Der Deutsche correspondent. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1841-1918, 1917-01-30

THE PEN WORKING EVIL.
From sermon by Rabbi Joseph
krauskopf, ID. D., Philadelphia.

NfANSNNpts ~ D.s A7UlidOClDnfN.
--------
Not the least of the many evils
which the present world-war has
called forth IS the mass of literature
that has been rushed, half-baked and
in hot-haste, through the presses OF
the lands, with q view OF shedding
light on the origin OF the war, and Of
fixing the responsibility for III
Quite q Mumber Of the books, how
cvor, that have come under my mo-
ticc have probably succeeded better
in befogging the mind OF the reader
than in enlightening il, in planting
yet deeper hatreds in his heart than
existed there before. Some OF the
books seem to have no other reason
Tor their existence than displaying
the writer's ignorance Of the subject
OF which he treats, and OF his hatred
OF tho people against whom he
writes. There are times when il is
dihicult not 10 believe that the writ
ers OF certain books, articles, and
editorials, arc in the hire OF certain
foreign powers for the purpose OF i'm
| flaming the American people against
certain or the belligercnt nations,
and OF counting it's favor in the in
tercst OF ccrtain others. There are
times when ono cannot but think
that, had there been less written and
! less said about the war, had head
! lines been less shrieklng, and editor
ials less vonomcus, and published re-
ports less false, Tie war might have
been ended long ago Verify, the
pen Is mighticr than the sword, for
J evil yet more than for good
Russian author, named Krilof,
! tells Q story Of robber and an
author. undergoing punishment in
! the Internal regions. While the
| rcbber bears his resignedly, the
author complains bitterly OF injus-
I tice because a seyerer penalty is put
\ upon him than upon the other.
I Tiring at last OF the authors cease
I less comparisons and complaints. the
| robbcr says to him How darest
I thou, wretch, to compare thysolf
with me? My crime was a nothing
! alongside thine. ! robbed a few
4 households, and that was the whole
! Of my offending; few rich families
were little the poorer for il, but no
! further harm was done. But, as for
thee, thy vicious pen poisoned the
minds not only OF the people OF thine
/ own generation, but is still poisoning
minds, and viii continue TO do so for
generations u come II viii require
/ ages for even tho noblost of authors
| to eliminate the evils which thy pen
hast spread Oh earth"
IIrilof was right. There is more
evil in one enticingly written vicious
book than thousand good books
! can repair There has been more
I hatred planted in the hearts Of the
people the whole world over by some
Of the war-books that have been in
hicted upon ar unoffending public
than libraries-iull Of temperate and
truthful books will be able to neu-
trali2c What better proof OF il than
the little signed article that was
published, some ten days ago, on the
editorial page OF one of the leading
papers OF our city? II reads rs fol-
lows:
| IN THE I.uhT ST HISTORY
"Jnfortunatcly tue history OF our
| Civil War records many acts of ruth
lcssness and cruelty. Now in the
face OF the universally known atroci-
+, ties committed by the Germans in
thjs war, they having shown them
selves to be the modern barbarians,
AuQ httIlitS III iilAHh tiAt law "NAAt1N ~
many Germans fought in the Civil
War. would it not prove to be a
profitable inquiry, in the interest Of
truth. whether all outrages COM
mttod during the Civil War were
not in each instance the acts Of in
dividual German officers and pri-
Yates? One would wish that some
historian might find this task at
tractive enough TO undertake the
search. Once started, the work
could readily be carried further by
impartial American historians (of
which we have so many) and notable
cases Of atrocities in the worlds his
tory examined into with view to
finding out il the German blood OF
the perpetrators were not respons-
ible for It. All this might lead to
very practical and desirable results.
If the fact could once be established
that the Germans from the earliest
history have been, as they are in the
present war, the pariahs and out
laws among all nations, we might
decide to bar them forever from
those shores. so that our precious
American blood should not become
further vitarcd by thcm"