New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-04-21
Some Brands of Humh,,.
Swivel-Chair Patriots. Highly ".
Pacihsts and Talking Suara,;..'
To thc Edltor Of The TrIbuna

To the Editor of The Tribune
Sir: Our attitude since the A.o,.
war has shown that the Germans a.. :.
on one count at least, namely, tina. n. s.
Saxons are race Of humbugs. Our 80.
idea. has come TO be, How can
body else to do his bit?" The mos Nhs-
exponent Of this doctrine Is the .wi,., '-'''
Patriot. Usually too old or too "a, ~
anything himself, he is an uncom,,...N
advocate Of CONSUMPTION; with su,r.,.
age he talks Of raising thousand. IN NJ
Of young men, and pouring them ~.
battle lines in France. Mention douhl;.-
income tax to him and anarchist will !
miIdest name he will call you.
corporal in crack" regimen :.
Guard expressed the opinion TO me TIA,
lege men we're too valuable economje,n.
go to the trenches. (He is a lawy.rll
other corporal in the same regiment a.,
that it was more needed here 80 k.,, a.
the Socialists" Others think TIA, q
should stay here TO keep an eye on Ii. ".
cans. the German-Americans, and k.,.
only knows who else! Most college ne, !.
planning either to ride up and dow, a
coast in motor boats or to be offcers-,,.
thing, in fact, but to carry gun.
Suffragists are doing their usual !.
namely, talking from 10 in the mornin, I,
late at night planning work for other u,s,.
to do. These women before the war u~s /.
infest settlement houses and charity ora,
cations, getting NJ innumerable eonfere,,.
now they are riding around on horses. sk,s
ing off silly little rifles and planning fan,
We can be sure of one thing, and that !, D.
they will never work on these farms 10.
selves; they never have worked and A.
never will; l should like to have them !,
the only thing they have to give, monsy !,
keep still.
The pacifsts have worked out the best m,
tenn for what II. G. Wells calls "enjoying a
Z war; They continually assure each "a,
that the high moral courage they shov
! doing nothing but talk is OF much 6ns,,l
rsrcr variety than the mere physical eoun,
required to risk death and mutilaticn, ana .
course they are more intelligent then D
believers in marrow nationalism." So Il,
are TO eat three meals a day, sleep well
hight. and at the same time show hrsv
intelligence, more lofty patriotism, and
truer courage than the poor simpletons V.
go into the trenches. One of the Leaders ,
the Emergency Peace Council. taken sefiors
for the first time in his life. is having
splendid time going around fearing asaU
nation from the militarists.
The plain fact is that in peace times ..
possessing classes are so accustomed to L
idea of harvesting the fruits Of other Dc,
Pies labor that they cannot help applyng.l
same agreeable system to the present erisi
Now. believe in this war, but | has, Sc,
something of it (from safe berth IN Il
American Ambulance). and have seen
many parts Of men come back from il hat
don't know whether I will have nerve snoar
to enlist II : don't enlist | am at lea
going to try to be honest, and original Al
confess that it is because | am afraid to
. so. will thus be the only coward auo,
the millions of young men who don't 60
Ithaca, n. Y, April 10, 1917. c,