The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1916-06-15

wherever they may be- Can you not
recall the thrill which passed through
/ the hearts of every one of us when
we read of the message flashed to an
African ruler. 'Pericardus alive or
Rasuli dead?"
! Nations become jealous of each
other, as men become jealous of each
other. Nations are ambitious and aS-
Egressive as men are ambitious and ag-
gressive, and this ambition and this
aggressiveness will, SO long as ma
tons and men exist, lead to differ
ences which cannot be settled in any
other way, but by a recourse to arms.
! I'VE can all recall that prior to
August, 1914. 1t was frequently said,
1 and almost universally believed that
the greater nations of Europe would
never find it necessary to settle their
differences at the cannon's mouth.
That their business relations were 50
close, that the ruling families were
SO inter-married that war could never
again exist between them. But oh!
(, How wrong was this belief. A crown
prince of Austria while on visit to
the capitol Of the little kingdom of
Servia is killed by fanatic, and al
most without a. moments warning, we
find all Europe engaged In the most
gigantic and bloody struggle In all
history. The dogs of war were only
sleeping, but were ready in moment
to leap at each others throat.
The Lesson Of the Past
what lesson should we receive
from the history of the past and the
recent events in Europe? On the
north we are divided from another
nation by border line extending
from the Atlantic to the Pacific, some
4,500 miles in length. To the north
west is Alaska with its nearest open
port 1900 miles from San Francisco,
and with no direct railroad connec-
ton with the United States. A coun-
try Of untold wealth and teaming with
opportunity, yet, it Is but a few miles
: from the Russian Siberian coast. The
farthest of the Aleutian Islands ex-
tend some $500 miles towards Japan.
The Hawaiian Islands are 1000 miles
and the Philippines are 1000 miles
from San Francisco. To the south
and miles from our nearest ports Is
the Panama canal, In which we have
! invested four hundred million dollars,
and operate in time of war and in
time Of peace. To the southeast Is
Porta Rico; a little nearer is the Is
land Of Cuba, whose independence we
are bound to preserve. To the south
of us are the republics OF Central ana
South America, which for years, for
our own safety and security, we have
been bound to protect from foreign
aggression. All Of these countries
abound in wealth and opportunity and
yet are a standing menace to peace
and temptation to the ambitions and
} aggressions of other countries.
May SEQ Wars Horrors.
mo matter how much we may talk
peace, no matter how secure we may
feel with our great wealth and our
great population, yet. at any time,
without warning, the horrors Of war
may burst upon us. Any moment the
boat may be rocked and If we are
found unprepared we may be swamp
ed. Have. we forgotten the controv-
ersy of few years ago in regard to
the Japanese in California attending
the public schools and acquiring title
to lands, the same as the children and
citizens Of alien white nations? Have
we forgotten the meaning Of the
change recently made in the immigra-
ton bill at the demand of Japan
whereby the citizens of that nation
of white nations?
mo nation on this earth possesses
a people more loyal, more patriotic at
heart than these United States. AS
has been we'll said, we are the melt
Ing not of the nations Of the world.
Must Not Forget Ancestry.
81 have no patience with these peo-
pie who go about the country talk
ing Americanism, and in the next
breath SANDER the Irfsh-American,
the German-American. the French
American, the andinavian-American
the British-American, and others OF
our citizens who came. or whose fore
fathers came from Europe The thir-
teen colonies were settled with the
Irish. the Scotch, the English, the
Dutch the Swede, the German, tina
French and does it lie in the mouth
of any of us who are decended from
these hyphenated Americans, to take
too much pride in that fact and to. for
get that we, ourselves, are of Europ-
can blood and are proud of the fact,
and should we blame the lr1shman-
the German, the Frenchman the Scan
dinavian for being proud of the coun-
try of his birth, or proud of the
country of his fathers? Were he not
so, never would he be an American
at heart If he did not cherish the
history of the country from which he
came. he is not of the stock which
will make a loyal, patriotic American
oiti,op No nation has ever had more
loyal citizens than these men and wo-
men who by some are derisively call
ed. hyphenated Americans.
! "A mans heart is with his home:
with his family and with that country
which has given him the opportunity
to build that home and to rear. edu-
cate and protect that family, and we
never need have any fear of the
lhyphenated American. He is lust as