Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1917-04-29

| bic moment we put the flag on the
firing line and keep It there over a
constantly growing army, until the
war closes by peace which brings
victory to the great cause OF democ-
racy and civilization, the great cause
OF justice and fair play among tho
| peoples of the world.
DO Some Real Fighting.
I'VE Americans are at war. Now
| let us fight. Let us make II real
war, not Il dollar war Let us show
| that we have the manhood TO pay
with cur own bodies, and not merely
to hire other men to pay with their
bodies. Let us fight at once. Let us
put the flag at the front now. at the
earliest moment, and not merely an
nounce that we are going to fight a
year or two hence"
| Asserting that America should i'm
mediately set about raising a great
army on the principle of uniN
| obligatory military training ana serv-
ice and declaring that il would re-
quire a long time to train such an
army. Mr.. Roosevelt declared:
But most emphatically we should
not rest content with this. We should
not rest content with merely prepar-
ing an army to act "a year OF Is
months or two years hence. Let us
put the flag on the firing line at the
earliest possible moment. this sum-
mer. wherever our services are most
needed-in France or Flanders or tho
| Balkan peninsula. II need only be
small army at first. But even di-
vision would be better than nothing
Then we can constantly keep that di-
Vision filled. and other divisions from
time to time added to 1t; until year
| hence, II the war continues. we have
a really formidable fighting force at
the front, fighting force which will
be steadily increased month by month.
year by year. until the triumph comes.
| 81 wish to see the system of obliga
| tory service used In order to make
all men serve who ought to serve. But
do not hinder men, who. under con-
scription would be entitled to stay at
home, from volunteering to go to the
| front IL they can render good service.
| Under the bill proposed to congress
| by the war department many mill
lions Of excellent fighting men would
be exempt from service, while a long
| time would elapse before the others
are sent to the front Under these
| conditions we ought to use the volun-
teer system to fill the gap; it opens to
US at once a great possibility; let it
| be used and used exclusively. to give
to those who would otherwise be eX-
ompt an opportunity to go to the
front without claiming exemption.
Let There BE No Delay
| II most earnestly hope that we
shall avoid any policy of delay. Con-
gress has passed, without a dissenting
vote. bill to appropriate seven bill
| lions OF dollars as representing part
of our contribution to the great war
This is fine: but only on condition
that we also put our men into the
| fi,rl,t tt,., l,,,a IaIg Ii.
is to 90 to the allies; that is, it is to
be spent by them in getting their
men up against the German and Aus
| trian and Turkish shells and bullets
| Now. we Americans have always
| prided ourselves on being able to do
our own fighting. II Is right to help
others to fight In the common cause
for which we are engaged. But it is
even more necessary that we should
| fight ourselves.
1T would be an evil thing. a lasting
calamity to this country. if the war
| ended and found us merely prepar-
| ing an army in safety at home, with
| out having sent a man to the firing
| line. merely having paid some billions
! OF dollars to other people so that
with the bodies of their sons and
J brothers they might keep us in safety
IL ask that we send a fighting force
| ONtI " tlit lie llllt di NlIt ttti lltSt
| possible moment. and | ask ii in the
name of our children and our chill
| dren's children, so that they may
| hold their heads high over the mem
ory of what this nation did in the
! worlds great crisis. | ask II for rea-
sons of national morality no less than
for our material self-interest. ! ask
it for the sake of our self-respect,
our self.csteem. our children will
! a I,n frtn Of hu
| have dore during this war Let us
make the chapter that yet remains
| to be written one that our children
shall read with pride, and they will
read 1t only with feeling of self
! abasement unless they read that in
the times that tried mems souls We
| have shown Valor and endurance and
| proud Indifference to life when the
| honor of the flag and the welfare of
mankind Vcre at stake
No Make Believe.
at the earliest possible moment
send an eXpeditionary force abroad,
! show our German foes and our allied
! friends that we are in this war in
| deadly earnest, that we have put the
| flag on the firing line and that we
! shall steadily increase the force be-
| hind that flag to any limit necessary
| in order to bring the peace OF victory
| in this great contest for democracy,
for civilization and for the rights of
! free peoples.
Now that we are at war let y
make II a real war, not make
| believe, not a war of limited liability.
We have walked into the ring. and
now we must fight. No fight ever
was won yet except by hitting. We
/ have gone into the fight; we have de
| termined to hit and we must not hit
soft.
we owe our safety at this moment
to the British fleet and the French
and British armies. |, for one, am
not content to rest under that kind of
obligation, and | do not believe that
my fellow countrymen are content to
rest under it, | wish to see us owe
| our safety to our own strength and
| our own courage and to the respect
we inspire in our foe. We shall in
spire no respect If we merely try TO
| parry that foes blows and not to re-
| turn them. The only way In which
we can return them is by Immediately
| "a. 80.