Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1917-08-01
WHY BRITISH LABOR
SUPPORTS THE WAR
BY Prof. j. A. Seldom President National of
Shop Assistants England
WAR

premacy in her grasp. and she grabbed
at it,
Germany started the war. Eng-
land and her allies did their best to
avoid 1t.
That is what the state papers told
me. These papers are published and
are open to the world. Read them!
Read what each government had to
say in those fateful days. and see if
You do not come to the same conclu-
sion. Other British trades union
ieaders studied the matter as l had
done. and thought as 1 did. We issued
manifesto. which was widely circu-
lated.
Shortly afterwards 1 went to Amer
lea, to take a message from the oil
ers of Britain to the workers of the
United States and Canada. Here 1
had opportunity to learn more of
events that had led up to the war.
l met prominent neutrals, who had
entry into some of the most infiuen-
tial circles in Berlin. They told me
what they knew of German ambitions
and preparations. I saw that there
had been a deliberate conspiracy of
the kaiser's government. that had
stretched over a number of years, to
plunge the world in war. The idea
of deutschland uber allies" dominat-
ed the minds of the German leaders.
They were going to make Germany
over all. Knowing that the main op-
position to this would come from
England, they had cultivated the
hatred of their people against us.
This war was Germany's work, and
Germany's purpose was to secure
world domination. British labor was
to secure world domination. British
WI 80
ish labor was and is infinitely more
opposed to the establishment of a
system that would place the nations
at the mercy of Prussian bureaucracy
Better many years of war than this
We realized that Prussianism and
freedom cannot exist side by side.
The German violation of Belgian
territory stirred the British working
men. for we could not understand q
nation boasting of it's culture treat
ing its solemn treaty obligations as
mere scraps of waste paper But
when we knew how the people were
being treated, the passion of our race
was fully aroused.
q. When accounts came to England OF
outrages committed by German troops
against Belgian civilians, most Of us
at first did not believe them. Ever
though the Germans were our enc
mics, we refused to credit them with
actions so vile. We thought that pos
sibly few individual acts had beer
| exaggerated and magnified. We die
not propose to blame the whole of q
| nation for the eXcesses of a few o1
| its members. We gave Germany
credit for some respect for the hu.
name conventions which she hersel,
had accepted and promised to observe
Dat AAF IL.
| We learned on proved evidence tha'
the horrors we had at first refused Il
think possible were only a part-anC
by no means the worst-of what wal
| going on. Many of the deeds of the
| Prussian army in Belgium were 81
terrible that they could only be whis
pered from man to man. We founC
that the reign of terror in the con.
| quered territory-the burning of vii
| lagos, the shooting of peaceful priests
schoolmasters and doctors as host
ages. the outraging of young girl
| and married women. and the whole
| sale destruction of homes-was nj
chance excess of individuals, but tn,
>systematic and deliberate policy O.
| the German government prepared TO
in advance, and carried through with
out justice or mercy.
I cannot describe the effect of thi
| on British labor. We realized tina
Prussian militarism. with its attestet
cruelty, rapine and murder. must b.
destroyed. in every shape and form
We realized that now there could b
no slaclening. This aggressive mill
tarism must be overthrown, or all ou
efforts would have been in vain.
The revelations acted as a fame t
i, a torch. We were facing the issu
chiefly from the point of moral value:
Our people have an appreciation o
right and wrong. We knew withou
argument that nation lighting wit
weapons such as Germany employee
in Belgium must be wrong.
undertook a series of recruitin
meetings on my return to England
Time after time. when l describe
what had happened to the people @
Belgium. whole audiences were stirre
as they had been stirred by nothin
else. Men sprang to their feet, volun
teering to enlist and go to figh
They did not even wait to go hom
and talk 1t over with their wivei
They were willing someone els
should tell the Missus.
j It was in those days that Britis