The weekly Iberian. (New Iberia, La.) 1894-1946, 1918-04-06
TO GERMAN. AMERICANS.
By Otto Fl. Kahn.

VI !" NCb "uu Olt IL
But | am ashamed--bitterly an,
grievOusly ashamed-of the Ger
many which stands convicted be
fore the high tribunal of th
worlds public opinion of havini
planned and willed war; Of the re
voting deeds committed in Belgi
nm and northern France, Of tn
lnfamy of the Lusitania murders
OF lnnumerable violations OF Th
Hague convention and the law 0
nations, of abomlnal and perfidi
ous plotting in friendly couDtrie
and shameless abuse of their hos
pitality, of crime heaped npol
crime in hideous defiance of tn,
laws of God and men.
| cherish the memories of my
youth, but these very memories
made me cry out in pain an(
wrath against those who have be
fouled the spiritual soil Of the OLE
Germany, 10 which they were
rooted.
l revere the high ideals and flnt
traditions of that old Germany
and the time honored conception
of right conduct which my parent.
and the teachers of my early youth
bade me treasure throughout life,
but all the more burning is my re
sentiment, all the more deeply
grounded my hostility, against the
Prnsslan caste who trampled those
ideals, traditions, and conceptions
in the dust.
Long before the war l had come
to look upon Prussianlsm as
amongst the deadllest poison
grOwths that ever sprang from the
soil of the spirit Of man.
When the war broke out In Eu.
rope. when Belgium was invaded,
| searched my conscience and my
judgment in sorrow aud anguish,
the powerful voice OF blood argu
ing against the still, small voice of
right.
And 1t became clear to me to
the point Of solemn and unshaka
ble conviction that Prussianism,
in mad infatuatiOn, had committed
the browning sin of outraging and
defying the conscience Of the
world and of challenging right to
mortal combat against might, and
that the cause which the allies
were defending was our cause, be
cause it was the cause Of peace,
humanity, justice, and liberty.
There are some of you, probably,
who will still find 1t hard to be
lieve that the Germany You knew
can be guilty of the crimes which
have made it an outlaw amongst
the nations. But do you know
modern Germanyf Unless you
have been there within the last
twenty five years, not once or
twice, but at regular intervals;
unless you have looked below the
glltteriDg surface of the marvel
ous material progress and achieve
ment and seen how the soul Of
Germany was being eaten away by
the virulent poison of Prussianlsm;
unless you have watched and fol.
lowed the appalling transforma-
ton of German mentality and mo
rality under the nefarious and
puissant influence of the priest.
hood of power worship, you do not
know the Germany of this day
and generation.
The Germany which brought
upon the world the Unreasonable
disaster of this war, and at whose
mOnstrOus deeds and doctrines the
civilized nations of the world
stand aghast, started into definite
being less than thirty years ago
| can almost lay my finger upon
the date and circumstances of Its
iii omened advent.
Less than thirty years ago a
"new course" was flambOy antly
proclaimed by those in authority,
and the term "new course" be
came the order of the day.
There came upon the German
people a whole train of new and
baneful influences and impulses,
formidably stimulating as power
drug. There came, amongst other
evils, materislism and cOvetOus-
ness and irreligioD; over weening
arrogance, and impatient con
tempt for the rights Of the weak,
a mania tor world dominion, and a
veritable lunacy Of power worship.
There came also a fixed and IRA
tiOnal distrust of the intentions of
other nations, for the evil which
had crept into their own souls
made them see evil in others, and
that dlstrnst was nurtured care
fully and deliberately By those in
authority.
And, finally, there came "tLs
IL m