New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1917-09-30

lolR profoundly dlStruSttul OF the gov
eminent and its libertarian avowals; II
they will fight for the honor Of the
Jewish name, which bids them rise in
defence Of any soil that shelters them,
rather than in sympathetic support of
the government and its avowed ideals,
the fault will not be theirs. Let us
try, Mr.. Editor. to do justice to a situa-
ton befogged by many honest misun-
cerstandings and many wiIful misin-
terpretations.
Opposed to Militarsm
The East Side, in the stereotyped
phraseology of the metropolitan press,
is "a hotbed of anti-militarism." Ad-
hitting this to be the truth--what then :?
Anti litarism is not disloyalty--at
least, not in a country where the gov
eminent professedly goes to war to end
all war. Naturalization is not neces-
ssrily obstruction. am an anti-mili-
tarist myself, and know. in that ca
ilitarism, at this present juncture
Of affairs, cannot be anything else save
an army building and army maintaining
moral force
Whosoever wishes for a speedy peace
must necessarily wish Of we'll advised)
for the most formidable showing the
United States can make on land and
sea, even if no considerable part Of a
million soldiers drafted were ever to
see foreign trench.
To put upon the government the i'm
possible task of concluding an imme-
diate peace is like trying to halt
iifty-mile-an-hour express train upon
a seconds notice. at certain point.
One may derail and wreck an express
train that way. but one cannot bring
it to safe stop. Whether the gov
eminent should or should not have
launched. this fateful April, upon its
belligerent course, is a question beyond
the scope of your inquiry.
can get peace only by lighting for it, or
else, under favoring circumstances, by
merely proving itself willing and able
to pour forth such a volume Of fighting
forces as 10 make the result foregonc
conclusion. For either purpose it must
have-as, of course, ii will have-a big
and well-equipped army.
People Have Been Mishandled
But anti-militarism, say you, of the
prevailing East Side type, is not well
informed. Quite right, it is not-how
could it be? The government has in
suited the East Side with groundless
snticipations of disloyalty, bewildered
it by an unnecessary show of force, rem
dering it distrustful of its democratic
and llbertarlan programme, by hun
dreds Of futile and needless chicaneries,
but it has spent no time. money or
effort TO inform it in any effective way.
And this fragrant administrative mis-
handling of the great East Side is all
the more deplorable, because the East
Side is the only spot in the United
States of its own size and Importance
where an elsewhere unpopular war
might have been rendered immensely
popular yet be rendered immense
ly popular-as | will explain hereinbe-
Lowry government wisely familiar
with and responsive to the specific ideals
of each important ingredient of COM
posite nation.
First give me leave to pass in brief
review upon the mischievous activities
of certain ill-advised underlings of the
administration on the East Side ac
Invites that look in the retrospect as
if they had been purposely calculated
to dlsatfect a profoundly loyal popula-
ton, to create a maximum Of bad blood
and to discredit the proclaimed war
aims of beIligerent democracy.
Labor Leaders lnsuited
There was. first of all, that legend
of German gold" supposed 10 be cir
culating among the leaders OF the
United Hebrew Trades. 1t was "a
rumor originally sent forth upon its
mischieyous course by that busybody,
Nr Samuel Gompers.
The leaders Of the United Hebrew
Trades are one and all living in honor
able poverty. Not single one OF them
gets, aspires 10 or cares for the fat
salaries paid to its executive heads by
the American Federation of Labor.
Not single one OF them is capable OF
l'PaSOu " MS Country lbty are
known as upright, hardworking prole-
taires to hundreds OF thousands OF
their Jewish fellow-workers of both
sexes.
Yet the government did not only take
the delations of Mr.. Gompers seriously,
but having taken them seriously it de-
layed an inquiry Tor weeks. For weeks
these justly respected leaders of their
people, with the tacit consent Of the
government, were held up to national
detestation in the press, from New
York 10 San Francisco, with a belated
purgation limping in the rear
Naturally and inevitably, the Jewish
laboring population concluded, that
anything goes" With the government
II it makes for vliiication and poten-
tial destruction Of radical lab1 unions.
The most dangerous German gold" is
that fictitious yellow metal which ex-
lists only in the yellow Imagination Of
time-serving men.
In times when national unity Is an
absolute desideratum this hctitious cur
rsncy 10 apt TO SOW moro virulent