The billboard (Dec 1917)

| LYCEU The Billboard aC At thin time of the nation’s need where arc the lyceum editors? Where are thelr words of -€2couragement and inspiration to ring down the curtain on the old scenes and herald the coming Arthur’ B, Gringle is editor of The ‘Lyceum World and ts a’ member of the Internatlonal Lyceum Association. In point’of editorial calendar, he is ‘with It unusual power. Mr. Gringle s more He is one of the gifted orators He ds a regular. chautaugua last summer he weit over this as “The Editor of, The Lyceum World,” went-out by theMeneley Chautauqua ‘W. Meneley, Mer., Pesotum, Iil.). issue of his. magazine which has just to our desk {s an editorial called “I'atle Oratory That Degenerates Into Disgust‘Rant’, which parses the Imite of con structive eriticlm if nat the limits of loyalty to the Unlted States. ‘But let this velled editoral plea for the Kaiser ‘speak for itself: PATRIOTIC”, ORATORY. THAT DEGENERATES. INTO DISGUSTING, “RANT” No cause’ nor ian has ever been helped by ‘untrathfulness or by misrepresentations, however “well meant” such misleading statements might be. ‘Tho this might be admitted by the average man, It seems that the so-called “Pa trlotie” orator of today elther ean not or will ot recognize It. After Ustening during four months to “Patriotic “Patriotic Chautanqua Lectures,’ ‘the modern “Patriotic” speaker lacks In material ‘that appeals to reasonable, thinking people and ‘seeks materal that merely daflames the passions and creates bitterness, hatred ‘and prejudice. ‘While {tts always despicable to lve and labor to promote hate instead of peace and good will Among men, it is much more detestable if a able speaker aronsea prejudice, anger and hatred towards others—even if those others be ‘oar acknowledged enemles—by the se of false‘hoods, mietatements of Blatorical facts and wisrepresentations of the grossest kind, which any ‘unprejudiced man. at once recoguises aa are inventions of an evil mind, repetitions of slanders others have made, or creatures of a too lively or wobalanced Amagination. ‘That some ‘of these blood. thunder and fire statements are sometimes made to draw applanse, shock the tuntblakiag foto “eloquent silence,” oF raise a laugh at the. expense of the “Kaiser” and the German people Is certala. ‘As Mlustrations of what we mean two cases come to miod. One wan & socalled “Patriotic ‘Aditress,”” delivered by Mr. Archibald Hall, of Yodiaoapalis, at a public meeting, preceded by Dinwiog of whistles, marching of hosts of mea, boys and girls, and a due line of autos. ‘The suppesttion was that Mfr. Tall,” at publle expense, ad come to tell us facts and Dot fa fies coacerntag, the war and our duty towards this nation. “Instead there was @ dramatic waviog of a flog ta his hand, ani thea ranting and raving about the Germans. That part of is ‘address that trled ty explain why anil where. ture we had gupe to war received the quiet, DUt prof? attention of his bearers, Bot after @ few tmloutes of this be Tauarbed ont ty tell what be woul do to the Ralsery apd what Germany was gollty of doing abd planaing and dail een planning to do to us, He made a pitirat tartare, as be realized many Germans were fa bis andience, to sli why the ‘Gerrans over yooler™ were Inbuman brutes aot the German ‘soldiers hearttesn wretches, As het told is Dlodeuriting tales of “German Atroctles” he eaught the attention of the “Gallery Gods, who stamped thelr feet aod whistled ‘and applauited to thelr heart's content, and the ‘evident delight and otimolation of Mr. Hall, editor. country and. sults to thinking Americans y thelr moral senses, and who.want to do. Justice, exen to.an enemy. Mr, Hall spoke of the i legal Blockade of Germany, as if our President had not declared the British blockade itlygal, ‘and, for all the-publle knows, still declares 1¢ 20. ' Mr. Hall was so prejadiced, one-sided and unfalr in the selection of bis illustrations of German violations of Iaw that one Iistened with Smpatience and shame. z ‘Among the statements which we! feel sure are untrue conceruing the Kalser, he made ‘these: DECEMBER 1, 1917 AUTAUQUA ConpuCcCTED By FRED HIGH PACIFIST LYCEUM EDITOR Suggests Insurrection and Condemns Patriotic Oratory in Editorials “protected” by denying the rights of