New-York tribune., 1919-09-09
Former Attache With Amer
lean Army Asserts 1t
Is Largely Responsible
for Troubles of Nation
Lack of Purpose Blamed
Bolsheviki Thrive. OH Our.
Blunders, He Says; Reds
Can Block World Peace
Nsu York Tribune
WdshinQton EuYedu

WASHINGTON, Sept. Upon re-
ceiving his final discharge from the
army yesterday, after serving more
than nine months as military attache
with the American forces in Russia,
Captain Jacob A. Harzfeld, former City
Counsellor of Kansas City, to-day de-
clared the course pursued by President
Wilson and the State Department tow
ard Russia was so utterly stupid" as
for many Of the woes of present dis
tressed and torn Russia.
More than that Captain Harzfcld
said it presented a grave danger to
the United States that it was not
ending Boishevism, but that Bolshev-
ism was thriving on the mistakes being
committed by the United States in han
ding the Russian problem in conjunc-
tion with the foreign Offices of Great
Britain and France.
Bolshevism Bar to France
"Al the neace treaties in the world
can be signed but there will be no
peace as long as Bolshevism sits in
power in Russia and assiduously plots
and plans and works for worldwide
revolution said Captain Harzfeld,
"Bolshevism is warning on the United
States to-day just as much as if it had
armies in the field directly warning
upon us on the field of battle. And it
will continue this war on the United
States as long as the Bolsheviki sit
IN power;
"a world wide proltetariat revolution.
They laugh at our democracy; they
scorn our form of government. And
the one fatal mistake that we can
make is to laugh at them as wild-eyed,
long haired radicals. and their theories
as too silly to present any danger to
US. Their theories would literally
destroy the United States, but they
are cunning in their propaganda and
they are unceasing and never ending
in their war-a war of propaganda" "
Captain Harzfeld said the worst mis-
take of all on the part of the United
States toward Russia was the absolute
lack of any policy. He gave the
picture Of the United States trailing
along behind France and England in
an aimless. vacillating course that was
getting nowhere and was making the
situation steadily worse.
Purposes Not Understood
understand, and the Russians do not
understand, what we were and are try
ing to do, and no one else apparently
does" said Captain Harzfeld. "If We
are going to maintain any army il
Russia a, all we ought to declare wal
on the Bolshevk government. enlist
an army and go in and fight it out to
fnis,. and overthrow the Bolsheviks
we ought not to keep an army there
Of al adj ~ hOr nj
plan Of settling the Russian situation
1t is the height of stupidity, and
every one who has been in Archangel
will agree to it. 70 have a small force
that does not even know what it was
there for and not big enough to do
anything except aggravate a situation
THAT was the situation at Arch
angel before the Americans were with
drawn, and while | wasn't in Siberia
where the Americans still are stationed
! can readily understand how the Amer
lean soldiers there feel | am glad the
particular soldiers that we had sta
toned at Archangel were withdrawn
1t was not right to keep them there
for they enlisted to fight Germany, ane
were sent to the frozen wilds of Nortf
Russia and made to fight an enemy
with which we were not at war anC
without knowing or being told why the,
were to nght and possibly dle
Soldiers Were Puzzled
"That was the thing the soldier
could not understand, why if tn,
United States soldiers were to fight tn
Bolsheviki the nation did not de
clare war on them and go at it right.
"Yet, glad as | individually know
every soldier was, including myself, t
get out of Russia, I must say I ais
doubt if there was a one, single one
who spent those winter months in ic
and snow bound North Russia, who di
not feel as he was leaving that tn
United States was being made part
to most shameless desertion of thou
sands of people who occupied the plac
and danger they did at our behest."