The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1918-11-15


Tampa Tuesday carried the news
that Professor Ludwig w. Bucholz
had been fully exonerated by the
state board of control; that this de-
cislon was rendered immediately upon
the close of the hearing upon the in
slstence of Chairman Earman "that
the matter be settled Immediately"
1t may be settled and no doubt is
settled in so far as any further action
by the present state board of control
IS concerned, but it is not settled to
the satisfaction of a great many peo-
pie OF this community and, dare say,
of the state of Florida, and it will
never be settled until it is settled
right.
Ex-Congressman S. NJ. Sparkman
testified in substance and to the eff
feet that Professor Bucholz had in
conversation with him, prior to this
country's declaration of war against
Germany, championed and justified
the right of Germany to institute and
carry on the unrestricted use of the
submarine. w. v. Cole corroborated
this testimony. From the account
of the testimony of Professor Bush
olz in both the Tribune and the Times,
it appears that Professor Bucholz did
not contradict, dispute or deny such
testimony am told by several who
were present at the hearing that the
hearing closed without this testimony
being disputed, contradicted or de-
MED. The character of the men giving
this testimony is the best guarantee
of the truthfulness of the charge; the
failure of Professor Bucholz to deny
it is equivalent to an admission of
guilt.
The declaration of Germany in Feb
ruary, 1917, of her intention to insti-
tute and carry on campaign Of her
submarines against the passenger
and merchant vessels of the world; to
repeat such crimes as the sinking of
the Lusitania and the Sussex, was the
cause of America entering the war.
1t is perhaps unnecessary for me to
recall to the minds of the readers of
this letter that the unrestricted use
of the submarine by Germany was in
violation of established international
law, that it was nothing more nor
less than cold-blooded brutal murder
of women and children and unarmed
men, and that in its last analysis, az
result of such wholesale murder,
thousands of American boys and men
have sacrificed their lives on the bat
tlefields of France, and right here at
home in Tampa the families of more
than forty young men are now mourn
ing their sons, and Professor Bucholz,
exonerated by the state board of
control, justified and defended the
cause of their deaths.
1t is apparent that the hearing by
the state. board of control to deter
mine whether or not Professor Buch-
olz was fit and proper person to
teach American boys was twisted and
distorted into a hearing to determine
whether or not he had been by act or
word disloyal to America, and, Of
course, on this distorted charge he
was acquitted. Had the charge really
been one of disloyalty, he would have
been tried on the charge of treason
before duly constituted court. The
whole proceedings smacks of simply
setting up man of straw for the
purpose of knocking him down
simply another whitewash.
The question as to whether or not
the letter of Major Conoley accurate
~ stated the true charge against
Ludwig w. Bucholz is immaterial;
the board of control should not have
required that the charge be preferred
with all the niceties and technicalities
of an Indictment at law. Each and
every member of that board knew
that in truth and in fact the real
point at issue was whether or not
Professor Bucholz was a proper per-
son to mould the minds and train the
reasoning powers Of the boys Of this
state, and | maintain that no man
could justify the brutal and cruel
murders of the U-boats any more than
he could justify the crucifixion of the
Canadian soldiers in Flanders, the
outrage to women in Belgium, or the
use of poison gas with its attendant
excruciating suffering on our own
soldiers. Only follower or be-
lever in the methods of q Won Tir-
pitt, a Hindenburg or Hohenzollern
could do that, and / do not think that