The Evening Missourian. [volume] (Columbia, Mo.) 1917-1920, 1918-05-09
WE WHO SPEAK ENGLISH


the tongue
That Shakespeare spake; the faith
and morals hold
Which Milton held"
So said Wordsworth over a century
ago, and today all English speaking
people still believe in law and order,
in equality of all men before the law,
in unrestrained public opinion, in
government of the people, by the peo-
pie, for the people as against auto
cracy, in non-militarism and in in
dividual rights of the governed as well
as of those who govern.
An intimate like-mindedness" such
as connects all branches of the wide
spread English speaking peoples is
according to Prof W. A. Dunning in
his THE British Empire and the
United States" the indispensable fac
tor in permanent international amity."
A strange series of misunderstanding
however, has kept the United States
and England part until the last few
years.
But the War of independence, the
War of 1872, our. Civil War, in which
both the North and South resented
England's official neutrality, are his
tory and since the settlement of the
Venezuelan dispute in 1896, there has
been an increasing friendship be-
tween England and the United
States.
During the first thirty months of
the present war, the neutrality of the
United States sorely tried England
who felt that she was fighting for a
cause with which the United States
was closely identified. 1t was during
this period of hesitation on our part
and impatience on the part of England
that DR.. H. H. Powers said Which
will win? l do not know, Which is
best? | will not say. But one thing
do know and will say. Yea, l will pro-
claim it from the housetops. The
British civilization is ours. In it We
live and move and have our being.
Outside it we, have no future. Let no
man deceive us. Let us listen to no
specious sophistries about our com
posite people and our distinctive civil
lization. We speak one language, we
cherish one literature, we recognize
one political principle of temperate
central rule and local freedom, and
these are the language, the literature
and ideal of Britain. Our civilization,
like our language, is the gift of a
single people, and the difference be-
tween here and there is hardly greater |
in civilization than in speech. And |
this civilization will survive or perish |
as a unit. If it triumphs in the pres
ent struggle, We share it its triumph.
If it fails, We shall as certainly see
these instincts and these institutions |
ulSCIcullSu anu ullllndlSly uioSdIuSu.
The German menace supplied the
pressure that forced United States in
to war and the close and intimate CO.
operation between England and the
United States not only continues but
becomes closer and more intimate. Up
on the outcome of the war depends |
not only the survival but the future
peaceful development of English
speaking civilization.
These things have been apparent to
foreign observers for in August, 1916,
Count Reventlow, according to the
New York Sun said, ITO base plans
for future empire of Germany on the
possibility of future conflict between
Great Britain and the United States
would be terribly dangerous, an almost
unparalleled piece of Utopian folly. In
future, the Anglo-Saxon nations, per-
haps marching independently, will
stand opposed to the German Empire
and people"
And when Bismarck was asked the
greatest political fact of modern times
it is reported that he replied, "the in
herited and permanent fact that North
America speaks English"