Der Deutsche correspondent. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1841-1918, 1917-03-28
All Our Men, Money and Munitions
Are Desperately Needed in the
Work Of Preparing for our
Own National Defense.


March n.
Mr. Thomas w. Lamont, repre-
sentative Of Wall Street war ban
kers. is out West trying to work IN
sentiment in favor OF giving billions
OF Americans money TO the Euro
pean nations at war.
With a commission on this money.
both coming and going, and with
| the credit OF the United States back
Of the paper OF bankrupt European
nations which these war bankers
have bought at bargain prices, Mr..
Lamont and his fellow-patriots
down Wall Street way ought to be
able to face the higher cost OF liy-
ing this year with entire fortitude.
But aside from any consideration
of the Wall Street war bankers and
their kind Of patriotism, these pro
posals to spend billions Of our peo>
| ple's money and the lives of thou
sands Of our young men in the
trenches OF Europe deserve the
severest reprobation and the most
strenuous opposition.
All wars begin with silly sentl-
mentalists urging nation into
wrong courses, just as all wars are
eventually finished by calling In the
counsel and leadership Of hard
headed and cool-blooded men or
sense, who have usually been de-
nounced and hooted at during the
inevitable period Of hysteria and sill
liness.
We are now in the beginning Of
the silly season, and an evidence Of
II is this Glamour to put our money
and our men-our two absolutely in
dispensable defenses--in the hands
of foreign governments, three thou
sand miles away.
We are quite sure that the most
Of the men and newspapers adyo-
eating this dangerous folly have no
conception Of what is taking place in
Europe Of or what war promises to
demand of us.
In the first place, their judgement
OF future possibilities is based en-
tirely upon the assumption that the
allies are bound to defeat the Ten
tonic empires, and that the best
thing we can do is to hasten the in
cyltable victory by feeding our
money and men to the allies.
Ii seems never to occur to them
that the Teutonlc power may de-
feat the allies this very year, and
that, in that case we and we alone
would have to bear the brunt OF a
terrific war with the most powerful
naval and military fighting machine
ths world has ever seen.
Neither does il seem ever to oc-
cur to these men and newspapers
that German diplomatic intilgues
with Mexico and Japan may be no
joke, but a concrete and terribly
dangerous reality.
Now, we do not affirm that the
Teutonic Empires WILL beat the
allies. But we do say that they MAY
And we do know that some Of the
most capable officers OF our own
Navy and Army confidently believe
that the allies are doomed to de-
feat.
We do not say that Japan and
Mexico WILL join the Teutonic EN-
pires i'm a war Of revenge and spo-
liation against us, in case OF good
opportunity. But we do say that
they MAY do SO; and we personally
believe the danger is great. Now
ii should 60 without argument that
the wise ana prudent thing TO do is
not to prepare Tor only such evcn-
Qualities as optimism hopes for but
for every eventuailty chat may oc-
cur
A nation Is safe only when it is
PREPARED FOR The WORST
POSSIBLE ATTACKS.
Suppose that we do listen to the
counsel Of these sentimental and
short-sighted enthusiasts, and that
wo do strip our Treasury Of its re-
serves to send them abroad, and
that we ship away our young men to
be shot to pieces in Europe, and send
out OF the country the food, ammu-
milton, guns, horse, equipment and
supplies OF all kinds in which we are
already dangerously lacking, and
then suppose the unexpected hap
pens, and Germany wins great and
decisive victory on land and starves
England into submission with her
terrible submarines?
THEN WHERE WOULD WE BE?
Why, we would be absolutely
helpless and defenseless against the
huge and victorious and veteran
navies and armies Of the Central
Empires.
1t is foolish to say that this
CANNOT happen.
Anything CdH udppSu IL SuNu "
war as this.
Have we not been told for three
years that the Russian Government
and the Russian people were never
so united and so unanimous and SO
bent upon prosecuting war in con-
| junction with the other allies2
And have we not just seen the
| Russian Government overwhelmed
by the most startling revolution in
all history, because Russia had fall
fen into condition Of hopeless
anarchy, starvation and military
disorganization, and the Russian
Government was more than sus-
pected Of having betrayed It's allies
and entered into a secret alliance
with Germany and Austria?
Suppose that the extreme reyolu
| tionists the Reds" now in
turn overthrow the modern consti-
! tutional party, as ii is certain they
ARE bent upon trying TO do, and put
in force THEIR programme, which
is immediate peace,
And suppose, too, that the rev.
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