THE NEW AMERICA.

Taranaki Daily News, 26 September 1917, Page 2

THE NEW AMERICA.

PRESIDENT WILSON'S DIFFICULT TASK. (By Tan Hay in London Time:). The greatest influence of all in American public life to-day is the President, Woodrow Wilson. Mr. Wilson has recently taught the world a lesson, and that is to judge no man hastily, least of all the leader of a great, unwieldy, and heterogeneous democracy. We are just lirgiuning to realise some of the tlifficulties with which President Wilson has had to contend during the past three years. Let us consider a few of the President's difficulties. In the fi'-st place, Mr. Wilson was aware of a circumstance, which was unrevealed to hifl critics. namely, that he himself was pro-Ally through and through. Then why did he not proclaim the fact? For the simple reason that where a private individual may offer an expression of opinion when he likes and where ho likes the. head of a State cannot do so without making the whole State olllcially responsible" for the consequences. The consequences in this case would certainly have meant the breaking off of diplomatic relations with Germany, and ' probably a declaration of war. And this brings us to the second thing which the President knew which we did not know—or at least realise—and that was, that the American people were hopelessly disunited upon the subject of participating in the war. It is true that thousands were demanding that America should step down into the arena and j vindicate her national honor. On the | other hand, thousands were frankly proGerman and anti-British, and said ,-n. But aa already noted, and for reasons already stated, 'the general attitude of the American people was one of indifference. Fundamentally the country was pro-Ally, but with reservations. For instance, there was a distinct disinclination, natural in a stoutly democratic people, to embark upon a warlike enterprise in the same galley with the j Tsar of all the Russians. This disinclination was strongly fostered by the Jews, who form an important element in American public life and have ro cause to love Russia. Public opinion, 100, was warped by German propaganda, skilfully conducted by BcmstoriT, and abetted to a scandalous degree by the notorious Hearst Press—probably the most poisonous influence in American public life to-day—and its so-called International News Service. Consequently, per' or.s who preferred to absorb their opinions readv-made—and who can resist that temptation altogether?—had already assimilated some of the suggestions which were constantly pressed upon them—for : instance, that Groat Britain, having ji-ek-eyed Germany into war, was n. w allowing France to do all the fighting: that the German atrocities had been greatly I exaggerated; .and that hoth sides were j equally bad. And so forth. ', I In the face of poison gas of this kind, 1 I judicious and well-informed Americans i could do little—except grieve, and exi press their sympathy with the t ause of 1 right against wrong. And th»ir sym- | pathy took an intensely practical form | A year ago (he number of societies exist- ! I cut in America for purposes of Ailie.l j Avar relief had reached the hot altoge- ; \lier despicable total of one hundred and 1 I ten. The extent of our indebtedness to [ ! America in this respect has not ; et 'jeen * j fully realised or acknowledged by n«. 1 I We'are much too busy with +he war. , i But some day we shall all know, and 1 we shall be grateful. Foremost among these judicious and ' well-informed Americans—probably the ■ most judicious and well-inform :d o" all —was the President. He knew all —but ■ for the moment he could do nothing He knew that if he jumped info war simply because national prestige anr; common humanity demanded it, the .country as a whole would not follow him. Some—the best, perhaps but still only some—would jump with him; but the rest would stay behind. The net result would he a divided nation, neatly ranged upon the two sides of the. Rubicon, just at the moment when national unity was indispensable. WATCHFUL WAITING. So the President did the hardast thing that a public man can'be called upon to J do —he waited. He kept his own coun-

