The Arvada enterprise., 1920-04-08
Shall Chaos or Reconstruction In
Europe Follow the Great
World War;
MEN TURNING TO BoLsnEvJsM
Semsthlns Profoundly Disgusting In
the Constant Repetition o. Word
Which Seems 70 Convey Such
Sinister Meaning.
Article XII
sy FRANK coMERFoRp.

Dy FRANK coMERFoRp.
met q young American major Just
back from the French front. had
known him for many years. Before
the United States entered the war he
was one Of the many impatient at our
delay. He believed that II was our
duty to Join the fight when the ruth.
less submarine campaign torpedoed
the Lusitania. sending to cold. wet
graves American women and children.
I distinctly remember his face n he
read the headlines In the papers tell
ing of the murderous slaughter Of
Americans on the high seas. Now
wheo he greeted me he startled me
vito his first words, '"The war IL over.
In a bolshevik." did not know what
tho word meant yet II carried to my
mind IN impression, and while the i'm
preston was haxy. 1t was clear at
least In one particular. It sounded
IKE the confession of crime.
He had always been Of quiet. con-
aervative type. Before the war one
would have Judged him to be pacifist {:
ne was even.tempered. mild Of manner.
and I still think that before August.
1914. he was q pacinst In head and
heart It was only the call of q Just
cause. the fight for an ideal In which
he believed. that had made him q SOL
der. In this respect he was typical
Of 30 per cent Of his countrymen.
had spoken to him the day be en-
listed. for he was one Of those who
volunteered. who might have waited
for conscription and claimed q Just
exemption. He was In the beginning
Of his married life. with two very
young children. BY profession be was
an engineer. Going to war meant
leaving q wife and two babies. leaving
Job that promised advancement. I
recall his enthusiasm. the intensity Of
bis patriotism. his quiet disregard Of
the danger to himself. I am sure
that there was little hate In his mo-
rale. He saw . danger to the world.
The honor Of his country had been
offended against. He was an Ameri-
can. one Of those upon whom the duty
fell. % he went.
He q bolsheviki Whyf I was con-
founded. confused. The only meaning
I gave to his remark was that he was
an anarchist. The word "bolshevik"
sounded red to me. It Jared Of the
torch. photographed disorder. lawless-
neas-it registered blood, violence. a.
sassination. force. hate. insanity. I
wondered how this nine-lettered word
had become the vehicle for 20 many
sensations that disturbed peace Of
mind and sounded alarm,
Where had the word come from and
what company had It kept that 70
fouIed it, soulf what did It really
mean-had II q definite msaningi
Was It bug like the "du" germi Had
II come among nations to destroy them
and to The hearts Of men TO silence the
heavenly message. "Peaee. On earth.
good will TO men," Would II run
around the world % q scourgef Was
It q postscript to the bloody war les
son. prophesying more anguish and
tears than four years. fighting had
brought Would the world. coming
out Of the war bent. now Be brokenf
Or was It . meaningless myth Was
The word boyle. q bad Joke. q night.
mare pressing heavily On Q tired. nssv.
Gus worid's hsad1
osslslnS Wse9s Rssl Meaning.
Or WAS the meaning that men had
read into the word Q lief Was Dol.
shsvism the message Of . new Mes
sab being cried down By the money.
changers Of our time 10 the same way
their ancestors had silsnced the word
from the Mount and destroyed the
Message Bearer with the lash and the
crossl
In svssy mind WAS the thought and
from every tongue fell the word. Rus
"a had given the world . word. Il
had eocircled the giobs. Everywhere
people were speaking the word-it
found lodgment 10 every brain. q liv.
ing place u every language. Its use
had become universal. The old, the
young. rich and poor. the learned. the
uneducated. the serious. the simple.
the totler. the artist. the poet. and the
peddler. the tinker and the thinker.
held the thought and spoke the word.
Men. women and children spoke the
word. read the word. and felt the
thought II carried.
To the nine hundred and ninety.nine
II was q word Of ill.omen. a word Of
terror and fear. To the one In thou.
sand Il was 4 word Of hope. n light
for the feet Of q stumbling world, and
the nine hundred and ninety.nine said
that some Of these people called boi-
sheviks were dreamers Of n strange
dream. that twisted idealism had made
them mad. that the majority Of those
who profess faith In bolshevism were
SICK with q strange. social fever, that
HkAo ss.ne~ 49, 49,.