The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1918-08-22
Why We Fight
NOD
Deosuse Germany for Years 0outA
% Undermine Our Govemmena
and Our Ideals

III q Ouf IDEAS
BY CLARENCE L. SPEED
Secretary Of the War Committee Of the
Union League Club Of Chicago.
We are fighting Germany for the
right to live q own lives as we see
At. We are fighting for our laws, our
ideals, our homes. our institutions.
but, how" one may ask, "were all
these things threatened by Germany
before the war started3 II is easy to
e how they may be threatened now
for II we are defeated we are lost but
before the war started did Germany
menace those things we hold most "a
credit"
Let the Germans themselves answer.
After you have read the evidence out
Of their own mouths, you may decide
whether or not Germany planned to up
set our institutions, our ideals, our very,
mode Of life.
In 1901 the National German.Ameri-
ian alliance was formed In the United
States In 1907 Il was Incorporated
by act Of congress- It's charter IL
now being attacked IN that same body.
One Of the objects Of the alliance, as
officially announced, vas 10 check ma
tivisdc encruachnnenta." In other
words, Do keep the Germans from BE-
coming Americans Another object
was 80 awaken and strengthen the
sense q unity among the people Of
German origin tn America"
This alliance" its preliminary
statement Of aims concludes, "1s
pledged to bring its entire 'organiza-
ton to the support of any state fed.
Grafton which is engaged In the strug.
gle for any Of these objects"
It was pledged, In other words, to
have its members vote, not as individ.
uals, but as German controlled units,
for or against anthing Of which
they did not approve.
The desire for resisting "nativist1c
encroachments," was particularly alb
horrent to American ideals, because
the effort In this country has always
been to keep politics free from racial
or religious influences. Yet here was
a body, proclaiming itself German in
origin and thought, seeking to perpetu-
ate this German feeling in the midst
Of America. q
From its very start the alliance
sought to foment discord with England.
It always spoke Of the American press
as "the Anglo-American" press, and 1t
carried out q long and well-directed
campaign for the Introduction Of the
German language into the schools and
its use In civil life.
'.The National Alliance" according
to an issue Of its official Bulletin be.
fore this nation entered the war, sis
waging war against Anglo-Saxonism,
against the fanatical enemies Of per.
sonal liberty and political freedom, II
is combating narrow-minded, benight.
ed know-nothingism, the influence of
the British, and the enslaving Puritan.
Ism, which had its birth In England"
'The race war which we will be
! compelled to go through with on Amer.
lean soil will be our world war;" said
the New York Stats Zeitung in fight.
ing q proposal to amend the New York
constitution to make ability to SPEAK
and write the English language q
requisite for suffrage.
Ludwig Fulda wrote a book, "Amer
lean Impressions" They i'm.
pressions Of a German who had stud.
led this nation with a view to seeing
It ultimately Germanized. German
izatiOn is Synonymous with causing to
speak German" he said, "and speak
ing German means to remain German
Wherever there were signs Of dis.
content Of q movement which might
tend to disrupt this country, or any
other which Germany might find as q
commercial rival, the German-Ameri.
can alliance was sure TO be on the
Job It gave support to the Irish.
American societies, because these soci-
cites, before the war, were working for
the separation Of Ireland from Eng.
land. a matter In which Germany, at
that time, could have no legitimate
interest. But Germany, even then,
was preparing for war, and was doing
every possible thing to weaken its
coming enemies. A disorganized
America, one filed with German re.
.servists, would be in no position to
side with her enemies, Germany fig
ured On this subject the much-quoted
Bernhard wrote:
Measures must be taken at least
10 the extent Of providing that the
German element is not split up in the
world, but remains united In compact
blocks, and thus FORMS wen in for
eign countries, political centers Of
gravity In our favor. The isolated
groups Of Germans abroad greatly benz
eft u trade, since by preference they
obtain goods from Germany; but they
may also be useful to us politically, az
we discover In America. The German.
Americans have formed a political al
lance with the Irish; and, thus,
united. constitute a power In the state
wifi which the American government
must reckon"
With the outbreak Of the war In Eup
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