The Devils Lake world and inter-ocean. (Devils Lake, N.D.) 1915-1920, 1918-03-06
REED DELIVERED
STIRRING ADDRESS

0HnIllNU J AUUnLO0j /
No more vivid or impressive story
of the great war has ever been told
in Devils Lake than that narrated by
Dan A. Reed last Friday evening be
fore an audience estimated at 1900
people in the Grand opera house, which
was donated by Manager Miller for
the occasion. It was not hearsay and
was doubly Interesting from the fact
that it was first hand knowledge
CLEANED on the battlefields by Mr.
Reed himself.
He brought a message from bleed
ing, Europe, from the trenches, from
the devastated lands, from the ruins
from the men and women who has SUI
fcred indescribah,y for four years
from the American boys on the battle
fields Of France and Flanders, and he
paid warm tribute to the courage and
patriotism Of France Belgium and
England.
cts pretty tough and IFS pretty
tough, but we're going TO see it
through" These words 81 oxen by an
American soldier, to Mr.. Reed, were
the motto and the basis Of Mr.. Reeds
stirring address. He lunged right in
to his subject by stating as his per-
sonal opinion that the war may last
five years more and prophesized that
some Of our high school boys sitting
in the audience might have to march
t othe battle fields before the war was
brought to satisfactory conclusion.
He told of the life Of the American
soldier in France, Of the terrible bar
rage, the rain Of cold steel, the suf-
fering, the privations, the ionliness Of
the soldier three thousand miles from
home -"But they are not complain
ing," Mr.. Reed said. "God give us
more men like these" We have them
right here in North Dakota as every
state in the Union has them, but we
ct home must do our duty and stand
behind them, not alone with our gold
J and silver but with our thoughts and
our sacrifices.
There have been lecturers here in
Devils Lake who have taken actual
part in the fighting, but as q general
rule they have had occasion to see but
comparatively little Of what was going
on the length Of that great front. Mr..
Reed, however, who was sent to Eu-
rope as a member Of an American
commission to study conditions, had
almost unlimited opportunity to make
his observation from a great number
of angles. He has seen il all, trench
es and mines, airoplanes and Zeppe-
Inns, barrage fire and leveled towns,
cathedrals and chauteaux that were
once the pride Of France. He said
that the four words that he would new
er forget were told him by his French
guide when he pointed to . small pile
Of stones and asking what they were
he was told "there was a town-there
WAS "A TOWN! nothing but a wa
gon load of loose rock remained to
mark the location Of a city so literally
had the German guns obliterated all
trace of human habitation.
Very graphically Mr.. Reed told Of
an airoplane raid over the poor Sec
tion Of London at night, and how the
next morning he, in company with
Senator Colby, Of New Jersey, visited
the damaged section. They found q
poor woman whose young child had
been crippled by bombs and her home
destroyed. When they tried 70 console
her by saying that this was to be ex-
pected in war she replied "this is not
war, it is murder"
Mr.. Reed said that in order to fight
che enemy successfully one must know
his character and the way he plays
the game To illustrate this point he
told Of number of German atrocities
that have been checked up and varified
to q certainty.
He said thai If America and her
allies do not win this war the Ger
mans would come TO the United States
and that even our peaceful state Of
North Dakota would be invaded, our
cities would be burned, our fields
would be devastated, and our women
and children wonId be mistreated as
have the French and Belgium women
sbeen nistreated. "It is in the north
west the warsnust be won, = Mr.. Reed