Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1917-02-15

nanns efforts were supplemented by
those of President Benton, who, through
Senator Dillingham;, appealed to the Ger
| man ambassador for such assignment
! And Professor Appe!Eaann was permitted
/ to- spend another yenr at the university
and taught during the college year 1919
! 1914 as professor Of German.
| Then Ambassador Bernstorff. having
! stated that he could not secure another
assignment at the university and Profess
sor Appclmann ard the trustees desiring
a continuance of hts employment. Profess
sor Appclmann returned to Germany for
the purpose Of obtaining If possible the
! consent Of the department of education
tn another years assignment at the Uni
vcisity Of Vermont. In July. 1914. he visit
| cd his parents at q summer resort where
they were stopping in Belgium. He was
Mt Licge a day or two before war was
declared and arrived in Berlin soon after
the declaration of war. For short time
thereafter he was employed IN a clerical
position with Prof. Paul Rohrbach in the
information bureau of the imperial Ger
man navy. H.: had not met Dr. Rohrbach
before that time. Professor Appelmann
never received regular military training
but he was a member of G. reserve mill
tary organization of Germany called the
Landsturm. And after the war broke
out it was necessary for him to secure
the consent of military authorities in ad-
dition to the consent of the department
of education in order to return to this
country.
Such double consent was obtained about
the middle of August and he arrived in
} New York about the 10th of September.
: 1914. Before returning to Germany in 1914
he had considered for some time the mat
ter of becoming an American citizen and
: while in New York on the 18th of Sep
tember 1914, he took out his first natural
ization papers, therein declaring his in
tention of becoming an American citizen.
And in taking out his first papers in New
York, he was advised that under the
naturalization law he could file his first
papers in the district court of the United
} States Of any district in which he hap
pened to be.
When he left Germany to return to
America in 1914 he intended through pub
: lie speeches to set forth t. the people
of this country the German position re-
: specting the war with the view to cor
rect certain erroneous Impressions which
had been conveyed by English papers
as to the attitude and actions of Germany.
. But before arriving he received on ship
board a wireless message from President
I Benton which read: Say nothing untfl
Y you" This was followed after his
arrival Dy l1StTuCllOTS from I'TPSluent
c Benton to refrain from making any
speeches. writings or public utteranccs
about the war or matters connected there
: with. Professor Appelmann followed
: President Benton's instructions.
G However, in October, 1914, he was urged
o by members of the Twentieth Century
n club of Burlington to address them. and
: the argument was used that he was in the
= employ of the State at the State univer.
,st
h had right to get from him such infor.
nation as he could furnish them He re.
d luctantly consented and in a private ant
d confidential way at the home OF one ol
i the members he did address the club mem
r bers upon the subject Of the war. Nc
!, claim is made that anything un-Ameri
= can or anti-Amcrican was included in hi.
Q remarks. and we nnd 10 ilnproprety IL
his words and conduct upon that occa
= sion. He also spoke to the members o.
i Goethe Lodge in Burlington. but no cr;ti
t csm has been made OF his remarks upor
= that occasion. The only other occasion
d upon which nc has made anythne
e in the nature of a public speech sine,
II returning to this country in 1914 was n
The International educational congress
held at San Francisco in the summer o
:, 1915. At that time he was cautioned b,
:. Ambassador Bernstorff to make no politi
SSii s@c'SHeS' Upon In6t occasion he rep
resented the department of education o
- Germany and his remarks were upon edu
cationnl matters only.
he continued at the university a
10 professor OF German for the colleg
year 13l4-1915 and also for the colleg
u year l915-1916 He has been interest
II ed in the work of the Red Cross soci
II ETY. and has assisted in securing fund
u !, to be used for this work In Germany
IL He assisted IN the circulation of peti
J. stons addressed to President Wilson
!" soon after the outbreak of the wal
iS asking him to prevent the shipment o
munitions to the allies. but these ac
~ ti9itics were confined to Burlington
" and mostly to the university. State
4 ments made by him in connection wit
Is the circulation OF these petitions hav
D. been presented to us. These state
re- ments were made to other members @
m the faculty when the subjec: matte
er of the war was being discussed in
as SOCIAL and friendly and sometimes in
X bantering way, generally at meal tim
i'd at the Commons club. We find nothin
in these statements made upon the DC
r casions and in the manner made whic
as is anti-American and there was no ac
is tivity aside from circulating petition
n In the same manner that many Amer
)n can citizens circulated similar pet
IN tions.
in He was appealed to by Rov, d
Is George Y. Bliss of Burlington, actin
Is. for Rev. DR. Homer A. Flint OF Mon
ri pelier. who in turn represented SON
r. missionary society, to secure work T,
two interned German seamen of III
or steamship Cincinnati, who had bee
ty stranded in Boston. Prof. Appclman
as co-operated with DR.. Bliss and secure
lis employment for the two men in an
of about Burlington, In connection wit
this matter we find no activity OF a
he anti-American nature
or We find that he has performed h
l3. duties as n teacher In the university
he the satisfaction of trustees and student
ue and no claim OF impropricty In word
on act in the classroom has been calleL
int our attention. Hc has also acted as into
m -