Norwich bulletin., 1917-03-09
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

which amounts to a blockade of the American coast If this is not vio- lation of American rights, what is it ? For two years not one American n ship has been allowed to voyage to Germany or Austria. Countries much larger and more populous than Eng land, both of these countries have long been heavy customers of ours and they have always been at peace with us. The law of nations give American ships the right to sail to Germany unchecked with food for ci- v1llan use, and other articles which all nations agreed to at the Hague, Paris and London. Still the fact re- mains that if an American ship in the last two years had attempted to and insisted upon going to Germany or Austria with cargo. that ship would have been fired upon and de- stroyed, by the first British cruiser. unless it first stopped and surrendered, to avoid this we have given up our trade with the centrad powers. Now then, why is it honorable and patrio- tic to cast away this lucrative trade with the central powers to avoid com plications with England ana dishon- orabIe and unpatriotic to cease trade with England for fear of German blockaders? Our ships have avoided
 capture and a, berth in Davey Jones' locker by steering clear of the zones, forbidden by British order. If we in- sist on moving into the zones of dan ger, marked out by the German ad-
 nniralty why did we not assert our rights against the British blockade of German ports? The gist of the ques- ton is this: It was just as dishonor- able to submit to the British order in council forbidding us to trade with Germany as it is to submit to the German order. That the Germans sink ships and drown Americans that try to run their blockade while the Brit ish have not is explained, no British ship has fired on American ships or American citizens. for the very good reason that no American ship has ever armed itself, and tried to run the British blockade. On the other hand had we paid as much attention to the German blockade as we have to the British blockade, no American ships or citizens would have been sunk or drowned.
 Now Mir. Editor, give me space for few more words. In answer to some
 of my we'll wishers (who can not see beyond the end of their nose) there
 are some whose mind is always filled
 with filth in every sense of the word.
 It would be unusual to expect there
 would be no fools or traitors among
 the direct descendants Of Judas. It
 would seem they are more abandoned
 than we can imagine if they do not
 shiver and shake when they study
 their conscience which brings them
 lower than the bottomless pits of hell
 itself. We hear of CUTS and CUTS, and
 every degree of curdom is designated
 by its own sweet name, but the low
 est, meanest, most degraded form of
 human being that comes within the
 range of thought is the one who will
 try to blacken and defame the honor
 and name of true Americans who have
 always lived a clean life and at whom
 the finger of scorn has yet to be point
 ed.s Some of us like dogs. that is. the
 four-legged variety, and we dislike the
 other kind, who are honored when we
 call them CUTS. Let them emigrate
 to the land of their hearts desire and
 Cor wooden iegs. They can then fawn
 at the feet of the Duke of Brandy
 wine and instead of writing it, To. Be-
 hold, they can get the accurate re-
 r1iniscences of the inaccurate gossip
 of certain London faddists and coter-8
 ies and amusingly echo the omniscent
 tone and accent of those omniscent
 circles. They might try their skill tif