Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1919-08-19
RACE RIOTS HURT
OUR REPUTATION
OUTBREAK IN WASHINGTON BAD
FOR CITY THAT is PULPIT
OF WORLD PEACE
MANY EXPLANATIONS GIVEN
Most Reasonable Is That Nerves of
the People Are on Edge-Military
Discipline Speedily Restored Among
Men in Uniform. 80.
BY EDWARD 3. CLARK.

iH OHiIOTIH.
BY EDWARD 3. CLARK.
Washington.-Wa the capt.
tai of the United States, has been the
scene Of race riots Willie this city
has been looked to in a sense as the
pulpit of peace for all people, its own
citizens have been at one another's
throats. 1t is possible That Mexico
and some of the far eastern countries
viii look at the spectacle with some
thing like ironic amusement.
Scores of reasons have been adj
vanced for the outbreak. None of
them seems exactly to fit the case, but
perhaps the sanest one Is that the
nerves of all the people are on edge,
and that it has taken only a little
noise to send them beyond control.
The riots began on Sunday night.
when the only weapons used were
fists. Comparatively little harm was
done. Some soldiers took part in the
initial disturbances. but discipline
soon took them out of the field. The
tAttAA AitAu DCCu llOhGNtt, anu
even in the face of military and police
authority men and women battled in
the streets and alleys and even in
the houses of this town which usually
is place of steady habits.
There are men in Washington who
are in a position to trace the effects
10 their causes who say that the re-
sentiment of the people against what
they have called too drastic punish
ments for military and civil offenses
during the war has had its natural
result.
The men who hold to this view say
that soldiers and civilians have been
led to believe that, because of the tenn
per of the people toward what they
call excessive punishments. some of
the soldiers of the service and some
civilians thought that hereafter only
Fight punishments would be melted out
for heavy Offenses, and that this feel
ing has made slen willing to engage
in riots of the kind which have Oc-
Cured in the capital of the country.
SroDdDiJ' Oue 10 NERVES.
There may be something i'm this. but
contact with the soldiers in the Amer
lean eXpeditiOnary forces and with
those already returned TO this country,
ans also with the war workers in this
city, leads one to think that the real
cause of the trouble is representative
nerves made so by war conditions
which have produced an unnatural
atmosphere. and in which the soldiers
and civilians have been forced to live.
On the first night of the trouble
some men in uniform took part in
the disturbance, but military discipline
soon prevailed and the men who were
violating the law became, later fore
most in attempts TO uphold it. Under
the guidance and control of their Of
ficerS they did fine work. The main
difficulty of the whole situation arose
from the fact that in the absence of
martial law under which citizens could
be kept in their homes, crowds of Gu
riosity seekers numbering thousands
sought the scenes of trouble and be-
came the means of further disturb
Rnces. Many entirely innocent per-
sons, both white and cOlOred, were in
jured during the continuance of the
IiOting. If these people had stayed at
home the riots would have been re-
duced to a minimum and probably
nothing would have happened after
the first nights occurrence.
No Chance for Adjournment.
The prospect is for a continuous SEES
sion of congress until late in the sum-
mer of 1920. Both Republicans and
Democrats in house and senate declare
freely enough that there seems to be
no chance to get away.
OF course the present session must
end on the first Monday in next De
cember, but as another session then
will begin. the two in sense will
merge into one. This thing has hap
pened before.
What is the reason for the predic-
tion in legislative circles of one long.
driving session? There is not one rea-
son. but multiplicity of them which
have come together to make the pros
pect for q continuous session bright,
a. black, as one chooses to view II.
The senate committee on foreign re-
lations still has in its Keeping the
covenant of the League of Nations
The committee intends to study every
feature of the document down to the
minuteSt item before rendering its re-
port To the senate
Debate May Last All Summer.
No one knows how long IL viii take
20 debate the covenant TO finish on
the floor of the senate. Some of the
leaders have said that snow will fly
before the end looms in sight. Others
express the hope that the people viii
make their feelings in the matter felt
so strongly one way or the other that
m earlier result may he reached 1t
can be said however. that the major
ity Of the senator's, whether they are
for the league or against ii, seem to
he convinced chat they have a long
debating struggle ahead OF them, and
this feeling seems TO be shared by the
administration. If one may judge by
what its advisers say.
Another reason for the belief that