Free trader-journal. (Ottawa, Ill.) 1916-1920, 1918-10-17
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
VOICE OF THE PEOPLE
''s*s****ss*s+*y.ss s.sss***%-
To the Chamber OF Commerce.
James Farrell. Secretary.

am aware that SON nave some
delicate problems in the raising Of
the Liberty Loan. and write 10 sug
gest that YOU use al. means 10 lead
/ the people 10 subscribe before using
force.
! Write 20 the question, Have We.
the people OF Illinois Individually
done our full duty ia -he pas, toward
Ihe German-Americau5 My western
New York home. dear 10 me from
h.ly years residence. abandoned
Dec. II. 1917, As a home forever
although | hope t. oHa the little
Iarm rs lOng as itr. hut % rs no
longer hon e. 10 Die having been
made. by The Ccmius OF q 2.eul manu-
factory OF underwedr. .le center Of q
Poiack population DC over -Hu souls.
aud most OF them weary me IN try-
ing to tax with them some Of them
are good men Frank EychIil ana
Andrew Jarovitz arr as honest char,
acterS As tread the earh#-aut many
Of them have the foreign customs as
Well us its vices.
! fear that I have M, 5oue my tul
duty in winning them TO the love of
America; have "uas~ej by on the
n'Eer side" and have ra' shown the
appreciation to those Who are pa
riotic. They are. as q rule. loyal
Before We got really into The scrap
ONE fifty or seventy of the young
men had enlisted unigr the auspices
n some Polish League having lis head
quarters ii Petersbu.r. Va They
held their sham battles over my little
elds, ana would train down past my
residence with q splendid band OF.
'hcir own, and, true. I lid show my
appreciation OF their loyalty by filing
hem up with mill his .bey marched
back, and | gave all Tie cheers that
enc man can to the band concerts
with which they favored ME.
They were already trained ana
many went on the first call over
there and doubles ere this many
Of them have laid down their lives
for the crushing Of wrong and the de-
Tense of the coln.sy which is dear to
as all,
/ write to imprr, Us question
Have We dome our duty in arprecia-
fiono. the loyal Geruau-Ameriean. or
have we just ianofel bis loyalty and
passed him by? believe that 4
should take OF my hat 20 him. and
when | shake hands With nay right
hould have my left around him, and
not stop here, but advise him to try
ana convert his German ueiehbor who
may be pro" with whom he can talk
ana ! cannot la there not been a
feeling here in Illinois. Let them
alone, We shall never need them?
II so now We see our mistake. and |
now urge that every effort be made to
win them | do nor know that they
are really to blame for being born in
Germany | cannot refrain from quot
ing little poem from Katharine Lee
Bates:
The German.hmeriean.
Honor 70 him whose very blood re.
members
The cid enchanted dream song of
The Rhine
Although his houseof life is fair
with shine
or fires new kindled on the buried
embers;
Whose heart is wistful for the flow
ers he tended
Beside his mother; for the carven
gnome
And climbing bear and cuckoo clock
OF home.
For the whispering forest path two
lovers wendell.
When none the less still strange in
speech and manner,
| With our young freedom keeps his
piighted faith,
Sides with his chilren's hope against
the wrath
| 0I his own childhood, halls the
starry banner
As emblem Of his country now, to
morrow,
| A patriot by duty. not by birth.
| The eostiiest loyalty has pures
worth.
Honor 70 him who draws the SWORD
in sorrow
On trip across the big herring
pond | got chummy with younl
man Of perhaps % years; born in Ger
many and in America five years. II
was common laborer or mechanic
During these five years he had save
money to invest in an attraction a
MS birthplace. He was taking fri
| IRON spokane, Wash, TO a rural tow
down IN Germany from Hamburg.
know the ladies OF Spokane and tn
ladies OF Germany and my pick woul
De from Spokane If ! was in tn
!, pick business, hut this young man wa
taking trip Of 1900 miles to get
flower from the garden Of his bird
place, no one else would do.
! This fidelity in a man is common,
!, able; II is right; It is as God il
= tended, but never in my life did