New-York tribune., 1918-12-10
Taft Calls
Shooting Cure
For Bolshevilxii
Political Methods of Russian
Reds Should Compel AL
lies to Enter the Nation

heds Should Compel AL.
lies to Enter the Nation
ATLANTIC CITY. N. j.. Dec. 9.--Ex-
President Taft, describing himself as
progressive, addressed the annual
session of the Investment Bankers
Association of America to-day at the
Traymore and declared that Bolshe-
vism no less than Prussianism was the
foe of progressives, and the only way
to get rid of 1t was by shooting it
out of Russia"
Reds Worse Than Car
Russia is freed from the tyranny of
the Romanotfs," SAID Mr.. Taft, excoriat-
ing Bolshevik rule. "Not one of us would
sustain the continuance of that tyr
amy, but we must admit that that to
which they are now being subjected. is
worse than anything they ever had un-
der the Romanoffs.
"The Bolsheviki are an enemv to
human society and we cannot deal with
them in any other way than that way
which their philosophy makes the only
way we can pursue in dealing with
them" continued the former President.
Their doctrines show by actual prac-
tice that the world belongs to the low
est proletarat and that everybody with
thrift, good clothes and clean shave
and an effort to make himself better
should be killed. Now, that doctrine
which they are carrying out with mas
sacres ten times worse in extent than
they had in France during the French
Revolution-that doctrine brooks no
cure except the same kind of cure
that they would apply to the world
and the respectable element and the
hopeful, progressive element in it.
Must Be Killed
II they are going to kill the pro-
gressive element in the world, then the
only thing for the progressive element
in dealing with the Bolsheviki to do is
to Kill them,' asserted Mr.. Taft. "You
cannot get rid of this doctrine in anv
other way than by shooting it out of
Russia.
when that shooting is to take place.
or who is to do it, of course, is a ques-
ton, but, as the Allies have taken over
the responsibility, l don't see how we
can avoid going IN there in sufficient
1orce to Justify the decent, God-fearing
people of Russia in thinking that we
are really interested in their welfare
and that we are sending force there
to enable them to set up a real Con-
stituent Assembly and a real govern
ment by and for representative people
instead OF government by a minority
OF murderers, cutthroats and doc
trinaries"
THE only way you can do it is by
using police force,'' said Mr.. Taft.
That is the only way in which all in
the fourteen points promised to Rus
s'a, along with ten or twelve other
countries from which autocracy was
stripped by the intercession of the
Allies, can be carried out. They are
something just as bad, struggling in
desperate fight, and we are not rem
derlng them any service at all
There should be some force to keep
these children of ours--for, after ali.
that is what they are-within limits,
to help them along. They are carved
out of ancient empires. Resentful
"reminiscences in their souls must
necessarily stir up enmities and jeal-
ousies The ambitions of these new
peoples are uncontrolled. They have
not studied self-restrant, they are in
toxicated with the idea Of liberty, anu
to them liberty means license"
With reference to Germany, Mr.. Taft
said in part:
ut is great mistake to suppose that
we have been fighting HohenzolIerns.
Did you ever see anything 80 vapid and
shallow as the recent interviews? /?
Whom did they lead? They represented
system, they were but titular heads
guilty of all the atrocious crimes that
have been committed at their instance
and under their guidance. But the
people we were fighting were the Ger
man people obsessed by an insane mad
ness and philosophy that would lead
to the destruction of the world, re-
turn to savagery, which, indeed, were
the methods employed by the Germans
throughout the war.
BALTIMORE, Dec. 9.-Former Presi-
Southern Commercial Congress to-
night:
my feeling about the league of ma
tlons is that the stars in their courses
are revolving to make it inevitable.
There is much discussion by states
men. who refer US to the time of Wash
ington and who warn us of entangling
alliances. But what are we in now? I
am reminded of the Texan who, when
our Philippine policy and our tendency
toward expansion were criticised, de-
clared: we are done expanding. We
can't escape it.
II say to you, that unless such
league emerges from the conference at
Paris the whole thing is failure. /
don't think it is going to be failure
that is why / say to the gentlemen at
washington: Better get on the band
wagon"