Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1918-05-14

law ever passed for raising an
army, but that it is the only fair
and democratic law that ever was
passed for that purpose.
But inexcusable as was his course
in this matter according to my
view, the situation was made worse
by his subsequent conduct 1t was
after the passage of that bill-in-
deed it was as late as the 7th day
of September that he continued to
assert the absurd notion that the
law was unconstitutional; and the
records of the United States courts
of Georgia are living testimony to
the evil effect that was produced
by his utteranceS upon the mis-
guided boys throughout this state
who refused to obey its terms 1t
is no answer to this for him to
deny, as he did at Carrollton, that
he had ever counseled resistance to
the law. He denounced the law. He
declared his belief that it was I'M
constitutional. He introduced a
measure in congress for it's amend
ment to prevent the sending of any
young man abroad who fell within
its terms unless he consented there
to. He fought the principle when
the aviation bill was up. and no
Carrollton denial now can wipe out
the evil fact that the influence of
Senator Hardwick carried many a
youth to Imprisonment in Georgia.
VOLUNTEERS ARMY IDEA
RIDICULOUS SUGGESTION
1 do not overlook Senator Hard
wick's contention that we should
send only volunteers to fight our
battles on foreign soil What a
81 JiSf1 1F
this argument implies. St is like his
contention that the war should have
been fought on sea, and the curious
and absurd argument by which he
seeks to justify the contention that,
because our rights had been at
tackled only at sea. we should fight
only at sea The all-Sufficient an
swer 20 that argument is this: That
when American honor is asSailed
and American rights of travel and
commerce are denied, we will fight
the enemy wherever we can find MIN.
1 have no patience with the stupid
contention of those who protest
that they are willing to fight the
enemy if he invades America. When
we consider the barbarities and the
terrible cruelties to which the peo-
pie are subjected in the lands where
the battles are being fought, the
murder of the innocent, the shoot
ing down of the helpless, the as
sassination of noncombatants, the
raping of women by the thousands
and hundreds Of thousandsHwhat
sort of an intellect is it that can
tell the people of Georgia that
they should wait until the enemy
comes to our shores, where our
women and children are to be the
victims of his barbarous lust in
stead of carrying the war to his
country and fighting it where his
women and his children shall be
the helpless victims in the path of
war?
Fight by volunteers, indeed! How
would we have done it? We have
got less than 400,000 volunteers to-
day in the army, and we have al
ready sent many more than that
number of men to France.
This war is a war of nations,
conducted on a scale that the world
never dreamed of before. The five
or six hundred thousand men or
more that we already have in Eu-
rope are but a bagatelle compared
to what we have got to send, and
the man who can seriously argue
u Tie tAHISTlCdLn pSOplc lLdI We
should declare war and pledge to
the commander-in-chief the re-
sources of the country, and then tell
him that he shall have no help but
from those who volunteer, is sim
ply overwhelmed by the unanswer-
able fact that the rolls for volun-
teers were open many months be-
fore the SelectiVe service began to
operate, and that in that time a pit
iful 200,0 900 or less volunteered their
services, even though before that
time we had been calling for vol
unteers to meet the threat of war
with Mexico. What sort of states
manship is this? What sort Of
honor is it that makes a pledge and
then would violate it?
HARDwICK HAS FOUGHT
EVERY WAR MEASURE
1t is impossible for me to elabo-
rate on the votes of Senator Hard
wick on which 1 have differed with
him. 1 shall mention to you only
a few of them as specimens Of
the way in which, if the country
had followed his advice, we would
have been subjected to overwhelm-
ing disaster and defeat.
He opposed the policy of the pres
walton, the bill, by the way, in which
the use of foodstuff is prohibited in
the manufacture of intoxicating
liquor.
Though he voted for the aviation
program, ne tried in vain to Grip
pie the system.
He declared in the senate that
the policy Of taking over the rail-
roads during the war was intended
solely for their benefit and not for
the benefit of the country.
On the war finance corporation bill
only three members voted against
it. Two of these were Republic
ans and Senator Hardwick was the
third.
In short, by his attitude of fac
tious opposition and vicious criti-
cism of the government, he has,
at practically every step of our
progress, hampered and INSTRUCTED
the high and resolute purpose of
this government to defend Amer
lean rights. He is an obstruction
list pure and simple. He sets up
certain abstract principles profess
ed by him of which he makes a
fetish, and. in time OF war, when
every resource of this country
should be concentrated in a unified
and unanimous purpose to win the
war, he has consistently sung the
song of some dead and forgotten
Bourbonism, raising up. as an OBJ
lection to the practical policies of
war, some abstract theory of his
own.
JUN1oR SENATOR LIVES
IN FORGOTTEN PAST.
But his attitude of hostility and