Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1917-03-27
"JINGOING" AND GOING

| THE flag will be waved and the star
l. Spangled Banner" sung on Saturday
in Independence Square. and there is
good. sound. solid. matter.of.fact reason
! for 1t.
| Also there Is sound reason in what
those who say It is all lingo nonsense
are thinking. They say we should do
| something practical and definite instead
| of mere flag waving. We say we should
! do something practical and definite be-
| cause Of mere flag waving. We say that
mere flag waving is both glorious and
practical All the efficiency in the world
is worse than useless If 1t is not directed
to noble end
Those who insist upon practical endeav.
ors are invited to read an article on this
page by a naval expert. in which he ex.
plains exactly what an able bodied man
Of business can do without going far from
home or even risklng his life.
officers of the army and navy are doing
practical enough work and are in great
need of the practical services of those
very civilians who are demanding prac-
ticality. The Government needs all sorts
of semimilitary workers, able to do var-
Gus things, from drawing maps to clean
ing decks, in order to release trained men
for more important work. But, in addi-
ton to semimilitary workers, the Gov
ernment needs men who are ready to
fight at once, and there are many thou
sands of young men who know this and
who are thinking Just now not so much
themselves. These young men are think
ing rather solemnly Of life and DEATH
of whether life is better than a dishon-
ored nation and an insulted flag, or,
rather, whether life. the life in death of
the patriot, is not better than mere
living.
The Independence Square rally is, in
this light, a solemn responsibility to
undertake; we. who urged that it be held,
understood that responsibility. 1t has
been brought home to us many times by
letters from our readers that those who
urge other men to go out and fight are
often more willing to fight with pen and
pencil than with gun and bomb. We
urged the rally in the knowledge that the
summons applied to us as citizens as we'll
as to other citizens; to those who write
as well as to those who read. The news
papers of Paris and London have upheld
the honor Of journalism abroad AS their
nations need grew greater the personnel
of their stats grew smaller or was re.
placed by older men. We do not doubt
that American journalism will acquit
itself as Loyalty.
What applies to this profession applies
to many others. 1t is hard to define in
every case just which men are most
needed at home. Certainly those engaged
in producing ana transporting food and
munitions and all equipment needed by
the United States and the Allies should not
leave their appointed tasks. 1t may be
said that office workers In general would
be least needed at home in time of war
lawyers. journalists. clerks, saesmen;
craftsmen in the decorative arts and
makers of hxures; students and those
learning a business.
But Saturdays rally will not be a
recruiting affair, however desirable it
may be that men make good their cheers
with a firm resolve to enlist or enroll
themselves as ready. 1t will be primarily
a message from the birthplace of Ameri.
can liberty to the nation, and the spirit of
that message will stir throughout the
land 1t will stir those many thousands
who have journeyed from afar to visit
a shrine that we grown familiar with it
in it's material fact. often forget in its
spiritual significance.