The Bridgeport evening farmer. [volume] (Bridgeport, Conn.) 1866-1917, 1917-01-23


ing, and the editorial comments are
the only indication of the lines which
public opinion is likely to take. The
Daily Chronicle, after declaring that
the speech will everywhere be recog-
nized as an utterance of extreme ele-
walton and that it's moral tone will
command the unqualified respect of
those forward-looking and liberty
loving elements in all nations to
which he frankly appeals, criticizes
his formula for lasting peace as fol-
lows:
This is an imposing program which
may well carry American sentiment
with it, but the Old World will need
to apply some searching tests to its
broad propositions before they can be
harmopized with realities. The weak
ness of Mr.. Wilson's own foreign pol
icy-in Mexico, for instance-has been
that he did not apply such tests. He
went ahead with his fine principles
and created a difficult situation, with
whose difficulties he was nuprepared
to deal after they revealed themselves.
1--WE suggest that Mr.. Wilson is
throughout rather too much preoccu-
pied with the hopes Of ending this
war on terms without bitterness. Let
him undeceive himself. Such terms
are not possible either way. The
atrocities with which the Central
Powers embittered the conflict have
destroyed their possibility in advance.
1t is lamentable that it should be so.
but that is the fact, and no outsider
can alter it by calling out to us suf-
ferers in our agony that, after all,
there is nothing to be bitter about and
we had better not hit back too hard
for fear our torturers should be hurt.
That it is never very easy to liquidate
such wrongs we all know well
enough. but, on the whole, we are
most likely to reach a new stability
if we go on till right has been I'M
equivocally indicated
The Daily Mail, commenting on
President Wilson's address to the
Senate, says:
President wilson's address is
largely an abstract pontifical state
ment of a future international NOR
atty. Onl the practical question Of
how it is to be applied to the situa
ton as it stands today there is only
one sentence-the demand for free,
autonomous Poland. For any ex-
preston of sympathy with those who
are shedding their blood for freedom
we search the speech in vain.
ITO the members Of the senate, no
doubt the speech must have sounded
like humane utterance. But we,
who can only read the presidents
cold words, are left to wonder Wheth-
err he spoke as the head Of an Ameri-
can university or as the Chief Mag
istratA of flesh and blood Repub-
lie. ~
Germany has declared that she re-
CARDS treaties as scraps Of paper. It
would have been interesting to learn
from the president how she is to be
induced to keep any treaties of peace
if she is not defeated. And when
he speaks of peace without a. VIC
tory, we can only envy him his re-
moteness FROM the reality of war
The Mail thinks that President Will
sons compendium Of new interna-'
tiona1 morality will be read with in
terest, and says that it would be in
teresting to learn what the senate
thinks and how it proposes to apply
the presidents ideals.
The Times thinks it is too soon yet
to form a considered judgment of
L RPONOAAs
. Recall Civil War Precedents.
The Morning Post describes Presi-
dent Wilson's speech as full of noble
aspirations and amiable sentiments
and declares that the belligerents feel
the desire for peace at least as much
as do neutrals.
''It is only when we get down to the
question of how peace is to be at
tanned and maintained says the Post,
that we might find ourselves in dis
agreement"
The paper proceeds to analyze at
length the Presidents statements,
meeting them with counter-statements
and appealing to incidents of Ameri-
can history. In support Of the latter,
it says:
According to President wilson's
logic, it would have been better for
Lincoln to have met the Southern
leaders upon the, field, shaken hands,
and agreed upon peace. When the
war between Spain and the United
States was still unsettled would Amer
leans have been satisfied if the Eu-
ropean powers had interviewed and
said: You must make peace without
victory, because any other peace
and a bitter memory"
"In both Of these cases Americans
would have replied, and did reply,
that the war must be fought to a fin
ish until the vanquished accepted the
victor's terms"
With series Of such instances and
with questions as to how the Presi-
dent would deal with specified hypo-
thetical situations affecting American
interests, The Post leads up to the
following conclusions:
dents scheme does not fill us with
any very sanguine hope. We remain
still of the opinion that permanent
peace can only be obtained by the
defeat of Germany. We would even
say to President Wilson what Lincoln
said to Europe at the end of 1861: L
am quite sure that a sound argument
could be made to show them that they
can reach their aim more easily by
aiding to crush this rebellion than by
giving encouragement to it,
"In other words, if President Will
son desires to end the war, let him
come in and help us end it. He will
then have the opportunity Of fighting
for liberty and all those other great
principles which, as we have always
been taught to believe, Americans
hold dearer than life itself. But if his
enthusiasm for these principles will
not carry him SO far, his next best
course is toll cave 1t to the Allies to
fo, 7, oc1d I>xyt ~