Der Deutsche correspondent. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1841-1918, 1917-02-16
TRYING TO STAMPEDE THE
COUNTRY INTO WAR.
Representative Moore OF Philadelphia
Makes a Vigorous Protest.-The
Great Pro-Sritish Newspaper
Conspiracy Uneathed.

Conspiracy Unearthed
---e
The Congressional Record furn-
ishes some very interesting and il
Eliminating reading at the present
time. The pity of it is that for some
reason the news agencies do not send
such interesting reading out over the
telegraph wires. During the debate
in the House on February 8 over the
Naval Appropriation Bill Reprosen-
tativc Moore Of Philadelphia said:
eve are considering now one of
the great war bills, and the most Of
us will vote for it even to the limit
OF those things asked for to sustain
the President. While doing that and
considering other war bills, it seems
to me that we might say to ourselves
whether IL Is carried over the tele-
graphic lines to the people OF the
country or not-that there are many
disturbing and conflicting rumors
concerning war conditions which are
asserted to-day and denied to-mor-
row. Yesterday we were informed
that an American had been killed on
the wrecked steamer Turino. His
name was George Washington, and,
of course, it would occasion q patri-
otic thrill the whole length and
breadth Of the country if it was true
that George Washington had gone
down at the hands OF an enemy in
foreign waters But the newspapers
had their say yesterday, and they had
it again this morning that this sure
enough American was killed, and
therefore we ought to go to war with
Germany. He was an individual Of
color, but his taking Off was sup
posed to be reason to cause war
Efforts have been made, desperate
efforts have been maze, since the
President was here on Saturday last,
to prove that we must go to war
The coasts of the world seem to have
been raked to find some overt act to
force the President to come in here
and ask us to declare war. We have
had very little but rumors, but we
have had headlines galore, all with
view Of stampeding the House and
stampeding the country into an act
of war / rose to make this very
brief statement because do not
want the people of this country to be
deceived ] am satisfied that most
Of the people of the country want
peace; peace with honor, of course
But they do not want to go into a
dishonorablc war, and they ought
not to be forced into a war by the
munitions makers or the munition
users of this or any other land. Most
of the dispatch headlines declaring
that American ships have gone down
that American lives have been lost,
that international laws have been
rffSI I
and London has been crazy with de-
light since it heard the glad tidings
on Saturday last that the President
had severed diplomatic relations with
Germany. Coming from the Liberty
Bell and Independence Hall district
Of the United States, | can not forget
that we had trouble with London
1776, and that we had trouble with
London in 1912. / am not quite
ready to accept all of these rumors
that come out Of London. now with
out a grain of salt London is q
little more in need of American help
just now than we arc in need OF the
advice of London. / am not quite
ready, therefore, to believe every
damnable, pernicnous, and lying re-
port that comes out Of London, or to
accept it as an inducement to declare
my country in q state Of war.
On the night of the day that the
President appeared here and in
formed the Congress OF the fact that
he had severed diplomatic relations
with Germany, we had newspaper
extras" announcing in startling
headlines that the Housatonic had
gone down in violation Of interna-
tional law, there were great scare
heads, and boys on the streets shout
ing it aloud. 1t was declared that
American rights had been violated
by country with which we wore on
friendly terms up to that time. Yet
the next days newspapers announced
in smaller type that the Housatonic
was loaded with contraband, and
even our State Department declared
that there was no occasion for any
warlike declaration in consequence
of her sinking.
For three days we have heard that
our American Ambassador, who was
on excellent terms with everyone in
high life in Germany, has been in
captivity" and held for ransom. The
statement is absurd upon its face.
Though we have had it for three
days. This mornings newspapers
announce that Berlin is in conference
with the American Ambassador, that
conferences have been going on in
Berlin, and that the Ambassador will
be safeguarded out OF Germany just
as we are going to safeguard the
German Ambassador out OF the
United States. Oh, how easy it is for
you to rush into war upon the say
of somebody who is interested in
having war! The Ambassador is go
ing to get out safely. Somebody
wanted to inhame the American peo-
pie by declaring that the American
Ambassador had been held in captiv-
ity Absurd We have given safe con-
duct to the German Ambassador and
arc sending him home, and the Ger
mans have been decent with the
American Ambassador. But at least
two college professors and about $50
editors, more or less, yesterday de-
clared mot that they were willing
to enlist, for the barracks down here
nre waiting for men like them to