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Show THE YELLOW STREAK. The unspeakable men now controlling Russia, men without honor, morality or decency of any kind, are playing each card at German dictation. Every maneuver ma-neuver is in accordance with a plan formulated for-mulated in Berlin or by trusted Prussian agents in Pctrojjrad. Like their Prussian Prus-sian masters, they consider a sacred Ireaty a mere "scrap of paper." The Knssian alliance which binds Russia not to make peace without the consent of the other allies, is derided by the thugs and degenerates who hare become masters of Muscovy. But what rhall we say of the Russian people if they permit the betrayal of their allies? Tt were they who forced Prance to stand by Wpt alliance. Tt were they who cried out to the western Europeans Euro-peans for help when the kaisers inaugurated inaugu-rated theil campaign of aggression and plunder. If tho Russians had submitted submit-ted at that time there would have been no war. But now that millions of lives have been lost because Russia resisted on behalf of Slavdom and rightly resisted re-sisted the Russians quit, pleading that they are weary of war. Other peoples are weary, too, but will fight to the end. Every dictate of honor should keep the Russians in the war. No nation ever was bound more sacredly to its allies. A&d the Russians cannot plead that it was tho cut who made the war, for the whole world remembers that it was the moHt popular war in which Russia ever engaged. The Russians welcomed the Opportunity of trying conclusions with their menacing neighbors who had repeatedly re-peatedly insulted them as in the Bosnia-Herzegovina affair of 1908 and who had declared inextinguishable warfare war-fare between pan Germansism and pau-.Slavism. pau-.Slavism. The yellow streak in the Russians is all the more contemptible because they have quit the war at a time when the allies could speedily achieve victory with their aid. If the Slavs had remained faithful faith-ful to their allegiance and fought as they could have fought during the last seven months, the enemy would have been at his last gasp by now. Three or four offensives such as Korniloff conducted con-ducted in Galicia, when he put several hundred thousands of the Teutons out of action, would have brought victorious peace so near by this time that the allies would not have the least doubt as to the result. The Russians were the first of the allies to enter the war and are the first to quit. They see themselves disgraced and dishonored by the Bolsheviki and make no effort to throw off the yoke. They know that through the ages Russia Rus-sia will be a synonym for cowardice and faithlossncss unless they set themselves free from the thrall of traitors and cra vens, and yet they seemingly rest content con-tent with the course affairs are taking. If they do not arouse themselves they will deserve to bo slaves, as undoubtedly undoubted-ly they will be. The German plan which the Bolsheviki Bolshe-viki leaders propose is calculated to give the appearance of an excuse for the worst of infamies. It calls for a universal univer-sal armistice. The allies are asked to join with the Russian reds in accepting a disgraceful peace. One of the reds declares that ho and his ilk do not want a separate peace. He wants all the allies to submit to Prussian despotism and militarism. And if the allies will not be so dishonorable and cowardly, he and his kind will urge the peoples of the entente countries to revolt and accept ac-cept the slavery which their governments govern-ments repudiate. There is no chance of that. The Russian reds know it, but they have the German money in their pockets and they expect to plunder Russia. Rus-sia. Therefore, they are willing to play the game just as they are told to play it by Willielmstrasse. When the allies reject the Bolsheviki offer, the reds, obeying Berlin's instructions, in-structions, will say that the allies were given a chance to obtain 'a democratic peace1' and refused it. It seems as if even the worst men cannot commit their crimes and infamies without some recognition recog-nition of the moral law and laws of honor. And the Bolsheviki, before arranging ar-ranging an armistice and a peace, want to be able to say that they offered an armistice and a neace to the allies. If Russia quits she will be treated as a hostile nation. The allies will not declare war, but they will not accord the Russians any of the rights of neutrals. Recognizing that Russia will furnish Germany with supplies, the allies will place an embargo on all goods to Russia Rus-sia and Russia will be boycotted by all honorable nations. That will be a bitter experience for tho millions of people in Russia who want to stand by the allies, who are anxious to be true to the solemn pledges of the alliance, and who would rather die than betray the allies to the enemy, but unless they liberate lib-erate themselves from the reds and continue con-tinue the war, they can expect nothing better, either now or in the future. |