The Tabor independent. [volume] (Tabor, S.D.) 1913-19??, 1918-10-31
Some Bricks Which viii Go
Into Building Peace Foundation

many's willingness TO evacuatt Alsace.
Lorraine. IL she Is in earnest and act.
Ing In good faith, then she Will agree
to the surrender OF Metz n Strass.
burg precisely as she dema nded ir
july, 1914, that France should evacu.
ate Verdun and Epinal, as a guarantee
of-neutrality. Sac. will consent BECAUSE
there Is no other possibility OF gaining
an armistice, because Foch ond -Hais
and Pershlng are not gong t. surren.
der the advantages so dearly n irchased
in recent weeks and permit Germany
to ~reorganize her beaten armies and
renew the fight in good condition next
spring at the line selected by Ter.
But IL Germany is acting in bad
faith. then she will refuse TO surrender
Metz n Strassbu-g, she will attempt
to rouse the people of America. Britain
and Italy by arguing that they are
kept in the fight because Of French
ambitions, she will seek to SOW discord
among her enemies, she will gamble on
q possible willingness OF the president
TO be her advocate, and she will cal
culate that rather han surrender
Alsace and Lorraine her peop.e will
consent to prolorg the war. that Ger
many will rise to the threat OF what
will be held by her 10 be mutilation. as
France rose in the last days Of Louis
XIV n again in 1892,
Our greatest peril now lies In think
ing OF the war as over or accepting
the words Of the German when these
words are not translated into CORE
spending deeds. The German is talk
Ing peace in acceptable words. but he
Is spreading ruin and waste over tie
richest ana fairest fields of Europe.
Would he continue TO DO this IL he cx-
pected to make peace presently on
terms which would compel him to In
demnify his victims for his current
crimes? Would he burn Cambrai on
Monday If he expected on Saturday TO
make peace with the guaranteed m
demnifiction Of the people Of Cambralr
AT least 1t does not seem likely.
We nave come 10 lne iliosL critical
monent in more than four years OF
struggle. We have won the war, we
have beaten the German, but we have
not yet reached the point wher we
can safely accept his verbal assur-
ances that he desires TO make peace on
our terms Short Of the acceptance
by the German Of the fact of defeat.
short Of his consent to the expression
in practical terms of our victory, we
cannot safely or wisely consent to an
armistice or permit ourselves to be-
lieve our labors are al an end.
We cannot forget that the German
attacked the civilized world -four years
ago and in defiance OF all his written
and spoken pledges. We cannot for
get that for four years he has con
tinued to disregard all pledges until
the when his armies were
beaten and all chance of a victor's
peace escaped him. We must act with
This knowledge in mind; We must de-
mand immediate guarantees which will
preven a resumption of the contest
under conditions favorable to Germany
next spring. Above all else, we must
In u armistice translate our victory
in positive terms.
These terms are the surrender Of
Alsace-Lorraine and Italia Irredenta,
the temporary occupation OF the left
bank OF the Rhine from Holland to
switzerland and the prompt demobiI-
Ration Of the German army and navy.
Anything else would DO a mockery, a
neGation of all that the world has
striven for over four years OF agony,
n sure foundation for a new German
adventure and aggression l do not
see how we can negotiate with Ger
many in arms; l do not see how we
can ask less than unconditional sur
render, however that phrase may be
interpreted, nor do / see how that
phrase can be nationally interpreted
save by the demand that the Germans
retire behind the Rhine and once and
for all abandon those French cities OF
Metz and Strassburg, which have been
the foundations. morally as we'll as
militarily, Of her great crime against
civilization.