The Oroville weekly gazette. [volume] (Oroville, Wash.) 1905-19??, 1918-07-05
If YOU CAN'T FIGHT. THINK


are all conscious of it now. We are
fighting tiercely and without thought
of compromise. We see red. We will
fight through to victory. Nothing
can stop us. Uncle Sam has started
in to clean things up and he is in
deadly earnest.
But what is it all about? What is
it for? To carve up the Kaiser. To
crush the Germans. And then what?
Set up conditions in keeping with the
American spirit, ito make the world
safe for democracy"
Yes, it is democracy that we are
fighting for. We all know that. But
do We stop to realize what this same
democracy means for the immediate
future? 1t means that after the
country has won it's cause, after our
government and our armies have
achieved victory it will be necessary
for the people-the plain, common
voting people to determine what to
do with it. There is no use in winning
war if We do not make it count
IT,
Millions of men and billions of money
for what?
Do we know what? This will be the
test of world democracy. Can group
of states, depending upon the wisdom
OF the masses, construct world pro-
gram? Germany could. The German
ruling classes know exactly what they
want. 1t is one thing for us to destroy
the definite aggressive plans of the
Central Powers by military force; it
is another thing to build up con-
structive program based upon free
dom and justice to take its place.
Beyond the issue of battle is anoth-
er task awaiting us, more subtle and
III some ways more eXacting than
the military problem We must ere
ate new world in politics Among
other things We must remake the
map of Europe. grouping nationalities
and providing the geographic basis for
development. We must provide for a
real freedom of the seas. We must
make provisions for limited rather
than an absolute sovereignty on the
part of nations. We must provide
some sort of world organization for
the keeping of peace. This is big
task, bold task, but there is no way
out of it. The alternative is to admit
defeat
And since we are living in
democracy it falls upon you and me,
upon the farmers, the butchers, the
doctors, the builders, to determine
the fundamental policy of America in
this work. To be sure we can depend
upon trained governmental officials to
carry out the details of administra
ton and diplomacy. In such matter
we may and should, keep hands of.
But if democracy means anything, the
big, basic principles of national
policy must spring from the people.
The wisdom of a democratic state
can never rise very far above the
vision of the people. If America is to
take her place in this crisis, to lead.
as she probably must, the masses of
the American voters must have n
fairly accurate knowledge of world
conditions, and be essentially sane in
their judgments
We must, therefore, be up and do
ing right now. AS a people we have
been woefully out of things. We have
prided ourselves in our isolation. and
it has served us well up to this point.
But we have lot Of things to learn.
We must know more of the old Eu-
rope, its traditions, its jealousies. its
diplomatic ways. We must know
more of the Balkans, of Russia. of
the Orient. of Imperialism, of trade.
of the force of social unrest. We must.
in fact, in many fields, learn in day
what Europe has lived for centuries
We should not of course, let our
thinking interfere with our fighting.
We would not withdraw a single man
from the battle front to aid in this
work. But you and |, while we are
planting war gardens and buyipg
Liberty Bonds. must seriously apply
ourselves to laying pasis for clear.
sane thought, if all our sacrifice of
wealth and treasure is not to be
meaningless waste. We should CO.
operate, get together and thresh mat
ters out. Every community should
plan, as war activity a course of
study and discussion, possibly under
the direction of the high school his
tory teacher. The state educational
institutions will lend ,neir aid with
suggestions and speakers. If we can
not fight, we can at least think.
LEROY F. JACKSON.
Professor of American History. State
College of Washington.
] The man ral1n1 IN Io,4