The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1918-08-21
why WE Will
WIN The WAR

Continued from Page One)
will of his comrades, he had become
more efficient and was in fairly good
standing with the company. Now that
he had left the homeland, with all
bridges burned, there remained two
questions that sorely perplexed him
the question of sufficient courage to
20 into battle and the question OF
complete justification of our course
in the war. t&
Before leaving home Smith had new
err seen a larger body OF water than
was contained within the banks of
the Des Moines river, and the ocean
overwhelmed him. Sea sick unto
death he was in stateof collapse
when the ship entered the zone. The
horrors of that night when he was
forbidden to undress and compelled
to wear life saver were almost be-
lyond endurance. In the grey of the
early morning came orders for all
hands to go to the upper decks and
the rumor spread that submarine
attack was imminent. Two compan-
ions who cursed him roundly assisted
him out of the hold. Later the coast
of France was sighted and that after
noon the ship nosed into harbor. A
middle aged man with a red triangle
on his right sleeve boarded the ship
and gave rousing welcome to the
"virile, fighting men from the United
States" When these words cracked
upon the ears of the man who was
afraid he Strengthened up bit and
| the sickness went out of his middle.
| AS he marched through the city he
noted the streets we're thronged with
the French populace. Cheer upon
cheer greeted the marching soldiers
from across the sea. Hundreds Of or
phaned children lined the streets,
| their little arms waving in salute,
making the air vocal with their glad
welcome. Widowed mothers fell on
their knees and thanked God for their
Ideliverers.
Cad" exclaimed an Irish lad
marching at Smiths side, these
French folk sure do believe In us"
Again John Smith Strengthened a
bit II somebody believed in him
somebcdy ought not to be disappoint-
led--and the load on his back and the
load on his soul were both lightened.
In Analysing John Smiths mental
attitude during his evolution from a
| silk stockinged counter jumper from
Iowa into khaki clad trench fighter
| in France, estimate must be made OF
| the sudden, tremendous change in his
environments Darwin used cons Of
time behind the record for his evo.
luton of man, whereas we have but
few months for the evolution Of John
ISmith. It's not a much farther cry
from the mammal to the monkey, or
from the monkey to the man, than 1t
lis from measuring ribbons for beau
tifully gowned women to sticking bay
onets into the bellies of the, Boche.
It's long distance from a pink tea
| to bloody battlefield. There's quite
difference between tennis racket
| and hand grenade. All the common
values of life that John Smith cher.
ished were dissipated. Nations were
being broken into bits as a piece OF
china that falls to the floor. Sixty
million men had left the common
walks .of life and become experts in
the science of killing. The deep cur
rents of life no longer flowed in the
usual channels. Z. Chaos reigned SUI
preme and almost "the earth was
without form, and void"
Into this hell from the peaceful
prairies of Iowa came this boy of the
lSunday school and the ribbon counter.
During the months that Smith was
billetted in French villages there
filtered back through the lines stories
of German atrocities. A French sol
dier who had lost an arm told how
he had covered Boche with his rifle
and how the Boche threw up his hands
land pleaded "kamerad." Then when
1.-THE Frenchman lowered his rifle how
1.-THE rascal had hurled bomb con
cealed in his hand which tore off the
IFrenchman's arm. He learned thai
leyery morning for the past six months
a German train had come out Of
northern France into the little Swiss
village, Of Eyaine and dumped 1,0O(
French folk-old men, manned sol
ldiers, women and children-and left
them here. And every evening Of
Ievery day during that time another
train had brought a like number Of
1.-THE same village. Some of these PEG
pie had come into France and had
Preached the village where Smith was
lbilletted. The stories they told were
Observation-Disclosures of rape and muir
der, of the burning of homes, of the
enslavement of human beings. MOI
did they need to tell stories-theil
emaciated, bore sufficient evidence Of
very appearance naked, hungry
the war of frightfulness. He knew
Germany had started the war to stea
the territory of her neighbors. From
the daily papers he learned how the
Germans were dropping bombs on I'M
fortified cities, killing defenseless
women, and helpless children; how
they were attacking hospitals, killing
the sick and wounded and shooting
Red Cross nurses. He recalled the
story of broken treaties, of how oul
own country is overrun with German
spies and incendiaries and of how Ger
many had proposed to dismember oul
nation and parcel out our states tt
lother nations-and one of Johr
hSmithps problems was bolved. He
Justified our entrance in the war.
Il trr,,ol1ino dove nj