Western liberal. (Lordsburg, N.M.) 1887-1919, 1918-06-28

States did not realize that it "a at
war Rudgers name was not legion. but populace; and yet he believed
that he was almost the only person in America who "comprehended the
his f@ebodlngs. They'll seer he would predict "TheyI wake up and
you they won't know what it means They're ut war with With the Og greatest
military power in the world and they're sound asIepl l tell you it
look about him at all these millions of people behaving S if there weren't
East West North and South Rudlger got the habit of sclding. He
he might forget it a little, and go out and play golf. Then another day
would come, when the weight of the war would lie heavily on him, and
from T ite ciubSo U%Ur yoro u%ge a PLAYING Wing gon; and nd, Rudlger would watch him
ne would sputer. They just can't realize It'll Nobody doing anytmngl
Yes almost all of us had a touch of Rudger in those days. We imag.
n mI 'r mt We o ret TN. ue wr more than or neighbors did; the thought made
Of If. editorials Sn% ais and al posters founded OF the YOU theme The kaiser viii
or II You don't buy Liberty Bonds. Are YOU doing your duty? If not
OF course this going after YOU IN such an Obstreperous way was con-
sdered by advertising experts to be the most effective form of rOusing, but
press also a opinion that the YOU campaign was inspired mainly by
ism. Whereas. what has really made things happen OF the great scale is
7 %Ei Us ' and 'o oTR sSnG you nor YOUR susceptibility to Sooldlns' but the
When WI APO a poster shouts at me YOU aren't in the trenches" I am apt
i0 of yours st you poster poster man. or advertising Specialist YOU aren't IN the
the right to b e screaming reprooches and warnings at me- YOU don't
it's more your ar than it is mine, and YOU think YOU have to wake me
T Ts ana IND, YOU 20 make make f me tired 6 Or If I'm a selfish and gnatbralned person,
may take this form: Cut out the bull! Yelling YOU isn't going tO get
OF course there were individuals who had to be shamed into a efforts
plural 1t was WE. US and OUR that reached those citizens hie | whom we
formerly called commandments 1t was WE, US and OUR that
left nothing Of the hyphen-and the hyphen had only smarted the redder
as we called them, found that OUR country was at war, they erased the
TO war with any country except Germany, and this is one great benefit
that Germany conferred upon us when she attacked us: she killed the
hyphen, She counted o killing IT, and 10 far her calculations were cor
rect But she Is not pleased with her success in the matter, for she made
would drop the American side of the hyphen; she thought they were really
Germans They weren't The hyphen Is gone forever, and there aren't
any "German-Amercan" citizens any more In or country; there are only
American citizens From August 1914, until April, 1917. the German
Americans" often said YOU to the rest of US and the rest of us often said
YOU to them; but now all OF us say WE, US and OUR.
A young friend Of mine, Of German descent, told me how II was with
him Until April 1917, he had been prOGerman. and at times critical
OF OT gNGrnments attitude toward Germany. Only a week or so after
form. "Of course / NM" he said. "Oh, yes; everything a different
until my country went to war loved Germany, and 1 naturally thought
that Germany was right In her struggle with other foreign countries Don't
you take your old and admired friends side when he gets into a cOnuo
right to have felt that way and to have taken that attitude up to the time
the United States went to war, and can't be ashamed Of it, even though
/ may have been mistaken. But Germany Is no friend Of mine now. No
srl Not from the moment when she became the recognized enemy Of
this enemy Of my country II It costs my life. Germany is my enemyl I'm
out to help get the kaiser, and we're going to do tr
The "German-Ameicnns' encountered skeptcism from people
who found It difficult to see how a viewpoint can change with changed cir
nearly always are A great many good Americans who couldn't get into
uniform and fight Germans felt the need OF attacking somebody they could
get at and make vince They suffered from the natural and Just anger
against Germany, but Germany was too far away, and too sheltered behind
Hlndenburg, to be directly affected, and a lot Of us just couldn't contain
ourselves; we were so hot we had to let out and give something or some
body within our reach a good cussing" We cussed the "GermanAmerl
cans" and made It a little harder for them to declare their loyalty, but the
vast majority OF them behaved so well under the stress that after a while
we had to abandon this means OF blowing of Our steam. So we picked
up the British word Stacker" and used It to vent our Irritation; and pr
haps we did a little good, here and there with or Stacker" talk: and
certainly We did some harm. We were very free with the word, we editors
writer's and speakers, who were not in uniform ourselves We were espe-
dany bitter against what we liked TO call the "swivelchalr warriors In
Washington There were men Of draft age, Il appears, serving in some of
the departments in Washington. and without pausing to inquire how many
Of these were physically unfit for service in the field, or how many had be
some indispensable in the positions they weren filling, W e ragged against them
v.fu.uu ugraauunou mhn Nhnuaauna kH No Ns.aH.. - - 49,