Omaha daily bee., 1918-11-02

prosecution or the war.
This war has not been fought by
the president only; it has not been
fought by the secretary Of war only;
Il has not been fought by our armies
alone; this war is the war OF the
,olid American nation" said Mr..
Taft.
1T is them. and their growing in
lensity and Indignation, soul-stir-
ring unanimity in the spirit Of sacri-
fee, who have carried this war, so
far as the United States is con-
cerned, TO its present satisfactory
stage.
"Will a democratic congress be
more likely really to help than a re-
publican congress? How can we
Judge? Only by what the demo-
cratic majority has done in this war
in congress, and what the repub-
lican minority has done. Which in
view Of its record in the present
congress is more likely to stand
back OF the president effectively for
the winning of the war and holding
him to an unconditional surrender:
Republicans Greatest Aid.
"The example of Lincoln in call
ing his political opponents, who
sympathised with the war, into his
councils, was specifically rejected
and a course pursued which justified
the statement that never in peace or
war have we had a more partisan
administration than during this crit
ical period in the nations life.
"The republican party was repre-
sented only by the republican min
ority in the housesand the republican
minority in the senate; the members
of that minority have been moved in
their concerted action by no parti-
san purpose. The country owes
much to them for the stimulus to
better war preparation by forcing
public attention upon its defects.
Without them and their votes and
the leadership of such men as Julius
Kahn, the house draft act would
have failed and the raising of our
armies would have been impossible.
What we have had of the demo
cratic majority and its leaders is
fair basis for judging what We may
expect of another democratic major
ity If that be the result.
with the lessons of the past be-
for the people of the United
States, how can there be any hesita-
ton about returning a republican
majority to each house so far as
the war is concerned and maintain
ing the proper fighting trim OF our
gallant armies?
Unconditional Surrender"
Second. l have already said the
war is likely soon to end, even
though we demand, as we must de-
mand, an unconditional surrender.
and then will come the terms OF
peace which are to be settled by the
president and two-thirds of the SEN
ate, but which should be much infiu-
enced before their final formal &C
ceptance by the attitude OF the
house of representatives, for that
house must play an important part
in performing such obligations as
the United States will assume in
the treaty of peace.
In order that the treaty OF peace
may be what it should, we must
have unconditional surrender.
TO achieve this object uncondi-
tional surrender is indispensable.
A peace by negotiation with GRIM
inal like Germany is utterly at var
lance with the high purpose of the
allied powers in this war. It is not
unfair to the administration to say
that il has always been in favor OF
settlement of this war by negotia'
ton between the powers. This was
its position before we entered the
war, when the president proclaim
ed Just settlement of the war to be
peace without victory" announced
that we were not concerned with
its terms, and called upon the belli-
gerent powers to state their terms,
with a view of settlement through
open diplomacy after we had en-.
tered the war, the same idea OF
peace by negotiation and open di-
plomacy seemed to persist.
Negotiations Invited.
without consulting the allies,
without any conference with the CO.
ordinate branch of the government
entrusted by the constitution in the
making with him of treaties, the
president, in the first German note,
containing three queries intended to
test the sincerity of the German
proposals. 1t was not unnatural
for the Germans to interpret these
queries as an implied intimation that
il the queries were satisfactorily an
swered the proposal OF the Ger
mans would be accepted and a peace
made on the basis of the message OF
January 8.
The Germans promptly made as
full and complete answer as the
writer OF note of inquiry could
fairly have asked. The heart of the
great American people stood still