Norwich bulletin., 1918-04-27
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR


 no reason for people to believe as they1 dp E,
 I feel that it is my duty to say a few words to the Germans for two reasons, One is. because am Ger man, born in West Prussia in 1860, E, and lived there until I was 21 years old so know something about the Fatherland. The other is, because I am now g citizen of the United States and have not forgotten my oath of allegiance which l sWore as soon after coming here as l could get my papers Also see what my duty as citizen iss and want to do it as far as ] am able.
 One of the first questions I am often asked is, 'Why did you leave Ger many" We'll, that is not hard to an swer My father was a paor man with a family of nine children He only owned seven acres of land. It was hard to make a living for us all and there f was no chance for me to get any part of it when I had grown up. It was not like in this country, where nearly every farmer can spare 160 acres toal start his boy out with if he wants to | farm. If stayed over there and hired 1 out as laboring man, the pestGWag ges could earn as a common laborer was | fifty cents a day. As skilled me
 ehanic the best wages I could earn i would be one dollar day.
 The most thrifty man who worked as common laberer could not save but | about twenty dollars in one year, and | ] think what a long time it would take | to get enough together to buy even few acres of land when it cost from l $10o to $geo per acre. Besides, it cost more to live there, since though the land produced well, l there were extra heavy taxes over what we pay here. There was the military tax and there was the royal | tax that was for the benefit of the l royal family. These taxes amounted l to about twenty dollars per acre over, i the regular taxes such as we pay here l or as much as plenty of land can be 1 bought for i'll this country.
 1 Over in Germany there was no free homestead land like we have and ] which has been the start in the pros l perity which many Germans now in this country enjoy. There was no land to be had only at a high price
 and the poor man had no chance for
 getting ahead in the world.
 Besides, if I had stayed in Germany, I would have had to take three years
 of military training and after that give
 about two months of each year to mili- tary work and be subject to call for | dCLlNG SETNlCS dt ally liIIlSs 1lllo WOOl1
 have continued true until I was 4o ! years old, and after that I would have had to join the land reserve or home
 guard as it is known here.
 The only thing that could get over
 there that amounted to anything was Il a good common school education, but + there were no free higher schools and no chance for a poor fellow to better
 himself.
 n We Germans often heard and talked J of America and many who could get
 away were anxious to come to land that we heard so much about, With it's
 free lands, free schools and freedom of
 all kinds that we did not enjoy there the United States. and I have never g been sorry that I did so. Instead oi e being sorry I am glad I came and r mproud to let it be known that an :. as true an American citizen as 1 know Q ] how to be- Why shouldn't I be glaG
 when I compare what Germany has tC sI offer me alongside of what America s offers? I am not the biggest man ir S this country. far from it, but l am ar t independent American citizen. As long . as I am honest and tend to my busi. |, l ness, I am the equal of every mar t here I don't have to take off my ha : to any man unless I want to, and thu f men in this country who are big mee = me on an equal footing.
 IS Instead of being a poor laborer il Il Germany, I am the manager of goot V sound business institution here anC
 l myself and my family are happy ant
 reasonably prosperous. The other bus mess men, no matter what their na = tionality or their line of business, trea . me with respect and as an equal anc :, my family enjoys the same social ad IT Vantages that theirs do.
 When I look round me and see wha o a lot of our German people there ar v in this country, who are worth man, 2 times what they would be worth ',u5 they had stayed in Germany. and 2 were given them and of the fire 1'e schools and the right we have to vot .. 1 and be part of the government, an .d when I think of all the freedom " N have here that we didn't have there /, and when I read the papers and SC ,,4f what is going on over there now an /, what I would have had to take part i ,, if was over there and not here-f as .,. II. my brother and sister Germans Twin - here to consider all this. and if yo v haven't fully decided to stand D tee America, a sa true citizen should, tha o you do so nov and forever.
 D. Our plain duty lies in .supportin Is this government that has given | 10 home and is protecting us and or 1 families. We must do this not only b of word but by action as well. We mus ait not be German at heart and America ps on the outside We must not secrerl f. rejoice when Germany wins a battl " l We must not stand with a foot on eae SC side >of the line. We must get cles h oyer on the AMERICAN SIDE-AN an STAY THERE. We should be glad V
 are free Americans. No one will of sorry for the stain that has been pl ee on honest German blood by the Prui ,,r sian military power-but ours wor i'd be honest blood unless we back up oi Id oath of allegiance by our sympatf of and love for our adopted country. r- we won't be honest about it, then V r- should go back and never let it ir said that German blood is twe-face na We know that Germany is 1ghtiI Sb for conquest. We know that An1erit ,r stood out as long as it could befo n- going to war. We know that Amer U cans have always fought for fiber
 for all the people, and when we reg
 ing and spending large sums of mon ed for the little down trodden natie, that they too may be free and ind
 pendent, just as we are, who wants - go back?
 @ Before the war our German cttize AP here were spoken of with pride. V
 have been thrifty; We have been ho
 est. We have worked hard and pro gs pered If we are loyal citizens we ci ne still hold UP our heads and people W he still respect us, So let us stand ,es this government. If it needs our tir
 and money, we must give it just A4h 1i+ cir a1rb