Cheraw chronicle. [volume] (Cheraw, S.C.) 1896-2005, 1922-04-27
CHAPTER XIII.

CHAPTER XIII.
So everywhere over the country, that
winter of 1916, there were light-heart-
ed boys skylarking-at college, or on
the farms; and in the towns the
Young machiniStS Snowballed one an
other as they came from the shops ;
while on this Sunday Of the frat"
snow fight probably several hundreds
of thousands of youthful bachelors, be-
tween the two oceans, went walking,
like Ramsey, each with girl who
could forget the weather. Yet boys
of nineteen and in the twenties were
not light-hearted all the time that win
ter and that spring and that summer.
Most of them knew long, thoughtful
moments, as Ramsey did, when they
seemed to be thinking not of girls or
work or play-nor Of anything around
them, but Of some more vital matter
or prospect And ut such times they
were grave. but not ungentle.
For the Tong strain was on the cOun-
try; underneath all its outward SEEM
ing of things going on as usual there
shook a deep vibration, like the air
trembling to vast organ pipes In dia-
pasons too profound to reach the ear
as sound; one felt, not heard, thunder
in the ground under ones feet. The
succession of diplomatic notes came
oft ln ~
Sussex; and at last the tricky ruling
Germans in Berlin gave their word to
murder no more, and people said, This
means peace for America, and all is
well for U.S." but everybody knew in
his heart that nothing was well for
us. that there was no peace.
They said, "All is WELL" while that
thunder ip the ground never ceased
t grew deeper and heavier till all
America shook with it and 1t became
slowly audible as the voice of the old
American soil, a soil wherein lay those
who had defended ii aforetime, soil
that bred those who would defend 1t
again. Cor it was theirs; and the mean
ing of it-Life, Liberty, and the Pur-
suit Of HappinesS-waS theirs, and
theirs TO defend. And they knew they
would defend it, and that more than
the glory of q Nation was ut stake.
The Freedom of Man was at stake. So.
gradually, the sacred thunder reached
the ears of the young men and gave
them those deep moments that came TO
them whether they sat in the class
room or the cOunting-rOOm, or walked
with the plow, or stood TO the machine,
or behind the ribbon counter. Thus
tie thunder shook them and tried them
and slowly came into their lives and
changed everything for them.
Hate of the Germans was not bred a;
but Il contempt for what Germany had
SHOWN III lieu of Il national heart Il
contempt as mighty and aS profound
MS the resolve that The German way
and the German vii! should not pre-
vail III America, nor in any country of
the world that would be free. And
when the German kaiser laid his COM
muud upon America. that no American
should take his ship upon the free
seas, death being the penalty for any
who, diSObeycd. then the German kaiser
got his answer, not only TO This new
law he had made .or us, but To many
other thoughts of his. Yet the an.
swer was for some time delayed.
There was Il bitter Sunday, and It's
bitterness went everywhere. to every
place in the whole world that held
high and generous hearts. Its bitter.
ness came To the special meeting in
the frat hall" where there were
hearts, indeed, Of that right sort and
one Of them became vocal in its bitter.
ness. This was the heart of Fred
Mitchell, who was now an authority
being president of the Junior class
chairman of the Prom committee, and
other things pleasant to be and to live
for at his age.
For me, brothers" he said, Il think
I'd Il great deal rather have been shot
through the head than heard the news
from Washington today. tell you
I've spent the meameSt afternoon
ever did In my life. and | guess it:
been pretty much the same with all OF
MS The worst of il is. il locks a:
though there isn't a thing in the worlt
We can do. The cOuntry'S been be
irayed by few blatherSkites ant
hun"hradS that had the power 10 do 1t
and all we can do-we've just got Il
Sand {. But there's some American:
THAT aren't just standing ii, and
want 70 tell you lot Of EN- are mer
from the universities. Just like US
They're over there right now; the!