The Wheeling intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1903-1961, 1916-10-11

The Swiss nation has been firmly
welded together in the fires of sec
ond year Of war National crises.
though undiminiShpd in intensity. no
lungeA threaten disunion. Al the cut
break of the war d question whether
a nation OF hyphCnatcd Frcnch-Ger-
imam and Italiau-SwiSS could resist the
crushing. diSintegratng force Of lar,
scr surrounding nations. Would radical
partiCularlsm separate the SWISS !:
Each power at Switzerlaud's gates
made an impassioned appeal i'll the
name of its language and. civilization
ITO the small part Of its family living
under the Swiss flag. Would they be
forced 70 raise fortresses within
against themselves because of refusal
no raise a solid wall without? But
like national Parsifal, switzerland
passed through one, ordeal atleT an
other; appeals to the heart, 10 sell
interest treachery from within and
i1reachery without. Even starvation
mrnaced her. Nation or race-eTery
Swiss has had TO choose His heart
may be with one cause or the other
but his loyalty must be first to Swltzcr-
land.
Neutrality itself from the midst
of such Il struggle seemed contrary to
some natural force impelling TO
war. Such burdens and responsibility
les as neutrality entails make tins
position Il difficult one. If any mag
med that neutrality was q negative
state implying simply "stille setzen'
they were speeding disillusioned. Eacn
of the surrounding peoples expected
some peculiar, benevolent neutrality.
AS soon as the Swiss in public office
opened his mouth someone found him
unneutral toward somebody. should
ncutrals chloroform themselves until
the end of the war? asked LOMBARD
Economic pressure from all sides
makes neutrality in switzerland even
less attractive than elsewhere. Ger
many controls the Swiss coal supply
now that English coal through France
lis 10 longer available. Lines OF coal
cars marked W es p Il 4 n-t.sSen
stretch FROM one end OF Switzerland
ito the other. Any hinderance IN the
supply would Immediately paralyze
the intense Industrial activity of the
country. France. on the other hanG,
offers port facilities through Ceete,
upon which Swiss are largely depend
cnt for theinr grain supply. This noun
famous little country produces only
sufficient wheaat TO feed her people
seventy days. Coal entered Switzer-
land for long time unreStraIned IN
;Supply. but last June Germany demand
I'd special compenSations. and threaen-
ed 10 ston the supply. These compen-
sations. however. were FOR the articles
on which the Allies had insisted that
Switzerland put an embargo before
they permitted her to secure her daily
bread. This then tho impasse: Ger
man demands, postponed such dan
ger.
The preoccupation OF governments
on all sides that their goods not reach
the enemy makes the control they eX'
evcize over the Swiss trade particular
lr onerous. Blacklistlng by both
French and German firms has been
tunctioning long before we heard OF
that new International courtesy over
here. Control by the Allies is operated
through the Swiss Society of Surreil,
lance. the famous S. S. S. modelled
after the Netherlands Overseas Trust
In addition TO the prohibitive embar-
goes which the Swiss found them