The vidette. (Iuka, Tishomingo County, Miss.) 1912-1967, 1918-03-21
How the United States Would
Fare II It Pafleycd With the
Huns.

"a NiiSif NAo FfNi a bJuDt VI tlUN
foolish and dangerous it would be
for the United States and its Allies
to parley with unconquered Prussian-
ism, the present state of affairs in
Russia dispels it. The Brest-Litovsk
peace conference was initiated upon
solemn assurances from the German
representatives. that negotiations
should be conducted upon the prin-
ciple of no indemnities and no an
nexations. The Bolsheviki were
persuaded to put all the greater
trust in that promise because the
Reichstag majority had declared in
favor of a settlement without annex
ations and indemnities. That pol
icy was Reimbursed, moreover, in
general terms by the head of the
German delegation, at the begin
ming of the conference. As far as
fair words were an omen, the Rus
slams had every reason to expect an
honest deal.
But no sooner were proceedings
we'll under way than the Kaiser's en-
voys began showing their real pur-
pose. Their early pose of concilia-
ton stiifened into the typical Ger
man strut. Their demands upon
the astounded Slavs grew more and
peremptory, more and more out
rageous until finally (when the de-
sired transfer of Teuton divisions
from the Eastern to the Western
front was complete) they dropped
all pretense and flung forth their de-
mand for a wholesale annexation Of
Russia's choicest provinces, to
gether with a staggering indemnity.
The so-called Ukraine republic APP
pears to be merely German contri-
vance for taking over Russia's rich
est agricultural lands; at any rate,
the Ukraine is under German dom
ination. That would have satisfied
an ordinary eonqueror. But it did
not satisfy the Junker's greed, far,
very far from it indeed.
There should be no peace for Rus
STA, Won Kuehlmann coldly declared
until she had signed away her Bal
tic territory, including her most
valuable sea outlets, and had under
taken to pay four billion dollars in
to the HohenzolIern war chest Such
was the German way of peace
without annexations or indemni-
ies;" such the German sense of
Justice and honor.
Who can doubt that the Potsdam
gang, as the Kaiser and his mill
artists have been APPLY called, would
LAY equally false, if they could,
with the United States or with any
)ther member of the Allied group.
Their total lack of moral response
)ility has been demonstrated too
ften and too glaringly for us ever
20 enter into parleys with them save
1t the point of our victorious bayo-
nets. Repeatedly they have sought
o decoy US into just such a spurious
jeace conference rs that into which
lapless Russia was betrayed; and i:
We had been so gullible as to have
ollowed in the path of the Bolshe-
Xxi, our experience, as far as honor
nd basal interests are concerned. |
would have been no different from |
heirs. We should have found at |
the crucial moment that we were !
negotiating, not with responsible |
tatesmen, but with red-handed out
avs who had an overwhelming ad- |
'antage in the fact that while others
elieved in fulfilling pledges and |
,biding by treaties, they themselves
'ere quite unrestrained by any such |
onvictions or scruples.
Our shores would not have beer |
pyerrun by yandal troops forthwith
Russia is, but soon or lates I'll,
tempted invasion would havecomc
aeking with brutahties such as
'erman militarism alone can pro.
uce. Imagine, too, the indemnity
watch the Potsdam Gang would OK
vt from the United States if eve, /
51ey had the opportunity! Foui
'ilIion dollars would be becgars
aims beside the tremendous tax th9}
culd pile upon America II thel
ould Let us have no delusion.
concerning this sa age and greedy
foe Hohepzollern t.a7r many is bp,,t