Evening star., 1923-05-11

Time: Americas entrance into the
world war.
Scene: The salon of a French cha
teau.
PERSONNEL: American host: guests, a
dapper French captain and an Ameri-
can major.
French captaIn-"Ah. you Ameri-
cans! Energetic business men. Won
derful fighters! But you love the dol
lar and have no ideals"
American host-"No ideals? What
do you mean. MONSIEUR Americans no
ideals? Why, Americans have the
highest ideals OF any race in the
world. Talk about American ideals.
Look at Maj. --, here! He cross
cd the ocean for an ideal. France
does not know Americans. You
Frenchmen have got to learn what
American idealism means-how much
IL means"
In the two years following that In
cident the French did learn something
Of what American idealism meant to
civilization. A few days ago II was
(not the governmenD, by large and
small subscriptions. had erected a
beautiful monument to the honor of
American volunteers who had come
to France and fought in the French
army before America had entered the
war Not one of these volunteers had
followed Lafayett9s example OF de-
nanding to be made major general
at the age Of nineteen years az a
condition prenedsnt OF their cham
pioning the cause of liberty. equality
and fraternity. The American ideal
ism was the purest in all the war, and
IL is very much To the credit OF France e
that she has got we'll enough ac-
quainted with the better side of
American character to see something
in 1t not expressed by the American
dollar.
Americans have felt aggrieved at
the recent politics of France. which
has permitted that country to flaunt
our loans TO her and defy collection
thereof, unless we will accept her
claim on Germany and collect 1t as
part payment to US of money loaned
TO save France from defeat Some
Americans have even felt like saying
what Charles Lamb said about a
stranger.
When walking with a friend. Lamb
suddenly pointed to another man
passing along the street and ex-
claimed:
Il hate that man"
His friend was astonished. for
Lamb was not great hater. and he
replied:
Wing, you don't know him."
''Of course / don't know him. If I
knew him I could not hate him, but
now I hate him"
Would 1t not be wonderful II We
were all obliged to know what Is in
the heart of the men We condemn?
~
If. like Lamb. We cannot 'fhate" a
them, would that we might put our
selves where our debtors are, that We
might feel something Of their motives
conceive their ideals. Imagine dew
astatio Of America similar to that
Of France and a continuance of dam
ger. Our statesmen, too, might then
feel distracted and bound to cast
about for resources. and above all.
for means of appeasinG citizens of
restricted understanding. Maybe some
cf the grotcsque propositions now
coming from the statesmen of
consumption"
If there is left in the French con-
ception of the American character
ono iota Of the error that the Amer
leans have no idealism." and know
only love for the dollar. then they are
either fooIing their constituents by
their idealistic and impossible pro-
posalS Of settlement. or they are
plumb crazy" to expect us to cam
eel the billions Of dollars of their in
debtedness. or to accept German
scraps Of paper" In settlement there
Of.
Let them erect their monument to
the American idealism-as personI-
fed in the American volunteer. Pres
entity. they may add a companion
piece monument to Uncle Sans
good, hard. business sense. 1t takes
both characteristics to make a
rounded character.
Il
The old slogan Say it with
flowers has been greatly magnified
by tho American Tree Association
through Its president. Mr.. Charles
L4athrop Pack. The message of good