Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1917-05-29
Autocracy Knows How to Do 1t

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Autocracy Knows How to Do 1t
Now papers have been suppressed in
Germany and in old Russia with fairly
good effect. Where suppression failed. as
in the ease of NOrwacrts the Government
managed to shove into power an entirely
new set Of editors. more amenablc to
reason. These things were done with the
high hand and they were successful But
note how country unused TO bureaucracy
went about it. The NatOn was banned,
but it was permitted to publish I'm Great
Britain. Immediately the question came
up In the House Cf Commons and within
few days the Prime Minister was COM
PEELED to come before the House, in one Of
his rare appearances, to explain. lie didn't
explain. with the best Of intentions 1t
has to be admitted that he fuddled. The
Information given him was incorrect and,
basing his opinion of The Nation on it's
general attitude toward peace and war. he
defended the Government action, which was
taken without his knowledge as justiiablc,
because The Nation was not CritiCiZing to
br helpful but to cause people to believe
that the war was doomed to end without
victory. That line has been taken again
by other defenders of the Government.
TO this day, a month after the first pro-
mitigation of the ban on The Nation, many
PERSONS of intelligence, who have learned by
harsh experience how to wade through Par
NllneuihIN reports, cannot De certain
whether a request for the ban on The Ma
tion was sent from G. II. q. or not whether
Sir Douglas Haig was the instigator Of the
request. if there was "A request, and whether
there was a question of politics mixed up in
the matter CThc suggestion has been
made, not unnaturally but not convincingly,
that The Nation was banned because it is
such an outspoken opponent of Mr.. Lloyd
GoOrgcD
We'll. there you have what seems a la-
grant case Cf autCCratiC interference with
the primary liberties of the people, And
how do the people take It? That is really
the cruX of the matter, because the democ-
racy Of Britain depends not on any Govern
ment i'm power but on the attitude of the
people toward tyranny. Now good many
men have hated The Nation thoroughly since
the war began 4 considerable number
of Liberals detest it's "hannel-mouthed" pol
icy in regard to the war, simply because
the Liberals as n party declared war and
most of the Liberal voters in the country
are heartily i'm favor of keeping at the war
until satisfactory and dependable peace
can be won. The Nation believes that such
peace does not demand an unlimited con-
tinuance of the war in the field.
Unintelligent Censorship
But these same Liberals who do not
like The Nation are hot against the Gov
crnment for the ban, and the Conservatives
for worlds are equally upset by what they
think a stupid and unnecessary act. They
resort to the old argument, that The Ma
tiOn has been given undue prominence, and
they are unsatshed with the defense, which
asserted that a clipping from The Nation
was translated into German and spread
broadcast in the German trenches. The
rame thing has happened many times to
other papers. \ recent review Of the food
situation in The Times is supposed to have
been printed in several million copies for
the same purpose. The whole excuse is so
thin that it won't wash-at least not i'm
the hard waters Of democratic criticism.
1t is true that there have been a number
who defended the Governments action on
the ground that il was a good thing that
The Nation should he faced about. But
no one has thoroughly approved Of the
method
or. to take final example The Admir-
atty, after consultation with authorities Of
the Allied countries. decided to give out
the list Of shipping losses in this form: so
many ships under 1900 tons, so many more
than 1000 tons; with no indication of the
actual tonnage, The navy in general Is
known as "thc silent service" and is ad-
mired But here is a bit Of suppression
which affects the people directly. And, as
far as | can see there Is not one private
nerson, not one newspaper not one organ
of public opinion which does not resent
this assumption Of the right to suppress
news Nor is the Admiralty's case made
better by their suppression Of an article by
Arthur Pollen, the most acute naval critic
Of this time.
What | am most impressed by in the
whole series Of events Is not the attempts
made to cut in on democratic rights, but
the resentment which these attempts have
brought II this country were not really
democratic at heart, these insolenCes (even
iC necessary insolences) would have passed
unnoticed But although Britain has a
long way to go TO popular government, II
has come a longer way than any other ma