Durant weekly news. (Durant, Choctaw Nation, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 190?-1944, 1921-08-19
WHY HAVE THE PEOPLE ABDICATED?


ial taken from the Memphis Com
mercial Commercial Appeal. covers
a subject. never before attempted
nv one editorial. IL is reprinted In
full as il shows wonderful un-
Lcrstanding of a situation faced by
America and Americans today.
Ours is said to be government
by the people.
Either this is no government by
the people or the people are farther
away from this government this
year than they have ever been in
the history Of the nation.
Foreign military experts--British
French and German commentators
say that the United States and ia
pan are destined to engage In war
fare. The prophecies are mostly
made from the outside.
The military arm Of our govern
ment seems to function towards O
conflict In the Pacific.
DO the American people, the men
and women in the street the men and
women in the shops and In the fur
rows Of the field. think that soon
we may be engaged in war?
Do they realize that 1t is on the
cards for the United State to become
involved in struggle with some
oversee power! II so. why are they
indifferent? -
In 1918 when we were in a death
struggle with Germany our soldiers
were fighting with the thought that
when the end came 1t would be the
beginning of q new order of stable
peace. The struggle, to those TAX
ing part. in it, was so horrible that
they could not conceive that later
men would deliberately think of the
possibilities of renewal Of similar
hostilities. When the armistice came
the average citizen Of England and
the average citizen Of the United
States felt that the supreme duty Of
the victors was to SO arrange 1t that
international wars hereafter would
be remote possibilities.
Before the armistice those who
later opposed the treaty-Republi-
can leaders and other Democratic
leaders--had programmes under
which international order might be
preserved. These programmes were
fathered by men like Mr.. Lodge. Mr..
Root. Mr.. Hughes. the presidents of
universities. international lawyers
Mr.. Wilson and other Democratic
leaders and by the deliberate thought
of reasoning people.
The h0Ee for general peace pro-
gramme was shattered in the United
States Senate. People were groan-
ing under taxes in 1920. Mr.. Hard
ing ran on Il platform of isolation and
was elected. Now the public mind
has skunk into the old order Of think
ing which accepts war. as a matter
of course. to be declared at any
moment, with no power in the peo.
pie to stop it.
When any nation feels its COM
mercial or other privileges are being
infringcd on and is reasonably sure
Of whipping the adversary. ii goes
to war. That is the order of things.
1t is so old that people mistake its
age for ruth and accept it.
\ few days ago we referred to the
writer that Japan would declare war
on the United States In 1922, and
1922 is only next year.
Prof. George l.. Koehn of the De-
partment of History. Reed College,
Portland, Oregon, says that the rise
of japanese Imperialism and Japan
csc control in China was made pos
sible by the British-Japan alliance
Of 1902. Prof Koehn quotes Mr..
Pooley, who. he says. is England's
most eminent authority on the far
eastern question, as stating: THAT
Japan has been in position to carry
out successfully her policy Of wanton
| aggression in China Is due to the
alliance of 1902"
II is the belief Of Prof. KOehn that
the compact that threw Japan into
the World War might force England
| to take sides against Us if we should
f,," y war with Japan.
We na,' before MS two puhlica-
'hrS Of high STANDING; The three
rr four leading articles in each of
, !."se revolvc around our relations
with Japan and England's relations
with Japan. all based upon the theo-
, ry of a great danger OF war. or with
a var as a certainty.
| So everybody except ourselves to
regard collision as on the cards.
What OF ourselves? What reason
does the plain citizen Of the United
States by plain citizen We mean the
average banker. manufacturer. law
yer. merchant. clerk and working
man-put forward for war with
Japan?
Wherein has Japan interfercd
with our orderly business? Does ia