smaller of helpless nations,-such as China, Ireland and Greece, Bfr. Hall declaimed on the invaxion of Belgium, and then, delighting scemingly in bis task of using the most’ gruesome words, he brazenly asserted that German boys were taught to shoot ont the eyes of living men as target practice; healthy prisoners were forced to stay ‘with those ‘afflicted with’typhold, to take‘ deadly diseases, etc., ete. “Had he said that. such things were reported-it might-lessen bis guilt, ‘Dut {t would not excuse ‘bis unfairness. ‘The other case wo'have in mind ts Senator Aldrich, .of Nebraska, who has: been speaking ‘on -the Community. Chautauqua. Cireult in the Biddle States. . As.an example ‘pot only: ia joa by. prejudice and in elted by Bitter passlons, this “chantauqua ‘lee~ turer” ‘seemed to’ us “the “limit.” Altho the platform’ superintendent tried to barry thra‘bis many such “Americans it would be a sad day for our country, and we might’ say with’ the Group of oftcers and Seid renresentat at 1018 Broadway Bullding, Portland, Ore caught an American sailor sinking « submarine ho would not be treated as.a prisoner of war, dot bug as a pirate. ‘Then melodramattcally tr. Hall asserted that in wach # case be would take the last dotlar «hd Tas soldier and go to Berlin and bang the Keiser, Of course, this feoked tempestuous applauso from the went: Eental, unthinking part of the.crvwd, while tt fied. with griet and sbame real” Americans, Whose Inteltigeace was thos insulted No public speaker bts a right to make such statement ‘which can Dot be proven true. Mr. Hall stated forther that if the Ger: mans trled to pat thelr Hindeaborg tine at 1 “Atlantle he would pnsh tt Back to the Kaiser's Palace and then blow up the Kaiser!’ If such bombastic, savage, bloodthirsty ranting is patrlotism, ‘Lord, deliver ust Patriotism must need be in sore need of heip if It regulres such atimalante. fag, the Iast verse of which vald waving over French trenches, Evidently such Propaganda is not for America, ‘but for forel ations that Wall Street 1s foterevted in see sopplicd with funds. As if It was not wiicient to have’ delivered such a ranting melodramatic recitation of an ‘aadmixtnre of Americanism and falneboods order to villfy and then “blow np” and ““baog” the German man of straw, be cloned by enumerating some of the fabled “atrocitics’”’ of the Germans. Forgetting all abont the revorted ernelties and shameful deeds of Ensslan soldters, and ignoring the manner in which England ef the Enison-White Lrceum, and gon. ranch offcea at Bolsc, Idaho, Chaatanque Bureau, located ‘and Celgary, Canada. This ‘System will this coming season operate from Florida to Alaska, It is now busy Presenting & series of three~ ‘day festivals, He said the Kaiser had stated that it be] “Ob trath, thou hast fled to savage beasts, And men have Gost thelr reason.” Without any seeming attempt to produce bis: torle. proofs bemade the wildest and most ‘Vitrlolistie: statements concerning Germany, toe Kalser, the German army, the people of Germang, thelr form of government and alma, Te threw out assertion after aasertion, many based sn uninvestigated reports, more merely on rumors, and in very many cases he mivstated facts which, St seems to us, a very, little wider reading of history, would correct. But so ,evlent was his bitterness of spirit that it is doubtful 1f a man Uke that would have any dealre to be corrected. ‘That he made no converts, but may bave demaged the patriotism of many not our tntentlon \ck these speakers or in any way mlarepresent them or'thelr speeches. We stand realy to’ make any correctioos If errors are pointed out to us, It ts. rather our Alm to warn those ‘who are preparing patriotic addresses aud Ice‘tures against the. use of intemperate Innguage, and especially against the misstating of bis torie facts and "the Introduction of material ‘whose sole purpose is ‘to create and perytunte hatred. agalast the Geruin people. Our Pret dent bas asked us to distingulsl between the German people and their government, and be as refused to-accept the honeaty of statements from’ those whose wonls were found unreliable in the part. Tt heboores us, ax public apeakers, to be eren more carefal snd conwientious 10 ‘our, pubile statements than the ordinary man in common