Palatka daily news. [volume] (Palatka, Fla.) 1919-1994, 1921-09-27
THE VERDICT HISTORY
is PREPARING.

the World War was won, and to
whom and what agencies credit
should be awarded, is rapidly pre-
pairing. And it is becoming more
evident daily that this verdict will
not be entirely to our liking.
1t will have been noted by read
ers of public addresses and docu-
ments that our former too boastful
claims have been greatly tempered.
There is rarely heard today the
once familiar boast that Eve won
the war" We are beginning to al
low some credit to French genius
which really guided, perhaps Great
ed, victory-and to the vast efforts
put forth by the allied European ma
tons.
But European students of and ac-
tors in the great conflict have al
ready arrived at pretty definite and
harmonious views on the subject.
While these students of war do not
throw our claims out of court, they
no longer attempt to soothe US or
hatter us by graciously accepting
our contribution to victory at our
own high valuation.
Stephens Lausanne, himself a close
student of the war, has an article
in The Outlook of September z,
which is entitled Germany Was De-
feated When America Declared War,
Says General Buat." Lausanne is
editor of "Le Martini" one of the
greatest of the French newspapers.
This title is itself misleading, for
f.xuranne seems to have two inter-
pretatiens of the words Of the IA
nous French military expert. He
seems to take the following language
of the General's-"It was not in No
vember, 1918, when Armistice was
signed, that Germany was defeated;
it was in April, 1917, when America
declared war"-as giving US credit
for the decisive coup, even if no blow,
save a moral one, had been struck
by us up to that time. But this is
hardly what Buat means, and Lau-
zznne is aware of this, later on. We
quote a passage from his article:
- ny people have asked this ques'
ti+r:
lat would have happened in the
spr: of 1918 to Hindenburg if, in
stea.i of wearing out the German
forces in the exhaustible attacks, he
had -vaited quietly behind his for
mid ole lines of defense satisfying
himself in warding off the blows?"
Tn this Hindenburg has replied il
his "Mmmories:"
"The German army would have
died of exhaustion before the enc
my" to which General Buat, in hi
book, replies as follows:
The German army would hav'
been beaten all the same, because
during the series of attacks which
we lad foreseen, and whose execu
ton was to have been extremel,
rapia, nothing could have saved tn
Germ an reserve. Our job woul
perhi. ps have been harder, but tn
American army, which was there
uume rous, ardent, admirably equip
ped, would have enabled us to accom-
pIisii it successfully. The sue
cess of the war would most probabl
only have been decided in the sprin
of 1919. But it would not have bee
changed, and the German army woul
have suffered the same disaster
suffered in the summer of 1918"
History is beginning to record on
mart m the winning of the war as
nat the work of the armies in Franc
not the vast supplies Of food an
munitions of war, great as thes
contributions were-but as the NOR
shcc': to Germany of President Wi
sons enunciation of the great pril
c;pI,s for which humanity was col
tes~stag. Those principles were ar
remain inyincible. What was neede
WIS their proclamation by SON
prezent-dsy high authority, and the
prompt recognition by the masses
mankind. The prOclaiming of the'
principles, along with the ideal thu
peace should be merciful to the PEI
pies misled by Prussionism, sattert
the morale of Germany and Austri
That is our great contribution Il
wari the winning of the war.
Ard it is because this contribute
was made by and through Woodro
Wilson that all the miserable dicke'
ing and evasions and betraya's