The Washington herald., 1918-05-13
Single Purpose of Sammies,
Fight Hard and Beat Kaiser
Lack of Afterthought, Common to Other
Allies, Notably Absent Among U. S.
Troops, Says Balderston.-

people like US. but they're doing their
best to keep themselves free, and
guess we ought to help them. Maybe,
as you say. the Germans couldn't get
at US even IL they licked the Allies.
I'm not so sure of that, but maybe
they couldn't. I couldn't follow all
that talk about submarine boats, and
I don't know much about IL yet, but
l tell you since I've been in France
I've done a lot of thinking, and
reckon America wouldn't be worth
much IL she wasn't helping France and
England and Belgium. We're going to
settle this here autocracy business,
and when we've done 1t we're going
home, and our kids and the kids OF
these Trenches won't have the Job to
do over again"
Cuss Words Left Out.
Perhaps. I've left out some cuss
words. But in all that the sargeant
told me. there was no word OF hate
for the enemy. Poor devils, them
Huns over there" said Michigan
private. They've got to do what
they're told. and the only wAS we
can lick their autocrats and the Kali
ser is to kill them. But maybe after
it's all over the poor boobs'll be glad
of it,
The poor boobs that get killed will
be glad. you meanT' somebody said,
and we all laughed. But we knew
what our Michigan friend meant.
In this spirit, which seems to per-
meate our army, and quite naturally
does not exist to the same extent
among our allies may be found an
excellent weapon of war. Some day
among the German soldiers opposed
to our lines may spread the feeling
, that We do not hate them, that we
pity them rather, for all the suffer-
ing they cause US and our friends;
that we all believe that in defeating
Prussian autocracy We will do a good
turn to the individual German soldier
himself, when he goes home and sets
about putting Germany in order.
The American in the trenches clings
to his idealism, but he remains
astoundingly and completely ignorant
of all the complications of European
politics that are tied up in the war.
As a result, his singIeness of aim is
remarkable. He wants to beat the
Kaiser. II you talk to him about
Lithuania or Poland or Palestine or
Mesopotamia or the German colonies
or raw materials or any Of the other
things that Europeans are wranglIng
about, he does not known what YOU
mean. The French Poilu will become
eloquent on the subject of the balance
OF power in the Mediterranean and the
Australian will prove to you that the
interests Of the world require the an
neXation by his country of the Ger
man Pacific Islands; the Englishman
will demonstrate the impossibility of
giving back the African colonies. The
American soldier looks at you in
blank surprise IL you ask him his
opinion about war aims.
Have Single Purpose.
What a fool this fellow ISL he
thinks, and he says ito beat the
Kaiser. of course" Well, they
teach us at school that singleness
OF purpose helps to get you there.
There can be no doubt as to the
singleness of purpose that animates
the American army.
Morale is a term that means
many things; but It is a very i'm
portant term, as Russia and the
Isonzo have taught US. Every army
now has officers whose Job II is to
study the morale of the troops. to
find out how to better It. The
morale of the American troops, If
l am any Judge. could not be better.
They have much to learn about SOL
dicring, fast as they are learning:
but the spirit is the main thing, and
the right spirit is there.