The Washington herald., 1920-06-27
IN WAR POINTS
JUSTPUBLICITY
Wilson's Famous Address
Declared Inspired by
Creel Bureau.
CABLEGRAMS QUOTED
Speech Delivered Solely for
Propaganda Purposes in
Europe, Is Claim.

Congress of January s. 1918, in
which he enunciated the now
famous fourteen points, was pre-
pared and delivered upon the ad-
vice of Edgar Sisson and George
Creel of the Committee on Public
Information for use by the war
publicity department of the govern
ment as propaganda in Germany
and Russia. The speech, which at
once became recognized as the
epitome of Americas war aims. had
its origin in a request from Sisson
for something with a punch" to be
fed in placard sentences to the Ger
mans and the Russians.
This is the conclusion drawn by
the League of Free Nations as
sociation and is the charge made
by the association yesterday in pub
fishing a volume of official and pri-
vate documents and papers OF
American and allied diplomatic re-
lations with Russia over the period
of the past three years.
CabIegrnms Quoted.
The cablegrams between Sisson
and Creel,. which according to mem
bers of the association, plainly in
dicate the conception of the four
teen-points' address, are included IN
the volume, which was prepared un-
der the direction of William Allen
White, the Rev. John A. Ryan, D. D.,
and ]. Henry Scattergood.
1t is also the conclusion of the
association that the documents and
papers on American-Russian rela-
tions which number more than $50,
furnish new insight into our rela-
tions with Russia, and bear out con-
tentions of the association that the
Soviet government should be rec
ogniZed and trade with Russia re-
sumed.
Call Address "Publicity.,
"In the light of cable dispatches
from Mr.. Sisson," says the statement
of the association. President Will
son would seem to have written the
fourteen-points' speech on the ad-
vice of the publicity department Of
the United States government for
pure publicity purposes in Russia
and Germany. For the dispatches
reveal an eagerness on the part of
Mr.. Sisson in Russia to popularize
the war with the Russian common
people and a decision on his part,
apparently concurred in at WASH
ington, that this could be accom-
plished only by such an address as
the President delivered on January
8, 1918"
In support of the conclusion, the
associations statement points to the
from Sisson in Petrograd
to Creel in Washington. January 3,
1918. The cablegram says, in part:
Quote Message ms Proof.
"Creel. Compub: Washington
District Of Columbia, u. S. Al. jan
uary 3-1f President Wilson will re-
state anti-imperialistic war aims
and democratic peace requisites of
America, 1000 words or less. short.
almost placard sentences, 1 can get
1t fed into Germany in great guam
titles in German translation, and
can utilize Russian version in army
and everywhere. Excerpts from pre-
vious statements will not serve.
Need is for internal evidence that
President is thinking of Russian
and German common folk in their
situation at this moment and that
he is talking to them"
The cablegram was signed Sisson,
Compur, care of American Red Cross
IN Russian, Hotel d'Europe, Petro-
grad. Thursday, December 21, Janu-
ary 3. 1918.
Speech Made Five Days Later.
The compilation" continues the
associations statement, shows that
hVe days after receipt of this cable
gram in Washington, or on January
hA
speech. Five DAYS
after the Presidents speech, or on
January 13, 1918, Sisson cabled to
Creel as follows:
Creel, Compub, Washington: jan
uary 13: Presidents speech placarded
on walls Petrograd this morning.
One hundred thousand copies will
have this display within three days.
Three hundred thousand hand bills
will be distributed here within rve
days. Proportionate display in
Moscow by end of week. Y. CA
agreed to distribute 1,000, 900 Russian
and 100000 German copies along
the line. Other channels into Ger
many being opened. Izvestia, Off
cial government newspaper, nearly
1 100000 circulation throughout
Russia, printed speech in full Satur-
day with comment welcoming it as
sincere and hopeful. Muc hof other
comment still cynical,
but shifting rapidly as speech
makes its mighty appeal What
was comment of Nova Mir, New
York Bolshevik paper?"
public Ledger service.)
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