The Brattleboro daily reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1913-1955, 1919-02-18
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY Is. 1919.
AMERICA AND FRANCE.


Writing in the New York World, |
Ralph Pulitzer, one of its owners, gives |
expression TO the fear that the Amer. |
can peoples deep affection and sympa- |
| thy for France will be affected by the |
antagonistic attitude OF the French
press toward the American peace prin
ciples, the criticism which returning
soldiers make of the living conditions
and commercial methods of France, and
the esteem for German usages and meth
DDS which members of the American
army of occupation viii shortly bring
home
As 10 the peace settlement for which
French statesmen and press are 50
strongly fighting Mr. Pulitzer says it
is Cue to tho fact that g French state
men are hut half awake from the
frightful nightmare OF . France inyad-
cd, vanquished and .ruined by the pow
er of material force. But in disagree
ing with the French 1eactionaries, Ire
SAYS We should serupulously disas-
sociate them from the many millions
Of the French people who support our
solution against theirs, and we should
remember that the same horror of the
past and terror of the future which pal
liates their statesmen = narrowncss of
vision glorifes the intuitive enlighten-
mcr5 of these humble men and women
in their readiness to stake their live on
tie working out of our ideas.
rs TO the sense of grievance which re-
turning soldiers seem to bear against
French habits and customs Mr.. Pulit-
yer says that we should have enough
imagira.'or end sympathy to be able
to put our ewes in the place of France
"a country lie size of Missouri, a sixth
of its territory invaded by its enemies,
| the remaining fvc-sixths of its territory
cverrun by eight millions of its friends
americans, British, Belgians, Italians
| Portuguese, Poles, Indians. Maoris, No
/ roecans, Annamites, Cinnamon, Senegal
| esc-white aliens, red aliens, yellow al
/ lens and black aliensl Would our own
sense of hospitality have remained as
, little frayed under such conditions
And with our women and children do
| ing the work CT every able bodied man
l between 3 and ffty-fve, would oul
I hoaScs, villages, and towns have court
1 ed inspection for neatness and cIeanh
ness
In discussing the comparison which
1 our soldiers arc sure to make between
l the cleanliness, orderliness, efficiency
Y and friendliness of the Germans in the
: occupied districts and the lack of these
characteristics among the French Mr.
Pulitzer asks US to realize as underly
ing the whole question that 15,000,00C
inst and second generation Germans il
tn United States have, made German
customs familiar to thegvast ma jority
Of our soldiers of ,Gefmah parentag
- and to majority Of their friends an,
= ncighbors of American. stock. Frencl
III customs, on the contrary, were entirel,
II strange to our men,. The same differ
II antc holds good of the German an,
III French languages; a.surprisng persent
II age of our men could speak German
III either because of GepnanS llood or be
- ause they had studied it in sehoo
-, while French was an unknown tongue
II 1t stands to reason, therefore, tina
II German surroundings andsspoech had
II physical Familiarity for most Of on
II men, which was iaeIing in The sun
II roundings and speech Of France, an
II to 4 homesiel man anything that tend