Der Deutsche correspondent. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1841-1918, 1917-05-05

majority of free and intelligent
people is greater and far more trust
worthy than the sense and judgment
of any one individual, or OF any
small coterie of individuals, is ABB
SOLUTELY SOUND DOCTRINE; and
this is as true in time of war as in
time of peace.
Now it is impossible for the major
ity of the people to exercise their
combined good sense and good judg-
understanding of the facts which
must be reasoned upon.
And how are our intelligent Amer
lean people to reason intelligently
and to exercise their sound collective
sense and judgment if handful of
their own public servants are able to
keep facts from the people?
Is not the self-evident force and
truth of that one question sufficient
to condemn Government censorship
over the American peoples only
avenues of information-the news
papers of America?
We are not of that sort which
thinks patriotism is shown by be-
lifting an enemy peoples wisdom
markable fact, well worthy of your
consideration, that the Government
of Germany has followed a plan pre-
cisely the opposite of the plans pur-
sued by the Government of England
in this matter of censorship.
From the very beginning of the
war, the German Government has
kept its people informed of the pro-
gress Of military and naval opera
tions, and we are Obliged to say that
the information has been remarkably
accurate.
The German people have been told
about their armies checks and local
defeats, as well as about their ad-
vances and successes; they have
known at all times where their troops
stood; they have been informed every
day Of the exact losses, the name and
the address of each man killed,
wounded or missing being posted
publicly in full and accurate casualty
lists; they have been carefully in
formed as to the scarcity of food and
of other articles, so that they might
intelligently understand and willing
ly obey the necessary regulations and
privations; and there has never been
a time, since war began, when the
intelligent German citizenry did not
know how the affairs of the nation
were going in the theatres of war.
Now, we assert that without this
sensible procedure of the German
Government, Germany never would
have come through these terrible
three years, never would have been
able to endure three years of sea
blockade, never would have been
able to make head against the over
whelmingly superior wealth, resour-
ces and numbers of her enemies.
II is not to much to say that one
of the vital reasons England is cry.
ing to us to save her today, while
Germany is battling with amazing
and increasing power and constantly
improving chances of vitory, can be
found in the fact that the German
Government has had the sense and
craftsmanship to keep its people
truthfully informed, while the Eng
hsh Government has encouraged and
abetted the gross deception of Eng
lands people and Americas people
by the foolish and disastrous policy
of concaling, distorting, garbling and
falsifying the news and the facts.
Gentlemen, reason and common
sense and prudence and England's
terrible lesson all unite to reiterate
the fatuousness and the disastrous
results of deceiving the people by
censorship methods.
We cannot believe, until it is ac-
tually done, that you men of the Con-
gress will repeat this terrible blum
der