The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1917-09-04
SHUT THE MOUTH
Of SED|T|0N
It's Time to Use Hot Lead on the
Internal as Well as the External
Enemies of America
New York Tribune)

Editor Tribune: The mouth of
sedition should be shut by a bullet.
I am not boiling with rage, Mr.. Edi-
tor. / am not even excited. The point
is this-my son, my only child, In
prompt response to his country's duly
sounded call. is today headed for the
French trenches, there to be the tar
get of German bullets. Every voice
raised here at home, to discourage
Others from going with him, they to
back him and he to back them, and so
to make their mighty work success
at the least sacrifice to any, increases
the chance, already considerable, that
and me. | think that that voice ought
to be stilled before his has been.
But this view, so important to me,
so important to the fathers and moth
ers of the thousands who marched
down Fifth avenue yesterday and to
! the parents of the hundreds of thou,
sands that are being gathered from
iall over this land to places of train
ing and departure, is the very least
| of it. The great thing is that until
the world rids itself of nations organ
| lied into beasts of prey no mans
home is worth building. No mans
business is worth pursuing. No mans
wife or his Graded baby, getting a
!breath of fresh air in the street in
front of his house. is safe from rape
Tor death.
| I have often heard is remarked that
lthisswar is unpopular. What war ever
twas popular" except to the greed
tlust and ambition that caused it
What war ever was popular to people
!whoI want to live in the enjoyment OF
lpeace, order and liberty? The WORD
Unpopular" in connection with war is
despicable. But never before has there
lbeen a war where the principle of in
dividual liberty, the right to make g
home, to go about freely, to do ones
lawful business without interruption
Ito protect ones women and children
Iagainst barbarity of lust and murder
has been SO definitely presented to the
American people as it is presented tt
lus today. Lexington and Concord
Ewere not so bad as this. The issue
that brought us into conflict with on'
another sixty years ago was not 81
bad as this.
| Not POPULAR Do you suppose
that five millions of fathers like my
self would permit our boys to be takei
iaway from us, hustled into barges ant
then planted straight in the way o.
bullets and bombs and killing stenche
Iif we didn't think it was their duty
Ito go and our duty to urge them tt
lgo? Do you suppose that we five mil
lions would permit handful of mel
! down in Washington to impose upol
Eus billions of taxes for US to pay mex
iyear if we didn't think they ought t.
do it and that we ought to pay? If tn
war was unpopular, do you suppos'
THAT we would leave the manifestation
corner in Butte or on Broadway?
Up to now nothing has been allowet
to go very far in this country unles
1T accorded with the will of the peo
pie, and the reason that we are a
Iwar with Germany is because we in
tend to keep things that way TIL
reason we are standing these taxes
the reason we are handing guns t.
Tour young men, is because, after pa
Itience against provocation unex
ampled IN. history, after hopes create
one day only to be blasted the next
after proofs that we couldn't believ
until proofs that we could no longe
doubt, we have at last become con
Ivinced that the end for which tn
German armies were sent agains
France and Flanders and Russi
means not their conquest only, bu
ours also-means that if that end
successful in Europe it is an everlast