Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1916-04-20
7. R. SCOFFS AT
WILSON'S NOTE
Declares Nation Is Not Able TO
Back Words Because of
Unpreparedncss

New York, April 2O.-Theodore
to express himself last night
about the Presidents demand upon
Germany to abandon her illegal sub
marine war methods. Apparently Mr..
Roosevelt was not greatly impressed
by President Wilson's latest note to
Germany He gave the impression
that he did not place implicit faith in
its finality, but rather looked upon it
as another phase of sort of continu-
GUS Patti farewell performance and
not to be taken too seriously.
lie dictated the following statement:
Fourteen months ago the Presi-
| dents strict accountability note to
| Germany, IT it meant anything, meant
at least what the present note means.
| Unfortunately, the Presidents action
in Mexico and as regards other matter
had been such that Germany did not
believe the note meant anything and
| acted accordingly. An dthe Presi-
| dents repeated notes since then inter-
| sperSed as they were with speeches
and statements. such as that about
being too proud to fight did not re-
move the impression, and during these
| fourteen months ship after ship have
been sunk and many thousands of
lives of noncombatants. including
many hundreds of lives of women and
children, have been lost.
IF Germany now does as the Presi-
dent demands, it will be proof positive
that IL he had chosen to take the prop
er position at the time of the strict ac-
countability' note the lives of all those
women and children and other nom
combatants would have been saved
and the causes of friction with Ger
many would have been removed.
If on the other hand, Germany
does not do as requested, it is well to
remember that such a note as the
strict accountability note of fourteen
months ago is objectionable unless 1T
is backed by the deeds to make the
words good.
"If it was meant seriously and to
produce results it should have been
accompanied by immediate and thor
oughgoing preparation whereas as II
matter of fact we are not now stronger
by man or rifle or a boat or a gun
and of the small amount of ammuni-
ton we have manufactured part was
furnished to the Villistas who used it
against our troops and some has since
been furnished to the Carranzistas who
likewise have used it against our
troops.
Every one of these matters 1 dis
cussed at the time. | can only repeat
II then SAID, lnaC whereas courtesy
combined with resolute insistence
upon ones rights tends to produce
peace a policy of weak submission to
wrong produces a long succession of
inquiries which must be submitted to
and then leaves a condition of eNas-
peration far more dangerous to peace
than if there had been at the outset
courageous insistence upon ones
rights"
Among Mr.. Roosevelt's supporters
for the nomination and Presidency the
Presidents note to Germany was dis
cussed at length and the belief was eN-
pressed that no action by Mr.. Wilson
at this time can possibly injure the
chances of Mr.. Roosevelt to be elected
President of the United States. They
said that they believed in backing up
Mr.. Wilson in his dealings with foreign
nations so long as he is President, but
that they did not believe that the
American people would go so far to
back him for another four-year term,
no matter what the result of his ulti~
matum to Germany might be.