conversation, because we are to be Snstructors to the people, and wo shall never arouse enthusiasm to Sight against tiers by be. ing public prevarieators, even if such a campoign of misrepresentations is euphonfously called “Patriotic Orat ‘The ‘adore 18 only one of several editorials ‘which appeared in that same dasue, and the tone ‘and purpose of eath are the same. Is not the thought contained in the following from one of these editorials a dangerous suggestion to in into the minds of our colored peopte? jothing from the. battlefields of Europe has deen more brutal, more inbuman than the Ipnchlng of & negro a few weeks ago at Memphis, Teno. ‘That shameful affair, followed by the-‘horrors of the East St. Louls debauch of arson, ‘torture and murder, at the very hour when ‘the nation is professedly, standing as the Gefender of manbood, “rights and human freedom, must seem incredible to the elvilized world. ‘Unless the Government of the United States sota iteclf absolutely to protect the sacred rights of its cltizens, -who at Inst will bl the ‘twelve-miliion colored race if they rise In determined rebellion to vindicate these righte by the-only. forces left at their command?” Interest in the megro race that to them to rise in rebellion success? ‘This fs the teaching’of one who blatantly says he 1s against war. To a war between black ‘and white excepted from bls condemnation? ‘To adhere to the enemles of the United States, ving them ald and comfort,” 4s the way that the Constitution of the United States defines treason. = It Is AlmMeult to tmagine doything that would be of more welcome’ ald or comfort to the German Imperlal Government than a negro insur. rection im this country. Fortunately our negro cittrens are too loyal to Msten to Ger Tet’s take Mr. polnted out to him, authority for the st Porm, 1 which he saw Old, Glory waving over French trenches, “is propaganda not for America, but for foreign’ I Street ts toterested Im secing supplied with funds.” Charles Edward. Russell, noted Soctalist student aod tovestigator and chautauqua Tec turer, who has devoted years to studsing an fovestigating Wall Street and its methods of doing things, sald, to a speech delivered here tn Chicago November 1 ‘Do not pay any attention to the man who tells you this {sa rich man's war, that this is & list's war, that: this ts Wall Street's war. any other class. ‘This war comes home direct to you, It 18 people's war. “Opposition to this war. means opposition to the worker, to the producer, to tho toller. If Germany wins it means that the Czar will bo relostated at Petrograd, and democracy willbe lost forever to the people that bave fought the most wonderful fight fok liberty that this.world has ever witnessed.” Afr. Russell, who has but recently retarned from ‘where ho was sent as one of the United States Commlasioners to confer with the Russian Republic on matters of common interest, further ‘stated in bla Chicago address: -"This ts not a war between peoples or flags. over possessions, o for commercial supremacy. Ie ts the last great conflict between two ideas —two great conceptions of government that can never co-exist {nthe same world. One of them 4s golng to die. .On one slde.wo have government by fnberited. right—tho bellef that & franchise 1s dropped from the skies on some favored individual. Opposed to this ia government of the people, for the people, by the people.” ‘Tho Iyccum and chautanqua ts on trial as never before, and its very exintence is Jeopard‘eed by many 4a its own housebold. Senator LaFollette has made 4t hard for the public to Gieaszociate the lyceum and” chautanqua from hhis pecullar performances stace war began. ‘Tho Tyceum and chautaugua Is a free forum apd to Keep it euch ts the task that now engages the thought of many who hare given their life to the work of bullding up thle wonderful iost!tutlon, It can only be kept the people's college by makiog Its public utterances free from error and free trom being used as @ means of Aestraction to the public welfare. ‘This Lyceum editorial, exuding a strange emavium of love for Germania and hate aod suspicion of our allles and comrades in arms, 4m calculated to fan the Games of racial rancor by Snstnoatiog that our friends have also done (Continued on page 67) :