The Oskaloosa herald. (Oskaloosa, Mahaska County, Iowa) 1885-1919, 1918-06-20
Why We Fight
No. 3
Because Germany Having Split the
World in Half IL Now Trying
to Devour the Halves
BY CLARENCE L. SPEED

BY CLAhENCE II. OThhD
Secretary OF the War Committee OF the
Unior League Club Of Chicago.
We are sighting Germany, for one
thing, because Germany, having split
the world in half, is now seeking to
devour the halves separately. She
has driven a wedge straight through
the heart of Europe. and into Asia,
and is seeking to extend 1t to the Per-
sian gulf.
This is no accidental happening, due
to the downfall of Russia and the sud-
den shifting in the fortunes Of war.
Germany planned it all decades ago.
She made no effort to keep the plans
secret. She told us all about 1t. She
had a reputation for making plans
and sticking to them, from one gener-
alton to another; yet the world paid
no attention. 1t seemed too prepos-
ferrous even for Germany to attempt.
AS long ago as 1895 a pamphlet,
'Pan- Germany and Central Europe
About 1880" was published In Berlin
and had wide circulation. 1t laid the
whole Mitteleuropa plan bare as fol-
lows:
"Poland and Little Russia (the king
dom to be established at Russla's ex.
pense) will agree to have no armies
of their own, and will receive in their
fortresses German and Austrian garri-
sons. In Poland, as well as in Little
Russia, the postal and telegraph serv'
ices as well as the railways will be In
German hands"
In 1911 Tannenberg's book, "Greater
Germany" was published. This was
only three years before the war, but
IT showed that the idea Of German
Mitteleuropa had not been allowed to
| languish. 1t says:
"The new kingdom Of Poland Is
made ND Of the former Russian por'
! ton of the basin of the Vistula, and OF
Galicia, and forms a part.of the new
, Austria"
How the plan has grown since then
/ Russla's collapse dropped whole prov
inces into the lap Of the kaiser, and
now Germany plans its empire on q
scale which would dwarf that Of an
| cient Rome. It Is to embrace the orig
inal Central Europe, inhabited by
some 100000 Germans, make the
Black sea German lake, and extend
clear to the Persian gulf through the
vassal states Of Bulgaria and Turkey
The German government started to
mt its scheme for a Mitteleuropa In
to effect years ago when 1t began the
construction of the Berlin-to-Bagdao
railway. Little Serbia stood In the
way, so Serbia was attacked and the
world was plunged into war. In the
opposite corner of Europe Belgium
was invaded and crushed. The world
then thought that this was only be
cause Belgium offered the easiest
route to France; but study Of the Nit
teleuropa plan Of years ago shows thai
| Belgium was included in the scheme
of conquest.
ore SHOW does all this affect American
| one may ask. Germany was late
conner in the family of great nations
| Most Of the unciviliZed world had beer
pre-empted by other nations before
she arrived. Germany wanted col
onies. To get them she would have
to take them away from someone else
Africa and South America Offered
the best fields for German COLOMBIA
ton. England possessed the best par
of Africa-the parts in which the
white man might hope to settle ant
thrive. England had a mighty fleet
| snd a disposition to hold what she
had, even though she did not show
disposition to fight for more.
There remained South America. Il
was divided among weak nations. i
was protected only by the Monroe doc
trine. This Monroe doctrine was 6
sacred thing to Americans, but. mo-
being backed up by mighty armies and
| fleets, was not even "scrap Of paper
to the Germans. Can anyone doubt
should Germany succeed in welding
into a mighty empire the 7SOOO,OOC
Germans and the 100,000,000 inhabi
tants Of the vassal and conquered
states Of her Mitteleuropa, that hei
next step would be toward the west
The very fact that she had this EN-
pire would presuppose the defeat OF
England, so that no British feet would
stand between us and Germany wher
the time came for the kaiser to send