sel; he made no overt attempt to nifliu ence public opinion eveept in the direction of strict neutrality—painfully strict neutrality; and lie held his hand until the time should come when he could go forward with a hundred million people behind Mm. And during those 'nig and difficult mouths he never once flinched 01 receded from that attitude. Its success may be gauged from the fact that proAlly Americans called him prj-German and pro-German Americans called him pro-Ally. Others called him weak and vacillating. Others, more explicit, callei hiin .a traitor. His best friends considered him '"academic," or "soo rt,ft-aehsd in his view.',', The entire Republican jjress derided his Notes. In vaudeville v they referred to hi* typewriter as.it '.'Wilson machine-gun." But Wopdroy.' Wjibjon never budged. He maintained liis ppiiey of giving Bernstorff sufficient, rope, in the sure and certain expectation that in due time they would hang themselves And it. was so,. ,'-.'■ The situation was further all last year by an accidental hut wclgh(v circumstance. The Presidential .ejection was due. That meant, in, effect, that America's affairs were being,'conducted not by an accredited leader but by a candidate for office. Until his' reelection was assured President V\ T ilson could not, according to the immemorial traditions of the same, afford, tc ; take q, strong line about anything Neither, for that matter, could his opponent. 'Political elections do not vary much as a class. The great tiling is to commit yourself to nothing and try to lure your opponent into a declaration of' policy. To be explicit on these occasions is to bt damned. In the election of *T::vember. l!H(i, Mr.' Wilson resisted all the attempts of his opponents to make him hoist either. Allied or Teutonic colors. Ho merely presented himself—or rather his party presented him —for re-election on the ground that he had "kept the country out of war." Mr. Hughes said this was all wrong,, but was unable or unwilling to state what he would have done in the circumstances. So Mr. Wilson was re-elected. "DER TAG."

The re-election of Mr. Wilaon made him sure, of his ground. He wis more, lie was supreme. Since the dethronement of the I'sar of Russia the Piesident of the United States is probably the only real autocrat left in the world. We who live under a monarchial system, where a popular vote can turn out a Government overnight and set up another in its stead, can have little conception what it means to be a citizen of a are-it democracy—in a country where the functions of King and Prime Minister aro/nmbincd in the person of one man. who can usually enforce his wijl upon the legislature, is responsible to no one for his action?, and cannot be removed from office by anything but death or a conviction for high treason for at least four years.

Tin- President, having recaptured his disputed trenches, and having rcconsoudateil (he same, was now in a position to undertake his Spring Offensive. Soon his opportunity came. Germany falling into the error of all bullies, and mistaking patience for cowardice, took (hat one step further which is inevitable and fatal in such cases. On February 1, 19If she announced her programme rl" ruthless submarine warfare against the Allies. To injury to American trade wa'. added insult in the shape of a farcical decree permitting America to dispatch inn ship, painted with broad black and vliit J stripes, to Falmouth once a week. T»iat proclamation unified America as jmth ing else had done. Public indignatior rose to fever heat. Things now began to move. The President, confident of universal, support, promptly bundled Bernstorff back to >]- maiiy. This, naturally, was t!u beginning of the end. The change did not come instantaneously. The voice of the pro-German was no longer heard in tIK; land, but the voice—surprisingly bimilar in intonation and timbre—of the Pacifist began to be uplifted imtead. But no matter. America was awake, and. best of all, united. The P.resid.-lit, with his uncanny instinct for gauging the diversified points of view of his countrymen, had judged aright. Two months later came the end. The outrageous document in which Zimmermann suggested to Japan and Mexico (hat they should band themseh.es with the Central Powers and make war upon America fell into the hands of the United States Government, and the last shreds of doubt and disunion were swot a.vay The people of Texas, Who took no burning interest in the American Atlantic trade., and had seen no particular reason to involve the country in war because ships from New York were foolish enough to get sunk in German minefields, suddenly assumed a genuine interest in national unity upon learning that their State had. been offered by Germany as a douceur to Mexico. The States of t'. e West, audi as California, ever conscious of the so-called Yellow Peril, were <-o;io- ■ iiy the news to a burst of passionate resentment against German 'ntngue. And so 'President Wilson, just'lier' in his policy of watchful waiting 'f ever a man was, stepped boldly across the Rubicon of War, and took the whole of the American people (if we except the inevitable residue of cranks, faddists, an.l paid obstructionists) with him. to those familiar with conditions in America, as they were a year ago, his feat wits marvellous.