The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1918-08-15
THURSDAY, AUGUST IS, 1918
Band wagon Statesmen.

The Vband wagon: statesmen is
very much in evidence this year. You
known what we mean-that fellow who
saw Germany about to invade the Uni
ted States and then jumped in to sup
mort his country. The fellow whose
hind-sight was a lot greater than his
FORESIGHT. The fellow who fought like
everything against everything that aid
ed to prepare this country for sue
cessful prosecution Of war and then
when he had war thrust upon him
hurried to get on the band wagon. He
is the fellow who is waving the flag the
hardest now but the same fellow who
was afraid to pull Old Glory up to
the mast head back in the spring OF
1917. He is the fellow who thinks
that this is a mighty bad time to "ad-
iourn politics. and believes that the
safety of the country lies only in sup
porting some old idea Of party domina-
ton which was fashionable years ago.
He is the fellow who is clinging onto
the old tradition that we should not
have any part in foreign war be-
cause some one said so hundred
years ago.
Most Of these fellows voted against
the declaration Of war by the United
States. IL their vote had been want
ed for the nation today would have
been sitting around with its commerce
driven from the seas and it's name a
reproach among the nations. He is
the fellow that sings every time he
hears of a, casualty over there-not
because he feels strongly the fact
that brave man has fallen fighting
for liberty but because he feels that
the falling Of that man is going to
call the attention of the voters In
some district to the fact that he was
utterly forgetful of the safety of that
man and that he failed to support big
movements which would have made
this nation prepared for war. He is
the fellow who stands out with the
luke warm paciists and tells them that
they are right in protesting against
taking men out of the cities and send
ing them to war and when no one is
looking and only few pro-Germans
are listening he tells these people,
"you will remember that / did not
vote to declare war -y you will recall
that my vote was not in favor of the
selective service law"
These men are being checked up
pretty fully these weeks. They are
being put into mighty uncomfortable
position. They are being asked whe-
ther or not they were with Germany
or the United States before war was
actually declared, The fact that they
are sitting on the band wagon now
is not of great interest to the people.
The people as we'll as these men know
that the band wagon is a mighty allur-
ing place for men who put politics
and political Offices above patriotic
support of the country.
Men who are being elected to Con-
gress this fall are men who are going
to yield a mighty influence. They must
be men Of foresight and not men of
hind-sight. They must not be s'band
wagon patriotic"
The way to judge candidate this
year is not by how he voted when
the nation was with it's back to the
wall but how he voted to keep the ma
ton from getting into just such a pre-
dicament
Measure the fellow seeking a re-elec-
tion by his chances to know and to
have known facts and measure his ac-
tions by this rule. If he failed to real
ize the necessity Of the nation being
ready, he is mighty poor man to send
to congress now-no matter if he de-
clares himself a candidate for the
place of driver of the "band wagon. y
Your boys are fighting in the great
est war Of the world. They are bar
ing their manly beasts to the biting bay
onet of the Hun and the blood Of these
boys sprinkled on the fields of France
and Belgium and Italy calls out to you
to Beware of Band Wagon Patriots. =
The leopard can not change his spots
and the man whose sympathies were
all with the frightfulness of Germany
just before the United States declared
war against that Imperial Government
can not be expected to change his
spots. We do not want spotty men y
in Congress. They are dangerous to
the safety of your boys fighting in
France. They are more dangerous to
the future of your nature. "Seeing it
through means seeing to it that
men are put into places Of trust in
Congress who are going to see it
through with you. Men who are going
to feel the twinge of the blood squirting
from wounds in France and men who
are going to see that the sacrifices of
these boys are not made in vain. II
is no time to take chances with death
bed repentances. 1t is no time to for.
give and forget lust because some fe1.