The silver state. [volume] (Winnemucca, Nev.) 1909-1925, 1920-10-28

htcken0Gcker on way o0tdters ar
against the League of Nations
Capt. Rickenbdcker was the ace Of
sces in American aviation on The
front IN France. His acqudintane,
among the soldiers of the late raf
Is nationwide. When he speaks fo'
them. hs speaks what he knous.
BY CAPT. EDDIE RickENsAcKER
Chapter 8.
1t IL a solemn thing to 90 out TO kill
or TO be killed. Most men do not like
to 90. They 20 because duty forces
them 10. Their sense Of duty to their
country Is stronger than their OF
elf-preservation. They face death be
cause they ought to protect what they
love at home.
That Is what makes spirit In an
army. The West Pointer calls 1t mo
rale, Without this lighting spirit a
soldier Is not worth much, and an army
is no army at all. Every soldier knows
this. And SO he asks:
How are you going to get the prop
or fighting spirit into American troops
when. under article 10, they will be
called to light for Poland against Rus
STA, or for Roumania against Bulgaria.
or for Greece against TurkeyT
What IL there to nerve a man against
death In the thought that by his death
he Will help one OF these foreign cou
tries retain a territory as big al Long
Island and prevent another country
from getting III VIII that thought con
sole him when his mind turns to the
mother or wife In American Is there
n inspiration In 1T Does a man die
gladly for anything so foreign and so
sordid?
The soldier who has stood by the
charred flesh and bones Of a comrade
knows there Is no spirit or consolation
In any of these things. He knows that
men cannot ny willingly into the face
Of death for any such causes.
The whole thing Is impossible. To Q
soldier Of the line It Is simply un
thinkable. To him all the talk about
making the world safe for democracy
by fighting boundary wars all around
the globe means just nothing at all.
You might as well tell him to die for
the blue sky as to die for boundary
lines everywhere and for democracy
In general.
have never een a soldier or an
army that could get the lighting spirit
In such a cause as that. Neither has
any other American soldier. An Amer
lean army that had no other inspira-
tiOn would he an army without spirit,
without morale; II would be no army
at all. | defy any soldier to imagine
q nghting American army under these
conditions.
: In August, 1918. IS American avia.
tors were lined up at Claremont,
France, to 60 to the front. They shook
hands with everybody and said good
by" An engineer officer asked the
captain In charge OF the aviation
group: why all this gioomr The
reply was: well, those American ma
chimes have no protection as Don az
q bullet hits that gasoline tank It Is
certain II will take FIRE Immediately
and the men have no chance to get
away. "A month later the engineer
again met the captain and asked II
those men came back. "They never |
came back" was the simple answer
They never came back!
Do men do these things as they go
to breakfast. or board a street carr
DO they do these things for political
theories or for general principles or |
for a miserable piece Of land that
some foreigner covets and some other |
foreigner will not give up?
Can you expect any soldier, who ha> |
seen men do what those 10 did. to be |
for the League Of Nations: Can you
Imagine his wishing such sacrifices to
be made on the orders Of a foreign
country? Can you picture to yourself
IN American army sent overseas by
the American people 10 enact sucl
tragedies? Or, il sent. can you think
It possible to inspire all army to Draw.
deeds ON such hollow pretensesf
] cannot. No soldier can. That IA
why the soldier 10 against the League
Of Nations.