Fulton County tribune. (Wauseon, Ohio) 1883-1925, 1918-08-30
autocratic government backed by or
ganized force"

government backed by Or
ganized force"
However, now the question arises,
Why must American Germans be held
accountable and prosecuted for the
sins of a government they have long
past forsaken? Our opponents say:
"You countenance and abet the atti-
tude and acts of the imperialistic
Pan-Germanists." Is the accusation
true? There can be no doubt in the
minds of informed Americans that the
Pan-German agitation was carried
into this country and fostered by such
organizations as the German-Amer-
lean Alliance and kindred bodies. Our
administration at Washington dis
tinctly declared that insidious Pan
German agitation was conducted
within our walls, and our courts Of
justice have punished large number
OF plotters against our peace. But
does that fact justify the persecution
and punishment of American citizens
of German ancestry who are intense
ly American, whose soul is wrapped
up Illy anu hAliJJCd JOSCJA Will, Jul
American institutions? Shall we
punish the innocent with the guilty?
If the President, when exhorting the
Congress to the declaration of a state
of war, can mark a distinction be-
tween foreign enemies and native
(German) friends, all loyal citizens
certainly should be able and willing
to follow his leading. Said the Pres
ident: ''We shall happily still have
an opportunity to prove that friend
ship in our daily attitude and actions
toward the millions of men and wo-
men of German birth and native SYM
pathy who live among US and share
our life, and we shall be proud to
prove it toward all who are in fact
loyal to their neighbors and to the
government in the hour of test. They
are, most Of them, as true and loyal
Americans as if they had never known
any other fealty or allegiance. They
will be prompt to stand with US in
rebuking and restraining the few who
may be of a different mind and pur-
pose."
Friends, let us apply these mag
nificent words of our President. We
have physicians among US who are
quacks. Does that justify US in call
ing all physicians quacks? We have
lawyers who are shysters. Does that
justify us in calling all lawyers shy
sters? We have merchants who are
profteers. Does that justify US In
calling all merchants profteers We
have men in high places who are
criminals. Does that justify US in
calling all men in high places crimi-
nails? Manfestly that line of argu-
ment is illogical and pernicious. 1t is
no less illogical and pernicious. 1t is
clare. There are some plotters
against the peace of the United States
who speak the German language
therefore all who speak the German
language are plotters against the
peace of the United States.
| do claim to speak for the more
than a million Lutherans of the Synod
of Missouri, Ohio, and other state:
when say there is no body of men
of whatever extraction, more loya
and more given, heart, body, and soul
to the principles of our American Con
stitution than they. If you will allow
the expression, on the question of fl
deity to our American ideals, we ar,
not fifty-tifty, but one hundred pc
cent. To my knowledge, we Luther
ans of the Synod of Missouri have
had no official connection, religious
or political, public or private, will
the German state-churches or witt
the Prussian state since our organi
zation, more than seventy years ago
We have never sent clerical or la,
delegate to, or received a clerical o
, lay delegate from, provincial o
, Pan-German convention in German
or anywhere else in the whole wild
world. We have never solicited o
received a pfennig in the way of sub
sides from any German prince, pc
; tentate, kaiser, or from any relig
ious or political state organization
! On the contrary, we have been tn
I most uncompromising opponents q
what is now termed Pan-Germanisn
, as far as it was known to us, durin
the entire period of our synodical ex
istence, and no one knows that bet
ter than the Pan-Germanists at hom
and abroad.
Because of the very philosopher
y and religious heresies of the Germa
. universities we have consistent
2 counseled our young men who desire
$ to study abroad against doing so, an
have founded and financed our ow
o American colleges and divinit
q schools unaided. We have neve
: stopped to the exchange of collee
s professors, because we Stunned til
o contamination that must needs hav
+ followed. AS body we have spurne
i to strive after German university d,
r grees, because to our mind their a.
5 ceptance countenanced the doctrin
q and philosophical attitude of the un
n versity, an attitude on many que
F. tions that for reasons of conscien,
we could not endorse, but rejected.
" The Most Searching Investigation
ii Invited
rs ] know that it is an easy matt
e to put forth these broad, sweepir