The Birmingham age-herald., 1917-02-11
THE PRESENT CRISIS
Americans Great WantersAt Last Satisfied Because Tip toe-The Pity of War and the Foolishness of
 Honor Fiends
By THoRNwELL HAYNES President Birmingham College

No people on earth crave change as do Americans. We are continually wanting something new. We reach out for it. We are like the family of whom the new cook asked: Are you stretch CTS or resters?" And when asked to explain she replied: q mean do you put all the food on the table and stretch for it or do have to shuff1e it around?"
 We are nation of stretchers.
 And you may have realized that just now we have stretched ourselves as Americans into rather a perilous sit uation of quivering uncertainty. Re- gardless of the fact that Mir Bryan said it. our citizens should have been warned to keep .out of the danger zone, and the honor which gainsays this is the same kind of chip-on the shoulder attitude which measures honor by the number of inches allowed the guns of merchantmen, or goes to war because an American was seized with cramps or was scared so bad he could not swim.
 We are not so much behind Wood row Wilson. but we are absolutely to the death behind the President of tho United States, and in view of this may it not be permitted an American cit- izen to ask whether or not it is a doubtful diplomacy which places 10o.- 100000 peace-loving people In a posi- tion where their entering the most horrible holocast of history depends upon the transparency of submarine periscope, or upon the swimming abil- ity of a negro sailor named George Washington?
 Or, if the Germans are savages, what honor is there in taking up an- other nations quarrel with them? Savages are not whipped into civiliza- ton. We tried that upon the Indians and poor Los extinction testifies that manhood Is not molded by murder Our history with the negro is more worthy and beneficial experience.
 When one puts aside all hyphenated anger and phobism it does appear fair to ask wherein does German savagery which is to be checked in the name of humanity, differ from Mexican say. agery, which is to be 'nobody's busi- ness but theirs.'
 But we are anxious because so-called international law has been disregard ed. We censure England for opening our mails and for taking our boats and for prying into our trade secrets and for blacklisting our shippers. We censure Germany because a stray shot hits neutral who should have stayed indoors when there was a riot in the streets.
 We wonder sometimes who 1t was who first began the keeping of treat ies. Sixty have already been broken since this war began. Of course, Eng land. and Russia, and Italy, and Rou- mania. and France, and Servia would not know how to break one if they wanted to. But what about the Uni ted States? You may not recall that our own supreme court has proclaimed that circumstances may arise which would not only justify the government in disregard of their obligations but demand In the interests of the coun- try that 1t should do so. Unexpected events may call for a change in the policy of the country" Interpreting this so-called international law our supreme court further says "that whilst it would always be matter of the utmost gravity and delicacy to refuse to execute a treaty, the power to do so is the prerogative of which no nation could be deprived without deeply affecting its independence."
 Whoever follows the interpretation of our supreme court these days however. is liable to get a whipping.
 Understand, we hold no brief for Ger many. Certainly we hold none for Eng land Personally, I am absolutely died- in-the-wool through and through Amerf- can, and resting my eyes from the read