The Carlisle independent. (Carlisle, Ark.) 1905-current, 1917-11-15
PEOPLE DECEIVED AND ALARMED
BY GRoTEsQUE STORIES
WITHOUT BASIS.
RED CROSS MUCH ANNOYED
lies Told for Purpose of Stopping the
Making Of Supplies-other Wretch
ed Fslsehoods Concerning Loss of
Life in American Forces.
BY EDWARD 3. CLARK.

{ VI t1Ic SuAeIHHe0I Il6fe continues TO
+ be unrest because of the continuance
of the vicious stories which are put
/ out by pro-German agents to deceive
+ the people of the United States, 10
make fathers and mothers anxious and
4 to hurt the cause of the country fight
Ing for democracy against the most
! persistent and insistent autocracy that
/ the world has known since medieval
ism passed into modernism in history.
There is no apology TO be made
/ when it is said that the belief is
strong in Washington that not only
/ alien enemies of Uncle Sans domain
f but some native-born citizens, the one
i group for one purpose and the other
/ group for another still deliberately
+ are spreading tales intended TO injure
/ this free land and to benefit the land
Of a military autocracy.
Washington authorities still are en-
+ gagged in an attempt to run down the
+ spies which infest the country and
f those who, while not being spies in
+ the strict sense, are doing what they
+ can TO divide this land against itself
/ Things have reached a pass when soft
i words cannot be used One of the
+ worst features of the whole thing is
the apparent ease with which the liars
f seem to be able TO make many of the
+ people believe their fantastic stories
Outrageous Lies About Red Cross.
Again within a week the Red Cross
authorities have been compelled to
issue denials of stories so grotesque
+ as seemingly to bear REPUTATION on
their faces. and yet which have been
accepted as true in many parts of the
i United States TO the hindering in
+ many places and to the actual stop
i ping in other places. of work for our
+ soldiers and sailors In the field and on
the sea.
Some Americans in the districts
/ where the tales most widely are
/ spread do not believe them in full and
/ have sense enough 70 make inquiries
/ at headquarters concerning their truth
or their falsehOod. Hundreds of in
/ quiries have come in concerning the
i tales bearing on the work of the Red
+ Cross and with them are hundreds of
/ inquiries concerning stories which
have been spread and which con-
+ ttnue to be spread of great losses
of life among the american troops.
Sometime ago story was spread
throughout the United States that the
Red Cross had enough surgical dress
ings and bandages Of various kinds
10 meet every possible requirement of
war which might 90 to any length
Women stopped working. The story
was a pro-German lie in its inception
and In its spreading The Red Cross
still needs bandages and surgical dress
ings. and everything else which it has
asked the noble women of the country
to help to make.
Another story bearing on the Red
Cross was TO the effect that 1t was
selling to soldiers and sailors at large
profit prices the knitted garments
which women were making. This
story was no sooner denied in the
quarters from which it emanated than
It appeared in other places in the
+ United States. The women must knit
and continue TO knit, for the product
Of their hands win be needed by the
men who are defending the flag. The
/ Red Cross is not selling these things.
Lies About Loss of Life.
+ In several of the great cities enemy
/ agents have been driving fathers and
t mothers of soldiers into a state of
/ terror by stories to the effect that
+ every American soldier who has EN-
/ barked to France has lost his life at
/ sea. The war department IS doing
what it can to Offset these lies. It has
/ promised time and again to make pub
/ lie at once every casualty which may
/ be suffered by the American army or
/ the American navy.
/ President Rests In Midst of Work.
President Wilson Is trying to rest in
/ the midst of work. It is said that he
/ knows how to do Il. The president
gets his recreation before a great many
people have had their breakfast. It
does not follow that because congress
/ has re journed this city is in any way
restful place War is on and every
body connected with the government
from president down to office boy has
/ to work.
Early every day. in fact at times be-
fore the sun gets its first daily peep
at the Potomac. the president of the
United States is off for the golf links.
He plays no favorites so far as the
various country clubs are concerned.
He goes first TO one and then to an
other, and completes the round In
about a weeks time. By half past
eight o'clock. or by nine at the latest,
be is back at the White House to take
up the multitudinous affairs which In
time like this beset the head of gov
eminent.
The White House today outwardy
does not look like workshop but In
ic xvhiri All tho patho