Evening star., 1939-09-18

oi0 De'ts oN1.' lDlS S11GN1
up against
bogey man. Thus David Lawrence.
the American people are being
told they must be wary of 'propa-
ganda" for war, must look SUSPECT
ously at every newspaper and radlo
station and assume an attitude OF
skepticism about what is being SAID
or printed about the war.
One possible explanation of this
remarkable outburst is that the
sponsors of it have failed to credit
the polls which report an almost
unanimous sentiment against Amer
lean entry into the war or have re-
fused to take as truthful or sincere
the statements issued by every re-
sponsible official in the United
States Government, including the
President of the United States, to
the effect that America can and Will
keep out of war. Perhaps the real
occasion for the sudden flood OF
anti-war hysteria is the revival OF
the wholly unfounded accusation,
widely disseminated by a small MI
nority In Congress beginning in 1885,
that the United States entered the
last war as a consequence OF prop
aganda" and a materialistic desire
to protect trade in munitions and
war investments.
Distortion in Testimony.
The German propaganda of 1914
1918 took the latter position and the
Hitler propaganda ministry has been
recently urging the same view OF
American policy by quoting from
the Senate Munitions Committee re-
port of 1885 and 1886. But if ever
there was a piece of distortion it is
to be found in the testimony and
innuendoes of that committee
hearings by which it was sought to
prove that President Woodrow Will
son led America into the war for
selfish reasons.
Most every one of us who was in
Washington in the years prior to
our entry into the war in 1917 had
no such impression about his course
The only man who argued against
materialiSm was Senator Norris, Re-
publican, of Nebraska, who refused
to vote for war and said that to do
so was to put the dollar sign" on
the American flag.
Senator Borah was in the Senate
at the time. Few people can put
anything over on the astute Sem
ator from Idaho, who now is the
ranking Republican on the Senate
Foreign Relations Committee. He
voted to enter the war and made a
speech giving his reasons. He did
not talk then like a man who had
been the victim of war propaganda
Nor did any of the Senators anc
Representatives in either house with
the exception of handful feel that
Mr.. Wilson's reasons were not justi-
fed. The debate and subsequent
vote showed it.
Parallel in Ship Sinking.
Americas experience from 1914
to 1917 was somewhat parallel to
that of Great Britain in 1888 and
1899. When the Lusitania sunk in
1915 there was a wave of indigna-
ton and some-but minority at
that-felt that America should
avenge the torpedoing of a bellig-
erent merchant vessel from which
800 American lives were lost. But
Mr.. Wilson negotiated as did Prime
Minister Chamberlain. Notes were
exchanged which were described as
wishy- -washy by the Republicans
who denounced mote writing" just
as in England there has been a
group condemning "appeasement.'
Mr.. Wilson insisted that America
could keep out of war and would
keep out so far as the European
issues themselves were concerned
but he declared that American
rights on the high seas had to be
protected.
No better evidence of President
Wilson's consistent policy of avoid
ing war can be found than in the
published memoirs of the late
Count Won Bernstorff, German Am.
bassador to the United States unit
the outbreak of our war with Ger.
many. The Ambassador places tht
blame for American entry exactly
where 1t belongs-on the shoulder!
of the German admiralty which
violated every pledge given to re.
spect neutral rights.
The presidential campaign O
1916 was fought successfully by th'
Democrats on the issue of "he KEEP
us out of war" but the Republican
campaign while calling for a NOR
vigorous assertion of American
rights did not advocate war. TIL,
whole Nation believed in 1916 tina
Germany would respect her pledges
But in February, 1917, the German
government announced "unrestrict
ed submarine warfare. 1t was {
shock to the whole world. Ever,
previous pledge was repudiated and
thereafter, American vessels goini
from neutral port to neutral por
carrying American citizens wer'
sunk. In the face of these attacks
Mr.. Wilson who hated war as mucl
as any pacifist in America felt tha
he had to protect Americas historic
rights.
The wartime President was tn
kind of a man who would gladly
have sacrificed himself or any ma.
terial interest to keep America ou
OF war. He was despised by Wal
Street anyway. He had nothing il