The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1926-09-24
Ought to Know.


Ought to Know.
Owen is described by the Wall
Street Journal as leading counselor
in government circles before and after
the outbreak of the European war
and influential in many steps that
marked Wilson's administration.
Among other things, he helped draw
up the federal reserve act, which more
than any other measure made possible
the financing of the war.
Owen contends that the agitation
to cancel the allied debt rests on a
misconception of the causes of the
war. He maintains that the American
public is still influenced by propa-
ganda that keeps alive wartime con-
ceptions and suppresses knowledge Of
the facts. He says:
German Peril Was Bunk.
1.-THE whole question of the cancella-
ton of the war debts is based on the
theory that the late war was as much
our affair as it was Europes, that
we were fighting for democracy
against German aggression, and that
we were obliged to take up arms
against Germany as she aimed at
world domination, which would ulti-
mately involve the United States.
This is not the true situation, as any
one realizes who has investigated the
facts, read the postwar literature and
studied the official documents and
state papers that have since come to
light"
Imperialists on Both Sides.
Owen cites French as we'll as Eng
fish and American authorities to show
that the conflict originated in large
measure in an alliance OF Russia and
France to control the continent of
Europe and that German militarism
was an effect and not cause of the
situation.
ut was" he says, this European
intrigue which all the people of
Europe were victims of but for which
we had no moral responsibility. Yet
under the slogan of making the world
safe for democracy we were actually
drawn into fighting for a cause which
was originally Russia's and Frances
Merely Good War Propaganda"
Owen holds it misleading to at
tribute to Germany the entire blanc
for the world war saying: THAT wa,
good propaganda during the war
which the allies made the most Of
and we did, too, which was alright
as war measure. We spent $4,000
900 on that kind of propaganda and /.
have no doubt England and France
spent as much as $4,000, 900 between
them on that score here"
The Cost of Lie.
Thus by the admission of an in
slider 1t took over $4,000, 900 of false
propaganda to lead the American peo-
pie into war which cost them the
lives of 1900 young men, the wound.
ing Of over 100000 more, and approx
mately 100000, 900 in money. Men
and women who suggested as much
in 1917 were lynched and Jailed, also
as the fruit of the $50,000,O 900 Anglo
French propaganda.
Another Expose Needed.
There remains but one more step in
the establishment of the American
people as to the high ideals for which
the United States took part in the
war. The economic interest of Amer
lean capital in making the world safe
for its enormous profits must be ex.
posed by some insider. Sooner or
later some person who during the war
was close to the international bankers
centering around the House of Nor
gan will accidentally lift the lid and
the secret will be out. Here's hoping
1t happens before a new food of we'll
financed propaganda leads the people
into supporting some new war, possi-
bly, in Asia, in behalf of Americas