20 be disturbed by imaGlna
| tive combinations of circumstances. oil
| rather by circumstances stated in com
bination which do not belong in combi
| nation.
For We are holding, not |, but yol
| and gentlemen engaged like you, the
balances in YOUR hands. This unstable
| euuilibrivn rests upon scales that are
| In your hands. For the food of .Ianion
las | began by saying, is the news o.
the day. | have known many n maj
go of at "a tangent on information tina
was not reliable. Indeed. that describes
| the majority of men. The world II
held stable by the man who waits TO
| the next day to find out whether thu
| report was true or not.
| 1--WE cannot afford. therefore. to lie
| the rumors of irresponsible persons anC
| origins get into the atmosphere of tn,
| United States. We are trustees fo
! what ] venture to say is the creates
| heritaGe that any nation ever had. th'
| love of justice and righteousness anC
| human liberty. For, fundamentally
these are the things to which Americi
| is addicted and to which she is devoted
There are groups Of seldsh men II