The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1918-04-27
Wrathy Citizens Determined
to Punish Numerous
Friends of Kaiser
TAR AND FEATHER
PARTIES NUMEROUS
Nearly 200 Banks of the State Have
Not Taken a Dollars Worth Of Lib
erty Bonds and have Ignored Red
Cross Appeals.

OMAHA, Neb. April 27.-Nebraskn
is getting tired of Germans and pro
Germanism. With % per cent of its
population either German or of German
descent, with dsloyalty talk and ac-
tions reported daily, with German
farmers failing to cultivate valuable
wheat land, with German bankers re-
fusinp to subscribe to the Liberty loan,
with Germanism SO rank that from one
county alone more than 900 pro-Ger-
mans have been called before the state
council of defence TO answer charges
made against them, with the German
Lutheran church hotbed of enmity TO
America and with their schools 50 Ger
man. that American children are
whipped for speaking the English Ian
guagc on the Fairgrounds loyal citl-
zens are becoming exasperated.
That the patience of the loyalists Is
fast becoming exhausted is shown in
different ways. a pro-German IS ses
upon and whipped, another is tarred
and feathered. German bankers are
called before the council of defense and
told TO invest in Liberty bonds. In
dictments are returned for violations
Of the espionage act. German is
turned out of the public schools. Ger
man Lutheran ministers are rcbukcd
and all signs point to the fact that
Nebraska Americans are Disguised WITH
i Germ2nlsm.
Nebraska is a farming state. The
Germans have settled in the small
towns and villages and on the farms
rather than in the cities. While il
might he thought the city German;
would have retained their fatherland
sentiment to a greater degree thar
those Germans living on the farms, Il
is 4 fact that the city Germans have
been assimilated much more readil,
\ than those in rural communities. The
city Germans have come in contact
with Americans and those of other ma
tionalties. while the rural Germans have
largely lived to themselves. They
have had their German communities
their German schools, their German
preachers from Germany, and they
have kept alive the ideals and the lif,
they brought with them from Germany
There are second generation Germans
who have come 10 man S estate II
| Nebraska who can neither read, spcal
nor understand the English language
These people are outspokenlv favor
able 10 Germany in the war and the,
have faunted their Germanism 50 fla
GRAVITY in the faces Of Americans tina
the latter have at last lost patience
Germans are now feeling the claws be
meath the soft hands which American
have heretofore held out to them. An
there is heard on all sides the threa
that when the first Nebraska regimen
goes into action in France, and tn
casualty lists are sent home, there
going to be real trouble in this stat
for the pro-Germans, whether Germa
born, American born or renegad
Americans who have truckled to tn
Germans vote or the German bushes
man.
At Emerson, Neb last week Rudolp
J Schopke, wealthy banker, was take
from his home and given coat of ia
and feathers. The members of the mo
wore no masks. The next day Schopk
subscribed $3.50 to the Red Cross.
Walter Siebert, cashier of bank a
Scots Bluff, Neb., has been arrested o
a presidential warrant, charged wit
ma king disloyal remarks. He is in iai
In Madison county recently a Germa
farmer was forced by mob to burn
picture of the kaiser.
Louis Fellwock, German farmer c
Beatrice, Neb., has been indicted I
federal court for permitting 1900
charged that Fellwock said he woul
prefer to see his wheat rot than 90 t
the American army.
Last week q special session of II
state legislature repealed the Germa