Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1916-1918, 1918-03-12
THEY WOULD REPEAT
From Thursdays Dally)

Now that there no longer remains
the slightest hope for revival Oh the
fighting spirit among the husslans
that might enable them again 10 ns'
ure among Germany's enemies lne
whole crazy situation resolves llseil
into a most laughable farce oespite
all its tragedy. 1t needed only the
statement which The Associated Press
passed on Yesterday from Leon Irotz-
XIV to put the climax to the gnas.iy
ioke. He declared that if the bolsne-
Wiki had an opportunity to live through
the mast few months anew, startns
with the overthrow Of the kerensky
government, they would follow ex'
ectlv the course they have followed.
Annarently undismayed, the first
Hentenant in the Lenine regime an
nounced that he and MS le!low az
archists are prepared TO ~i'noIa"'
not only to Moscow, but TO the Uiai
mountains, if necessary, rather IMAM
submit to the defeat OF the re'oAu'
ton" .nH ~
some other spokesman for the ooisne
Wiki refers to 1.-The revolution IN Jus.
this way. Apparently, all that Is iel.
of the revolution party, or the sovle: -
vhich unset the Kerensky cabinet, is
the burlesoue cabinet which Lenine
and Trotzky are leading in a pell meis
retreat from Petrograd to Moscow 10
escape capture by the invading "ei'
man hosts. r,.u,r
"The revolution" of which TrotzRy
speaks presumably is that upheaval
Of unbridled socialism whlch ue,
stroved the mere vestige of order ana
government Kerensky had saved from
! his weak surrender to radicansm
Ienine and Trotzky revolted against
Kerensky. they said, because ne poweo
"a the bourgeoise element. But tne
so-called government which they SET
nm lasted only long enough to render
Russia entirely helpless and defense
less against the Huns. ,;,.
And stilr Trotzky speaks OF -ieaoine
neripatetic government" halfway
across Europe in a disorderly nlght
"rather than submit to defeat OF the
revolution" $3.50.
There could be no further defeat
certainly, than has been suffered IN
less it should be the capture ana exc
cutiou of Trotzky and his fellow min
isters. And the kaiser would prove
himself more ungrateful than even ne
seems capable Of being should ne
choose to punish them rather than re-
yard them for the service they have
done for Prussianism by reducine
Russia from a military possibility 10
an utter wreck.
Some humorous philosopher wrote
sometime, with more regard Tor logic
than photography, Success don't kon'
sist in never maxim blunders, but IN
never maxim the same one twlcet.
Measured by this standard, boishe.
yism is a monumental failure without
a single hope for redemption, iol
Trotzky, looking back along tne
bloody path he and his government
have trod since last October. declares
that IL it were to do over again, there
would be no slightest change in the
program.
Riots. anarchy, thievery, murder
loot chaos: these are the milestones
along that path to ruin and surrender
And not only would the Russian high
priests OF socialism make the SAINT
blunders twicet;" they would MAKE
them over and over again.
And theirs is the sort Of reform
Americas socialists endorse. Theirs
"a the government" for which these
socialists, over here. demand recogni
ton at the hands of the government
at Washington. Theirs is the propa
randa that American socialists are
snxeading in this country.