The citizen-Republican. (Scotland, Bon Homme County, S.D.) 1???-19??, 1917-06-07
THE NEW AMERICANIsM.

2
Address given by Prof. Steece at
the patriotic exercises on Registra-
tion Day:
The freedom Of world democracy
or the CALLING bondage Of Prussian
miiitarism, which shall we choose?
For two years and q half this mo-
mentous question was Il ever with us
during our waking hours and during
our sleep it haunted us with its hid-
eous frightfulness. Faint and fear-
full hearts and those who preferred
personal ease anxiously asked, Why
should we enter the great European
war, and why should we be concerned
because Little Belgium and Serbia
were being swept from the face Of
the earth? The whole list Of barbaric
tragedies enacted by Germany and her
allies is our answer! We enter the
titanic struggle all the more resolute-
sly and earnestly because we prefer
civilization to barbarism, humanity
to brutality, Christianity to Kultur.
Today we have come together in
honor of those who register for ser
vice in the greatest military enter
prise the world has ever witnessed.
Side by side with the liberty loving
nations of the earth we have taken
our place to help curb and eventually
destroy the curse of dynastic tyranny
and autocratic governm ent. The
scales have fallen from our eyes, and
we perceive with clear sight and pro-
phetic vision our higher and holier
mission in the world the promulga-
ticn of those fundamental truths en-
unciated in our Declaration of Inde-
pendence nearly one hundred and fifty
years ago: That all men of every
cline and every creed and every color
are created equal and are endowed by
their Creator with certain inalienable
rights Life, liberty, and the pursuit
of happiness.
Democratic government implies
universal obligation; democracy means
equal rights and with all these rights
are inseparab]e duties and require
ments. From our common govern
ment we claim and demand equal pro-
lection in the enjoyment Of our COM
mon rights and privileges; and in
turn we owe to our common govern
sment whatever assistance and service
we can give for the protection of our
common country and the protection Of
its high aims and purposes. Service
is irrevocably divorced from servitude,
which always signifies ignominy and
shame. Conscription is only the OUT
ward manifestation of the principles
of universal liability to service. Ser
vice, yes, even military service, is
one Of the first laws of mankind when
the freedom of world-peace is being
detroyed.
1t has ever been thus that man must
lay down his life that others might
live. From our earliest infancy our
lives have developed into all that
they now are because others were
willing to give all they possessed
that we might take our places to help
make the world better. 1t is only
thro ugh vicarious sacrifice and suffer
ing that the race is saved from death.
Greater love hath no man than this
That a man lay down his life for his
friends, !" these immortal words
enunciated by the Christ nineteen
hundred years ago declare a deathless
principle, which has existed since
first the stars sang together and out
of void and darkness the law of crea.
tion was proclaimed. o, friends
and citizens of Scotland, we must
stand shoulder to shoulder in thi.
tragic hour. Nationality must bt
entirely obliterated in rationale ,m.
repeat it. nationality must be l,lotte,
out by nationalism. Just two .lasse
of citizens exist today, and only two
those who own allegiance to the star,
and stripes and those who symr ,athls,
with our foes. Let US put ava,
everything that would hinder tt le grea
cause in which we have ente. red, 70
there is no such thing as beir ,g neu
tral in this crucial hour. Ce nain
is that if America has ever bet m right
she is right in what we are tt ying
do now. We have accepted the chal
lenge of German barbarism ar ID brutal
ity. With the German pei ,ple VIII
claim with you and with me com
mon ancestry we have no gu arrel; bu
Germany, the enemy of humanity
the foe of Justice, the menace I
world peace we accept as our deadl
enemy, and although we shall entt
into the struggle more in sorrow tha
in onrop r. will bo ~, I ~ 1. -