The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 18??-1935, 1917-01-26
ENGLAND BATTLING FOR WHAT
AMERICA LONGS TO
ACHIEVE.
GERMANS CAUSED GREAT war
While The Allied Powers Desire
Above all Things Peace 1t Must be
Peace With Safety and Assurances
For The Future.

dressing meeting ldSI nlSHI III Coh
nection with the war loan campaign,
Andrew Bonar Law, chancellor of the
excheuuer and meber of the British
war council, made the following reply
to President Wilson's speech to the
United States senate:
"The end of war is peace. The Ger
made made us what they have called
an offer of peace. 1t received from
the allied governments the reply
which is deserved--the only possible
reply.
Most of you have, presume, read
the speech of President Wilson which
appeared in yesterdays papers. 1t is
frank speech, and it is right that any
member of one of the allied govern
ments who refers to it should speak
with equal frankness. 1t is impossi-
p BILE that he and we can look on it
from the same point of view.
War of Aggression, Chancellor Asserts
'The head of a great neutral ma
ton, whatever his private views may
be-and know as little as any OF you
what they are-must adopt neutral
attitude. America is very far re
moved from the horrors Of this war.
We are in the midst of them. Ameri7
ca is neutral; we are not neutral. We
believe that the essence Of this con
flict is a question which is as old as
time--the difference between right
and wron. We believe, we know, that
this war is a war of naked aggression,
that crimes which have accompanied
the conduct of the war, which have
been unknown in the world for cen
turtles, are small in comparison with
the initial crime Of plunging the world
into war by cold-blooded calculation
because those responsible thought it
would pay.
president Wilson's speech had this
" SAill pCaSS INV uiu oSSoA
peace for the future. That is our aim,
and our only aim. We hoped to Sc
cure this by a league of peace, and he
not only spoke in favor of such a
league, but he is trying to induce the
American senate to take the steps
necessary to give effect to Il 1t would
not be right to regard this propose
as something altogether Utopian.
DueIing Passed, Why Not War?
"You know that almost up to our
own day duelling continued, and just |
as the settling of private disputes by
the sword has now become unthink |
able, so, | think, we may hope that |
the time will como when all the ma |
tons of the world will play the part |
which Cromwell described as his lie
work-to act as constable, and keer |
peace That time will come, hope.
But this whole subject is not an
abstract question for the future. 1t is
a question Of life and death now. In
judging whether that result can b
secured by his methods, it is impos-
sible for US to forget the past For
generations humane men, men of good
will among all nations, have striyen
by The Hague convention, by peace
conferences and by all other means
to make war impossible, or at least
10 mitigate the horrors or war. When
war comes, by what means can these
barriers, built up against barbarism,
be made effective? They cannot be
preserved by the belligerents, if any
of them choose to ignore them. 1t is
only from neutral states that eifec-
tive sanction can be given to them.
= Germans Swept Aside All Barriers.
"What happened? At the very out
break of the war the Germans swept
aside every one of these barriers.
They tore up treaties which they
themselves solemnly signed. They
strewed mines in the open sea. They
committed every atrocity on sea and
land against The Hague convention,
which they had themselves signed. |
They made war on women and chill |
dren. They destroyed neutrals rs
ruthlessly as they did their enemies.
They are at this moment driving the
population of conquered territories in
to slavery. and. worse even than that,
they are making some of the subjects
of their enemies take up arms against
their own country.
"All this has been done, and no neu-
trail power has been able to stop it.
No neutral power. indeed, has made
any protest against it. We must,
then, take other means to secure the
future peace of the world.
1--WE have rejected the German offer
to enter into negotiations, not frsn
lust of conquest or desire for shining
victories. We have rejected it, not