American Falls press. [volume] (American Falls, Idaho) 1907-1937, 1918-05-21

ford to scant the job. Heaven knows,
we have been late enough in getting
into the war, now let's see the war
through to the end until victory comes
AS long as we are at war, let's fight.
You can't fight unless you stand by all
your allies and oppose all your enc
mics. Any American citizen who now
attacks any of the allies of America
is a traitor to America. We declared
war on Germany after a good deal of
thoughtfulness. After a further period
of thought we declared war on Aus
tria. l hope to heaven we don't make
four bites of the cherry, and that we
declare war on Turkey and Bulgaria
at once. 1 feel in international mat
ters that a great self-sacrifcing nation
should handle itself exactly as we ex-
pect an honorable man to handle him
self in private relations. No honor
able man should under any pretense
injure another, nor should he submit
to injury by another. My advice to
any kinsman of mine as he grew up
was never to hit any one if he could
help 1t. but if he did never to hit soft
ly. Nobody is grateful for being hit
softly. If you hit a man a little-he
doesn't like you, and he does hurt you.
Don't hith i'm at all if you can possibly
avoid it, but if you do hit him, put
him to sleep.
Think of the amount of mon that
this country has provided for expend-
ing during the past year, and think of
the fact that the expenditure of a
small fraction of that money in pre-
pairing during the preceding three
years would have meant that if we
had to enter this war at all, it would
have been over a year ago, and all the
~bloodshed stopped. A professional
army is an army meet for aggression.
But l wish to see us realize Washing
tons ideal and provide an army po-
tent for self defense and most unapt
to engage in any warfare of agrees
sion-an army based on the theory
that universal suffrage means univer-
sal service in peace and war.
Il ask the mothers of the land to see
that never again are we caught un-
prepared. l ask the mothers of the
land to see that the system is such that
the mothers gallant sons who fight
shall not be left unsupported because
some other mother has raised her son
not to do his duty. l make that ap-
peal to the women. l make a rougher
appeal to the men.
ITO the men l say that any man of
lighting age who is not willing to fit
himself to fight and willing to fight
when the country calls ought to be
deprived of his vote right out of hand.
America for Americans.
There is another thing. The
events of the past three and three
quarter years have shown that we
have got to put a complete stop to the
day of dual citizenship in this coun-
try. There is only room for one kind
OF man in this country, and that is an
American who is an American and
nothing else. There is no room for a
hfty-tifty allegiance in this country.
If any man says that he loves another
country as much as he does this, send
him to the other country. Accept no
divided allegiance. We have room in
this couRtry for but one nationality.
the American nationality; for but one
flag. the American flag; and that rules
out the red flag of anarchy lust as
much as any other flag. And we have
room in this country for but one lam
guage, the English language.
Remember. there are two sides to
the principle l have laid down. of
A~mericanism. Any man who does not
subscribe to and act on the principles
thus laid down, is not an American
and should be sent u of this coun-
try. But if, in good faith, he shows
himself to be an American. it is a base
and an unworthy thing to pay any re-
gard whatever either to the creed he
processes or to the nationality from
which he or his parents sprang.
Il care not where a man was born
or what land his parents came from.
And it is no concern of mine in civil
life as to what is the method in which
he worships his Creator so long as he
is an American in good faith and moth
ing but an American. So our business
is to insist upon an absolutely straight
out Americanism in every respect in
this country. Our business is to in
sist upon a policy of preparedness. a
permanent policy of preparedness TO
hold III W against every species of
foreign aggression and to be ready In