Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1917-10-12
TRYING TO CATCH AND PUNISH
THOSE WHO SPREAD FALSE
STORIES ABOUT WAR.
THEY ARE ALL PRo-GERMANs
Extravagant Rumors Are Circulated
Constantly for the Purpose of lnjur-
ing the United States and of Aiding
Its Enemies.
BY GEORGE CLINTON.

the press Of the United States is doing
what it can to Offset the work of the
pro-Germans in America and of those
who, seemingly loving lie for the lies
sake, circulate through the communi-
ties stories invented apparently for the
sole purpose of injuring the cause of
this country.
1t is said, however, that the gov
eminent also knows that certain
part of the press lends itself appar-
emily willingly to the spreading of mis-
information of the kind which for
mer president of the United States
once described by what he called the
ugly-word"-
1t is certain that if the newspaper
men in the city of Washington cared
to build stories out of rumors touch
ing this war, they could keep busy
writing all day long. Most of them do
not care to. If a correspondent here
wanted to believe all that he heard he
would be sure that peace is coming
with Germany within twenty-four
hours on this basis or that basis. If
he wanted to believe further what he
hears he could be quite positive that
Russia intends quickly to line itself
up with Germany, to supply that coun-
try WITH arms, ammunition and food,
and to help it in its war against the
United States and the countries allied
with it. More than this, if the CORE
spOndent wanted to believe what he
hears he would feel confident that Italy
is going to quit the fight, and finally,
If he wanted to believe what he hears
one-half of the soldiers who have been
sent from this city already are either
at the bottom of the sea or in graves
in France, the victims of disease.
Trying to Find the Traitors.
The correspondent does not want to
believe these things and he does not
have to believe them because they are
all lies put out by pro-Germans for the
purpose of aiding the cause of the enc
mics of freedom and democracy.
The government is hard at work to-
day trying to find out how to reach the
men and women who are spreading
lies through the country, the traitors
who work in darkness. Uncle Sans
Searchlight may be able to find them,
but then the puzzle will come as to
now to secure their punishment. Free
speech is fetch with the American
people and thus far there does not
seem to be any way for the authorities
to draw a clean line between free
speech and free falsehood.
Nevertheless the government today
is giving attention to the work of run
ming down the rumor mongers, the
plain liars, the hinters of happenings
that never happened and others of the
sinister pro-German propaganda groups
that today are doing what they can to
hurt this country and to help its
enemy.
1t is said to be possible to STAY
woman with word and it seems that
the alien enemies and the worse than
alien enemies in the United States
think that what is possible in the one
case is possible in another. The gov
eminent knows they are sowing seeds
of suspicion in every field in the land
believing that they will produce the
desired crop of poison.
intention Hard to Prove.
What is the government going to do
about it? 1t is handicapped in a thou
sand ways. 1t traces a story which
LAS brought damage to the cause of
democracy and finds that the man or
the woman responsible for it pleads
that it came in tea-table talk and that
it was repeated innocently. Premedi-
tated intention to hurt America and
help the kaiser is one of the hardest
things TO prove, and this is known by
men and women who invent tales of
disaster and schemes to obstruct war
preparation.
Recently attention -7as called in the
press to the fact that in parts of the
South farmers were refusing to sell
eggs even at the highest market price
because they had been told definitely"
that the government within a few
weeks intended to buy all the eggs in
the United States and to pay $3.50 a
dozen for them. How many eggs
spoiled while they We're being held
from day to day to secure the advan-
tage of this impossible plan and impos-
sible price nobody knows.
Want Commands in National Army.
officers of the regular army of field
rank are showing strong desire to
be detailed to command battalions
of regiments of the new National
army. 1t may be a surprise TO a
good many pc pie to learn that these
officers of the regular service feel that
an assignment TO command absolutely
green troops is one to be preferred.
Why is this? 1t is not necessary to
90 far to find the reason. Reports