The Washington times., 1917-04-11
German FrightfuIness in America


There has been a theory that Ger
many, under the advice Of Bernstorf, I,
who is supposed to be intimately ac-
Guainted with the American mind,
would try to ignore the war which
we have declared and thus allow the
sentiment for war to subside. That
was on the theory that Germany
would act with wisdom in a political
matter, theory with few facts thus
far to sustain it. The pressure
brought upon Austria to break rela-
tions with the United States shows
how impossible it is for Germany to
maintain an attitude of Indifference.
The explosion at the Eddystone am
munition plant, in which some hun
dred and fifty workers were killed,
most of them women and girls, is the
renewal of frightfulness on Ameri-
can soil.
The manufacture of powder and
other explosives and the preparation
of ammunition is dangerous work.
There have been explosions in pow
der mills in this country all along
the years. But there have been fifty
such explosions in the United States
in less than three years. The chances
of accident for them all reach the
diminishing point. No sane man
would strain the doctrine of proba-
bilities to cover all these cases with
the theory of coincidence.
The American people may as well
make up their minds that the aver
age German who is loyal to Germany
is willing to sacrifice his own life in
the effort to destroy the ammunition
plants of Germany's enemies. That
he is destroying the lives of nom
combatants does not feaze him. The
submarine commander who sank the
Lusitania became a German hero.
United States authorities will have
to take control of the working force
of all munition factories to see that
none of the workers is under the
suspicion of German influence either
by appeals to loyalt or by the per-
suasion of bribery. 1t should be as
impossible for the army of workers
to harbor traitors to this country as
for the army of soldiers. And there
must be short shrift for German
spies and plotters Of every kind. We
have heard of no such accidents as
that which happened yesterday, in
the munition ~lants of Japan, which
have been making vast supplies Of
shells for. Russia. 1t should be un-
thinkable for US to allow German
conspirators in this country to Grip
pie our allies at the vital point of
diminishing war supplies.
Let us settle down to the convic-
tion that whatever can be done on
American soil to injure the United
States and to promote the cause of
Germany will be done. unless re-
strained by superior skill and force.
We are at war and there are many
soldiers of the enemy among US.
Their presence is all the more diff
cult to detect because it is hard to
distinguish them from German
Americans who are loyal to America.
But the, distinction must be made if
it requires the internment of every
unnaturalized German in the United
States. Would Germany pause at
the Imprisonment of American citi-
zens if an American in Germany
blew up an ammunition plant or was
even suspected of doing so? Would
it not be just as well to take leaf
from Germany's book and set every
German in the United States to till
ing the soil under guard and thus to
contribute to the food supply of
America and the allies? How many
such accidents" must happen be-
fore we adopt stern measures