The circle banner., 1917-11-30
REAL WAR ISSUES
SHOULD BE KNOWN
Success Depends Upon ReaIiza-
tion of Vital interests That
Are at Stake.
NEED LOCAL ORGANIZATIONS
People Can Maintain Enthusiasm
Through Patriotic Leagues In
Each Locality, Says James
M. Beck.
By JAMES M. BECK.

by oHmGo m. bESht
Author of "The Evidence in the Case
Some weeks ago it was my privilege
to make trip to the middle West al
the invitation of patriotic societies in
Rochester, Buffalo, Cleveland, Chica
go, and st. Paul. In each of these
cities I addressed large and represent.
ative meetings ON the issues of the
war. Four of these cities had an ex-
ceptionally large population of foreign
birth or immediate ancestry, that of
Cleveland alone aggregating, as I was
informed, rs per cent of it's whole pop
ulation.
AS one who from the beginning of
the war earnestly advocated the par
dcipation of the United States in the
world war in defense of the basic
rights of civilization, naturally looked
with great interest to the nature of
from audiences gathered, in most cases
by public invitation, to hear a discus
sion of these issues.
If there is any apathy in the middle
West, these audiences gave no indi-
cation of it.
So far as my experience and obser-
vation in those cities justifies any
opinion-and I appreciate how dan
gerous such generaliZations are-I
found a loyal and ungrudging inten-
don on the part of all classes of
American citizens to support their
country and it's president in this most
righteous war.
1t was especially gratifying to see
how the best of the American youth
had arisen with vigor and enthusiasm
to President Wilson's inspiring call to
arms.
Much to Be Done.
Nevertheless there is much to be
done If the interest is to be maintained
and America is to play a large and
noble part in the greatest of all wars.
There are many ways of developing
this interest, but I know Of none that
is so well adapted to it's object as the
plan proposed by DR.. Ellery G. Stowell,
the distinguished historian of Colum-
bia college, who some months ago
commenced to develop a patriotic serv-
ice league in his own congressional
district. The principal object of this
league was to give the civilian an op-
portunity to support at home the work
of his soldiers in the field, and the |
results which followed Doctor Stow
ellis movement in his own congression-
al district (the nineteenth of New |
York) were so gratifying that SINH
lar local organization was commenced
in the seventeenth district, and the Or
ganization has already made an excel
lent beginning.
1t seems very desirable that in ev-
cry congressional district there should
be such a patriotic service league, COM
posed of it's best citizens, who will
unite to promote the objects of the
war, to secure enlistments, to interest
the masses in Americas vital stake in
the war; to combat sedition. to in
crease subscriptions to governmental
loans and the Red Cross, and in all
other possible ways to support the
armies of America in the field.
War in its actual operations has be-
come matter of mechanics, ehemis-
.ry, and industrial organization, but
1t remains, as it has
llways been, a question of psychology.
70 ration ever conducted a great war
o q successful conclusion unless its
leart was In it. For this reason
cry serious work remains to be done
n this country, and that is to inter-
st the American people, as individu- |
Is, in the causes and issues of this {
itanic contest and its supreme i'm l
ortance to the future of the United {
tates.
Not All United In '76. t
A somewhat similar condition ex- I
,ted when our Republic was founded. Il
he great problem was to interest the Il
eople of the colonies in the struggle. I
hat struggle has become such an epic q
nat we are apt to think that all Amer I
,ans had equal zeal in defending the I
institutional rights of the colonies. V
he fact unfortunately was to the con- c
AIRY. John Adams, long after the Z
evolution had been brought to a sue Z
essful conclusion, estimated that at
le beginning of the struggle one-third $
: the colonists wanted independence, u
bout third were very much OPP "
osed to it, and about one-third We're II
state of opportunist expectancy, II
aiting to see on which side the bal p
ace would fall. While Adams was W
,mething of chronic faultfinder and o.
ay have exaggerated. yet at the be- e
nning Of the revolution our people u
ere no more Of one mind than they "
q now. g
The great patriots Of the revolution, e
en- like Jefferson and Washington and III
.anklin, formed what they called oi
Committees of Correspondence" In ev- za
Y different locality and thus they CO.
dinated the work of different local OF
es and, as the crisis developed, there nj