The Washington times., 1917-03-13
Washington. March 10.
VIII All BE Of One sIInd II Danger
Threatens Country. Says Writer.


Threatens Country. Says Writer.
To the Editor Of THE TINES:
In your recent editorials you have
been lambasting fore and aft every.
body who expresses himself as being
opposed to war. ] venture the asser.
tion that IL the worst comes, which,
of course, will be war, there won't
be actually in the trenches or on the
nrtng lines per cent of the metro
politan editors who write SO glibly in
favor of war. You have oppugned and
impugned William Jennings Bryan
because he, in the pursuance of his
own conscience, is doing his best to
steer our country clear OF war.
Since my recollection this country
has had one logical and justifiable op-
portunity to go to war-I have refer
ence to the Spanish-American war
and when war became Inevitable Will
lam Jennings Bryan didn't hesitate; /;
he did not shirk and hide, but he
volunteered and became an officer
Where was the editor OF The Times
during that occasion? Was he among
those who talked up the war and re-
mained in the backgrounds, walled in
with security while the battle was
raging?
When the tocsin was sounded for
the -Spanish-Amerlcan war an
swered the call and enlisted as a pri.
vate. without even the promise of be-
ing made "non-com." I was opposed
to war then. The man who is op-
posed to war, but when war comes
volunteers, is by far a better patriot
than the man who talks up war,
brings on war, and when war is here,
does not volunteer to fight.
On the sunny side OF this discus
sion we all have our pros and cons,
but when the war comes we will all
be pros. There is one thing that l
know and that you know. and nobody
knows 1t better than the President,
that Mr.. Wilson was reelected mainly
because the country devoutly believed
he would keep it out of war, and I
believe yet that he will. / want him
backed up with every facility that is
actually necessary to wage war with,
however. I believe that he is one, il
not the only one, man in the United
States that the metropolitan papers
would not have already swept off his
feet and plunged headlong into
bloody, remorseless war.
I do not believe that members of
the Senate should be villified, Carl
catured, and maligned just because
they do not rush pelF NELL into things.
This is a country whose greatest
asset is the freedom of individual
opinion.
Itwas the President who said in his
campaign speeches that he did not
care so much about what the banker
thought, the millionaire thought, or
subsidized editors thought, but he
wanted tO hear from the man ont in
the fields, at the carpenters bench,
at the anvil and forge, at the throttle,
and the millions OF sons OF toll: they
were the ones he wanted to hear
from: and II was their free. untram-
meled. spontaneous, individual opin-
ions he priced so highly. 1t seems
that you would brand as pro-German.
tar and feather any and all who
dare to oppose war.
think that we ought to agree to
disagree in this matter. If war is de
clared against Germany. American
men will enlist to the last one. and
no one will question the Presidents
motive. either. I do not believe he is
going to let 1t come II he can help it.
I believe he will strain the nations
honor as long as he can without be
smirching it, Now ] do not believe
that II IL any worse to be a peaceat-
man than II is to be a war
at-any-cost man! The people are al
ways ready to fight the country's bat
ties upon substantial reasons. n
there ever was a time when the editor
of The Times should be as cool as
and when tranquility.
common sense, and patriotism should
guide his pen, II Is now.
W. NJ. HAIRSTON.