Williston graphic., 1918-09-12


intense hatred for the cause for which
he fought; for the rulers who sent
him to his death, who caused him and
the young man in the grave each to
take the Others life.
A feeling Of satisfaction because .
man is dead!
That 10 war.
What conflicting emotions come to
one who would have all the world at
peace!
One finds himself choking-and
fighting back tears.
The dead German, and the other
German near by, mangled still worse,
stood and fell for Q cause that is un-
holy.
They permitted ruthless rulers to
train them in militarism and in the
military spirit; they went forth to
force that militarisml on q peaceful
and, to . great extent, an unsuspect-
ing world. Tools they were of the
greedy leaders who would fasten the
creed of force on civilization; tools
that must be crushed.
There are times when mans most
sacred duty is to wage war-relent-
less war. !.
That time is now with America.
War means fighting to the death.
This war means fighting back that
military nation-or ourselves meet
ing death or becoming subject to the
same ruthless military nation that
sacrifices human beings to its own
greed.
There is no tinsel, no gold trap
pings, no gloss to war.
There is only one duty, one task; ;.
to fight back to the death, to kill the
German forces who fight because their
rulers say that we must submit or
die.
stood beside surgeons chair in
London.
In the chair sat British soldier.
man of splendid form-body erect,
muscles hard, sinews wiry-in the full
strength Of young manhood.
The nose was gone, cheekbone gone;
an eye out, the eyebrow and bone
above it had been blown away.
Wonderful surgical skill done much
to repair the damage done by an
enemy shell. A welt on the forehead
showed where q piece of skin and
flesh had been taken, twisted about
and grated across the place where
the nose had been. A nose and part
of cheek had been shaped from a
light copper plate. A glass eye had
been placed in the plate, and an eye
brow painted above the artificial eye
"a splendid job to mask wars work.
But what hatred one feels for a
war that will disfgure perfectly
built young man so as to make such
masking necessary.
One would save other young men
from like fate; one tries to think
of words to send home to his native
land that will help save them, and
the words that go tearing through
the brain are: "SPEED UP!"
stood at Amiens- even then the
battle was on short distance to the
east. Scouts of the air were ever
above us; the sound of firing never
ceased; the wives and children were
fleeing to the west, while husbands
and fathers fought with their lives
to check the onrush Of the people who
would rule by the SWORD.
Death was on parade that day.
And I saw the procession Of the
wounded. ..t
saw men mangled and MANNED,
borne by kindly hands to places-not
really places of safety, but places
where they could receive surgical and
medical aid.
I looked into one face after anoth.
er; many Of them, silent, still reveal
ed agony that comes with wounds in
battle; some were beyond suffering.
How l hated war!
How I hated the ruler of the ma
ton that brought on the war;
How felt that we must fight and
fight until those rulers are placed
where their power is gone, where their
militarism will be killed for all time.
There is only one language with
which we can speak, to them cnly
one they can understand: the Ian
guage of regiment and division, OF
shot and shell, Of cannon and howitzer,
of sword and bayonet-and our voice
must be so strong that it shall not
be misunderstood. !
stood on the Strand in London.
Six young men were coming. There
was q fellow-feeling among them that
one could not imagine-but for war.
Of an age, about %; Of the same
height, about six feet; in uniforms,
the light blue of the army invalid,
all six were on crutches, each with
his right leg gone above the knee,
each destined to go through life a
cripple! :. ~ i
They came smiling. They met q
man Of their own age, in like uni
form, similarly afflicted, but with the
left leg gone. They paused, rested
IN their crutches, smiled, and saluted
but passed him by. They could not
take him in because it was not the
Ill