Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1918-04-20

A home force of one hundred
million people to help win the war
is the announced aim of the Lin
coin Patriotic army. which has just
opened national headquarters in
New York General Coleman du
Point has been elected commander
in-chief, with General Leonard
Wood as honorary connnander-in-
chief The list of other officers ana
supporters includes many well
known Americans in all parts of
the country Among these are
William F. McCombs, former dem
ocratic national chairman; Rex
Beach. aythor; Samuel Gompers, la
Dor leader; Frank A. Soldering,
large manufacturer, of Akron.
Ohio; Governor Cox of Ohio; Mar
Gus M. Marks of New York City;
former United States Senator The
odore E. Burton, the army's treas
urer; Henry Clews, banker; Rich
ard Wightman, its adjutant gem
eral, and others of note.
The object of the Lincoln army.
which will be ununiformed yet
drilled in every kind of patriotic
NJ
ent institution for service to. the
government and the people. De-
signed first to win the war by set
ting every patriotic American at
work Immediately to do what he
can do best to assure American vic
tory and to search out all unpatri-
otto individuals and alien enemies,
the army expects to turn its
forces after the war TO the big
question of the reconstruction of
industry and to the many other
great problems America will face
at the end of the world conflict. In
short, the army summarizes its
purposes in the slogan "LincolniZe
America, having chosen the spirit
of the great patriot to symbolic
the spirit in which its work will
be done.
The army will be organized and
directed in its field work by Lin
coin Memorial university. at Cum
berland Gap, Tenn, founded by
General o. 0. Howard. at Abraham
Lincoln's request. DR.. John Wes-
ley Hill. chancellor of the univers-
fly, one of the prime movers in the
strange and an almost uncanny re-
sponSibiiIty in assisting the new
army since il was Lincoln himself
who requested General Howard to
found Lincoln Memorial university
in order to have place where chill
dren of poor parents might be MT
ted for their life work without re-
gard to their financial condition or
nationality. Now, as chancellor OF
this university, at the first time
since the assassination of the be
loved president when the very life
of our nation is at stake, comes the
request to me to help this great
movement to enlist a home army of
our people to uphold the hands of
our soldiers and to help bind the
nations wounds after the war. |
felt almost as if Lincoln had spok
en- to me when l was asked to help
in this work Every man, woman
and child who reveres Abraham
Lincoln's spirit and who wants to
help win the war ought to enlist in
this army at once. There is no
time to be lost"
The Lincoln army is designed to
help the Liberty loans. assist the
Red Cross and the Y NJ. c. A. in
the equally important work they
are doing for our soldiers. to give
the Boy Scouts a lift and to get
back of every patriotic movement
of the war The army, it is an
nounced, will not compete with any
other organization but will assist
them all. In order to make it a
,,oD,,Iar Oroania ztion enlist eDts
have been placed at one dollar
Those who secure seven new re-
cruits will be advanced and may
go on up in rank as in the regular
army, to corporal, sergeant, lieu