The Idaho Springs siftings-news. (Idaho Springs, Colo.) 1905-19??, 1917-08-17

Ike Eucken, Harnack, Hermann, and Diessnan
without reserve lend themselves to the defense of
worthy of their words had understood then
Against our Will have been disillusoned.
into war, We have had thrust upon A cha
over which we have had control has brought
nome to the Americans, anxious to maintain their
faith In Germany, the conviction that Americas
sovereignty being outraged, Its people killed,
Its inner peace deliberately attacked, and its inst
tutions, founded in sacrifice and offered to the
world, not only despised but in danger of destruc-
ton.
Germany has forced America 1t has forced
almost the entire world, to defend itself by arms.
Nobody but those suffering from myopic idealism
sympathies can anything else Some of US
have suffered when the scales have fallen-cut
away by facts. At last we see clearly. We have
not been drawn into the war by capitalism. or by
commerciasm, or by national policy For months
we have been living in Il state Of war, deliberately
planned by a nation whose leaders for ten years
have been preparing day to fight America
and who have counted our good nature as cow
ardice, our unpreparedness lack Of national
self-respect
Here the facts:
We fighting this war, In the first place, be-
cause Germany made upon
For years she has sought to build up in Amer
lea community more loyal to herself than to the
United States Money has been lavishly spent In
Germanistic societies alliances, and associations
to win the admiration and loyalty Of American
citizens. Our universities have been fattered.
professors have been honored for this
Praise of the kaiser has been inserted
In the spelling books of public school system.
Spies have been everywhere
When the came in 1914 German officials.
many of them In high diplomatic positions, treat
ed The United States, neutral nation, as II 1t
enemy ProGerman publications were
founded and subsidized, strikes organized,
manufacturing plants blown up, plots
against nations with whom had treaty rela-
tons formed within borders. bombs
were placed ships In ports Hatred of
America Systematically disseminated through
Germany and efforts made to involve in
trouble with Japan and Mexico.
In reply!-to our repeated protests against these
and other acts of Germany, to be mentioned pres
emily. we have received promises and expana-
tons which were little less than insults. The
treaty that had existed almost the entire life of
the American republic naught and
efforts made to into favorable
notifications of its terms
The right of trade with belligerents, which Ger
many had always claimed, even to the benefit Of
enemy in the war with Spain, and which at
Germany's own insistence Is universally recog-
nzed in international law, treated the
violation of neutrality and alliance with her
enemies. And, finally, the proclamation of unre-
stricted destruction of neutral ships upon the
high notification to the United States
that II longer sovereign people, but
that if 1t would sail the in safety 1t must
conform to conditions set by power that defed
International law, humanity and elemental NOR
atty
In the second place are defending ourselves
against Germany because the German state has
entered upon a program which means the destruc-
ton OF democratic institutions.
The Prussianzation of Germany means that the
policy Of Prussia to carry on economic and po-
liticnl expansion by war Is to be extended
throughout the entire world.
We recognize that there were once, and We
dare believe that there are, two Ger
manys, one liberal and the other an autocracy
based on militaHsm The struggle between these
two forces since 1915 has been steady subjuga-
ton of liberalism in Prussia and the other Ger
man states to the will Of a Prussian feudal no
bility. Representative and responsible govern
ment in any true of the word has been
fought by Prussian leaders relentlessly Educa-
ton has been made a creature Of autocracy and a
source of international hatred.
The same fate has met esery land Prussanism
has touched. Austria beaten into submission
in 1885, and all the other German states were
made practically subject to the will Of the Hohen-
zoIlerns between that date and 1870. France was
robbed and Inundated. The Balkan states were
kept in perennial in the interests of German
expnnsion Bohemia and Poland have been treat
ed with the same disregard of popular rights as
hns been Alsace-Lorraine. Turkey became vas
sal of the kaiser. great mtaristc. anti
seryient to Prussia, has been started and all but