The twice-a-week Twin Falls times. (Twin Falls, Idaho) 1916-1918, 1917-12-04

out an excuse 10 strike a blow at a
moment the least favorable to her
neighbOrs.
Such a Germany, through her moral
support, encouraged her ally Austria,
for an insignificant cause, to attack
Serbia, a small state, and, as a meas
ure of precaution, actually modified
against Russia. When Russia an
swered this mobilization by a similar
step against Austria, and-after dis
covering Germany's secret mobiliza-
ton, which was only prematurely be-
tTayed by the German Press-also by
a defensive mobilization on the Ger
man Press-also by a defensive mob
ilization on the German frontier,
Germany, greedy for war, found in
this the excuse she craved. Under
ambiguous forms she evaded respond
ing to or meeting the peace negotia
tors, who, day and night, proceeded
between England, Russia, Austria,
Serbia, and blind and deaf Germany.
Germany did not want peace, she
wanted war, and believed a sudden
attack on unprepared neighbors
might rob them of some province or
other and a whole lot of colonies.
Germany insistently alleged all
sorts of reasons for war that were
nothing but excuses; the excuses the
wolf made before he fell on the lamb.
The tale about the French aviatOrs
dropping bombs over Nurnberg is
significant of the lameness of the
charges brought against Germany's
neighbOrs. Before Germany's dec
laratiOn of war. bombs were said to
have fallen, partly over the city of
Nurnberg, partly over the railway
lines of Nunberg- Kissengen, and
Nunrberg- Ansbach. This story was
one of the charges trumped up in the
declaration of war delivered by Won
S"hOn. the ambassador in Paris. This
charge has found blind belief even in
Sweden, while, naturally, Frances
protests were disregarded Now, l. e.
on the 18th day of May, 1916-conse-
Quently nearly two years ago-Pro-
lessor Deutsche Medizinische Wochen-
schrift ("German Medical Weekly'D
admits this reason for war was an
that this reason for war was an
alarming report destitute of founda-
ton, an invention from beginning to
end unknown to the magistracy of
Nurnberb ad the military authorities
stationed therein other words, was
a lie-which now for the first time.
has been unmasked by the liar him
self. He has even the face to brag
of this trait of German love for the
truth
The outbreak itself of the war was
Germany's work, and if it is wrong
to attack without serious challenge
and with an evident purpose to
plumber, then, from the very instant
that war was declared, she was in the
wrong-a sanguinary wrong which
history will brand-mark, and which
would have covered with shame and
infamy the greatest victories, the
gentlest conduct of the war and the
proudest results. For Germany GER
tainly declared confidently that sue
cess decides the question of right and
wrong. But this is not so. There is
higher morality than success, even
if Germany has not yet learned it.
The wrong Germany committed in
breaking the peace wantOnly has been
aggravated by a brutality of warfare
unexampled in history, by cowardly
crushing of small states such as Bel
gium, Gutenberg. Serbia and Mon
tenegrO by massacreing a peaceful
population, by sinking gigantic pas
senger liners without warning, mercy
or humanity; by carrying into cap
tivity civilians and harmless folk; by
forcing Belgians, Frenchmen and the
Russians to fight and work in the
German ranks by employing loath-
some methods of fighting, e. j.. poison
/ gases and so on. For the sake of a
| few plots of land, the vanity of
| strutting with stolen feathers-colon-
les, etc-Germany has made en-
croachment sucn as not the most valid
and most unselfish aims could Justify,
Now. could any African colony
compensate for treasures such as the
medieval buildings of Belgium and
Northern France or the library and
collection of manuscripts at LOuvain ?
Could anything excuse this impious
violation OF ancient monuments and
national schrines? Is there a sophist
living who could undertake to clear
the Germans from the reproach OF
barbarism, which they so hypocritic-
ally try to repudiate? To what ex-
tent has Germany been developed and
refined since the days when, in 1864
German soldiers dragged the palings
from round grave over fallen Danish
soldiers from a churchyard i'm Sizes
/ wick to a barracks yard in Berlin?
ana IN the face OF the massacres
in Belgium; in the face of the mis-
deeds and plunderings in France-in
the face of all these crimes on the
civil population, finally, is it not ex-
plainable and natural that the Ger
mans should ally themselves with the
Turks, who, at the outbreak of the
war, through their hordes of Kurdish
soldiery, could torture and murder a
hundred and fifty thousand Syrian
Christmas, inhabitants and fellow
citizens of Turkey?
In her warfare, which generally
contrasts sharply with that of those
she has overthrow, Germany has
moreover, emphasized all that is
wrong. In war, just as heretofore il
peace, she has shown she has scarce
ly attained the maturity essential fol
playing the part of herald of civil
cation, the leader of the civilized