Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1918-04-27
Mr.. GERARD SPEAKS
At HUT DEDICATION
Former Ambassador Declares
Force Must Be Met With
Force; Sees Long War.
Y. M. C. A. HAS EXERCISES

The auditorium OF washington's big
gest Y. NJ. C. A. hut" to be known as
Liberty Hut. was dedicated last even
ing when the converted Billy Sunday
Tabernacle was crowded to hear James
w. Gerard, former ambassador to Ger
many, tell of his diplomatic adventures
in Berlin while America was trying to
keep out Of the world war.
Mr.. Gerard was introduced by Secretary
of State Lansing as one who did not
permit himself to be inundated by
Prussian insolence or deceived by Prus-
sian hypocrisy"
William Knowles Cooper. who directs
the Y. NJ c. A. war work in the WASH
ington district, presented the Secretary
of State after he had explained the pur-
pose of establishing Liberty Hut. and
called upon John Poole for a brief lib
erty loan appeal, C. B. A. Bryant, Sec
rotary at the hut. to lead the capacity
crowd in a "U. 8. A." cheer. and the
Bishop of Washington to pronounce the
invocation.
After recalling his conversation with
the kaiser. who shouted upon seeing
Americas envoy. I'T will stand no
nonsense from the. United States" Mr..
Gerard declared that in view of war
preparations already made and the
temper Of the American people now, 1t
will be made apparent that America
will stand no nonsense from the
kaiser"
To Meet Force With Force.
Force must be met with force"
Mr.. Gerard said. land autocracy must
be met with autocracy."
In this connection the speaker urged
that the President be granted all the
power he needs for the successful
the appointment of such men as Charles
NJ. Schwab and John d. Ryan to take
up important tasks of war produce
ton.
In introducing the speaker the Sec
rotary of State said:
spiritual as well as a military aspect.
The fight, he said, not only was a battle
against Germany's military machine.
but struggle with the most ruthless
spirit of tyranny that ever possessed
a people
"Of all the agencies laboring to pre-
serve the moral and spiritual superior
ity of our men on land and sea-. he
said none has accomplished more than
the Y. NJ. C. A. Its earnest and effective
service Is superb"
Mr. Gerard also pointed to the work
of the Y. N. C. A. abroad. especially
commencing that Of DR.. John r. Mott
and Dr. Archibald Hart in securing
better treatment of prisoners of war
in German prison camps.
Treatment Of Irish Prisoners.
The speaker told of incidents of in
human treatment accorded Irish pris-
oners. and said that II Irish nationalist
leaders in Ireland could have witnessed
some of these scenes they would take
a different attitude toward conscrfp-
ton,
The Germans segregated the Irish
prisoners and gathered about $500 OF
them at one point and then sought
to line them up for Germany. After
strenuous efforts, he said. they got but
sixteen converts out of the entire num-
The speaker told how the German Of
Ulcers had refused to remove French
and British prisoners from Russians
" no had typhus fever. with the callous
comment that English and French must
learn to know their allies" The result
was deaths for which Germany was as
responsible as If the men had been shot.
The speaker said that the kaiser's
plan, as announced by Won Tirpftz. look
ed to- the capture of the English fleet
and a descent upon America to make
her pay the expenses of the war.
This Is not going to be an easy war
for US; it is not going to be short
war" he said. But there is this para
dox, that the faster we prepare for a
long war the better chance we have
of ending it,