The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1917-11-10
Fighting England's War.
(By E. L. Hartman Of The Vigil
anteS.)

There are still few men left in the
united States, notably in our capital
who maintain that we have been in
NelSled into fighting a war for Eng
iand. They make me remember n
certain old sinner / knew back in the
seventies, somewhere in Minnesota
lie subscribed for the County
Times and he carefully carried home
from the Sunday School the thin pa
per that was handed round to the
members by the librarian at the end
o. the lesson hour. He owned q
blpIe, a hymn book, a copy of L. s
Agricultural Reports fer 1869, and
an almanac.
with this up-to date library and the
careful preparation which he was able
TO make through, it's aid on Sunday
afternoons, between maps, he was
ready 10 meet all comers in debate.
And he swore that amy fool man
that tried to make him believe that
the airth is raound is wastin' time an
wind, y gorry"
Come now, L am telling facts. He
did. and l heard him. In fact I was
working in his harvest field at the
time he said it and he stopped three
Graders, three binders, and one boy
raker OF bundles, that's me, to listen
Then he bawled me out for whstling
through my teeth to show my aston
ishment at his ignorance
That man had a colossal intellect
compared to that of the man who
argues that we are in this war TO do
England's lighting. When / was a
boy-here | go again 'on biograp ply
of the auto VARIETY stood by ana
watched two other boys fight over a
bail which both claimed. In the muss
the ball rolled away from the con
testants and as it came my way |
picked it up and held it in my hand
waiting the decision by wager Of bat
tile. The boy that licked jumped to
his feet, looked for the ball, saw me
holding it out and slammed me q hard
one on the nose without asking a
question as to my motive.
Did 1 refuse to scrap on the plea
that | would be lighting Clint's battle
for him? l did not. When that fist
landed l knew that had war Of my
own and that / was the guy who had
to fight it. l fought for my own hand
as the Scotch say, though in this case
1t was nose. l squared up for Ger
tain crimson drops and blobs and
gouts that fell on the spotless snow in
Dakin's pasture, where we played
town ball. 1 was not fighting for
Clint Gould, 1 was fighting for myself
but If Clint profiteA by my action tina
did not hurt my feelings any.
America is fighting her own war
She is not fighting that OF England OF
France or Italy or Serbia or Poland OF
Belgium or Montenegro or Roumania
or Russia. She is fighting the war OF
that big. easy going, fat. and slow-to-
anger country that lies all across the
western continent like a blanket OF
mule. That is whose war she is
lighting and her nose is still smartinr
from the wallop given il by Germany
She stood by and watched the scrap
until Germany took q poke too much
at her and convinced her that she had
a war Of her own.
The main trouble with Miss Colum-
bia is that she did not clear for action
when she got the first hard poke af-
ter issuing Il warning. If had wasted
time in arguing with Jeff Burrell, in
stead of going into action instantly, /
might have wound up alongside OF
Clint watching the CORY snow get
more CORY from my own veins. Co
lumbia, or her business manager pro
tenn, argued the matter until some of
us feared that our war would be our
subjugation without any powder
burned by us.
While the manager argued the enc
my kept on throwing in hooks and
Jabs and uppercuts, sneering and
jeering all the time. Well, Columbia
is awake now and there may be some
lively hair pulling before long. The
very fact that she waited and argued
has made the arguments of the claim
ants that this is not our war stronger
Had / hesitated to. act when, Jeff
pulped my nose that time on the ball
field, the crowd would have felt sure
that there was some justice on his