Evening star., 1925-09-13


to them exclusively. Germany. on her
side. felt herself menaced by defeat
because her enemies could draw upon
American resources indefinitely and
because these resources seemed Him
liable.
BY 1916, although we were still neu-
tral, all our energies were absorbed,
all our production concentrated upon
supplying the allies with the materials
for combat and the food and ma
terials for existence. thus freeing their
factories and their production for the
task of maintaining and equipping the
armies themselves. All the advantage
of superior preparation and pre-wsr
orga niZation were neutralized so far
as Germany was concerned because
the American contribution, which had
never been calculated upon, had risen
to such vast proportions.
Still neutral, we were rapidly be
coming the greatest power in the
world. While Europe exhausted its
capital in futile struggle or trans
ferred it TO the United States in re-
turn for more destructible materials,
our prosperity mounted. our wealth
increased. More and more. too the
European policy concentrated upon
the desperate effort to win US as an
ally. Germany. on her side seeking
TO keep us at least neutral. beheld
our neutrality as the circumstance
almost as fatal for her as our par
tic1pation as an enemy. Our resources
were winning the war for Germanys
foes, while we eEacted from them the
price which was bound TO leave them
impoverished and our debtors at the
close of the conflict.
Our Force Won War.
In the end Germany forced ms into
the war, and our participation made
the outcome inevitable. But the vast
ness of our effort. our capacity to
raise millions of soldiers the tremeu-
dous war loans which our people sub
mitted TO. not only without protest
but with enthusiasm-these gave "A
new and final indication of what the
United States had become Arriving
on the stricken field. where two great
alliances had for nearly four years
striven vainly for victory and now
stood exhausted. having called up
their last reserves, our hundreds of
thousands fresh, unwearIed, backed
by the sense of incalcuIable power,
not only brought victory. but brought
1t easily, with little expense I'm blood.
Thereafter the victory was for
Europe n American victory. We. and
not the British or the French. bulked
large in the eyes of the whole CONT
Paris he was received as the master
of the world. because he was con-
sidered TO represent in himself the
viii OF the American Nation. which
had suddenly assumed almost mystical
proportions IN the eyes of Europeans
Moreover. as the American had
seemed before the war immature and
childish, as well as lacking in ali the
necessary circumstances of real po-
litical power, now he came suddenly
to appear as possessing almost super
human wisdom. The words Of MIR.
Wilson fell upon the ears of war
wearied millions-totally disillusioned
in SO far as their own statesmen and
wisdom were concerned-almost as
announcements from on high We,
who had brought decisive influence to
the termination of the conflict, were
now to make the peace in accordance
with principles of justice and human
ity, which were as much above Euro
pean standards as were our wealth
and power.
Ideals Forgotten.
Now. all things considered the
United States has, in every respect
save one, totally failed to realize the
dreams OF Europe of 1919. Apart from
those contributions TO relieve the i'm
mediate distress of starving millions.
not little thing, TO be sure. the
United States has seemed to Euro
peans to have failed not alone to
achieve what was expected OF It, but
to make good on the enormous prom
ises rashly circulated in the heated
atmosphere Of the Paris conference.
To Europe the first act was our ar
rival agith the aVowed purpose of
making the world safe for democracy.
and the last is the vision of Uncle
Ga M H. NJ 1izl,
own continent and firmly insisting
upon the payment of all the bills
which are owing him. Yesterday we
Appropriated the Messiah; today we
impersonate the Shylock of the ma
tions.
For the mass of Americans this
transformation, in the European state
OF mind, is simply explained as having
Its foundation in mere jealousy, fos-
tered by unbelievable ingratitude. We
believe, as a people, that we saved
Europe at vast expense and that Eu-
rope not alone refuses to pay a rea-
sonable part of the cost of our effort,
but, in addition, declines to be per-
manently saved. We see the sums
which we loaned to enable the allies TO
win the war and to recover from the
disaster not only not repaid. when
the capacity to pay has been restored,
but actually turned into channels
which, to our minds, mean ultimate
recurrence of strife
AT the bottom of almost all Ameri-
can opinion is the uneasy suspicion
| that Europe is making use of our
generosity and using it for ignoble
ends. 1t is not alone that Europe
pays with reluctance or not at all
what was loaned without condition
and without limit in the days of the
allied need, but even more Europe
seems at one and at the same time
to deny the obligation to pay and
to turn the money which mighG other
wise be available for payment to the
precise usages which most offend the
American conception. We feel that
the money loaned To achieve VictorE
and to restore normal life is being em-
ployed to construct new military ma
chimes and TO foster international
rivalry.
L. y. Deluded BY Europe.
We are conscious. ourselves. not
alone OF great capacity for generosity,
but of very solid contributions. Right
ly or wrongly, we believe that any
legitimate appeal to our purse or our
heart would find immediate answer.
But the long struggle over the league
in this country had no more evil con-
sequence than that of establishing In
our minds the conviction that in the
war, before the war and after the war
during the peace negotiations we were
deceived, deluded, Victimized, and that
now Europe is trying to evade just OH
legations which in the circumstances
should have almost sacred character.
Thus the payment of the debts as
sumes in our eyes an appear rance quite
different from the mere relation of
debtor and creditor, and to fan to col
lect would be to encourage wicked