Salt Lake Telegram | 1918-10-18 | Page 4 | Ex-German Patriots

. Ex-German Patriots j The statement, was made in this column a few days ago thai America,' as the country which Prussian military leaders declared would not fight, had proved to be the greatest of all disappointments dis-appointments to the Huns. ' .''. In that connection it was declared that what this country has accomplished in the comparatively brief period since its entrance into the world war was something tremendous, as illustrated by . the one item of shipbuilding, in which the United States again has become the leading nation of the world, and whose ships, con-' con-' structed as a war measure, eventually will carry American goods to many ports once used almost wholly by German Vessels. 1 In many other respects America .has proved a great disappointment disap-pointment to Prussian leaders, but doubtless the keenest of all disappointments dis-appointments in relation to this country 'was the discovery of the fact that ex-Germans and their descendants had become patriotic "I. Americans. . It was the boast of the kaiser that the great German element v - in America would prevent this country from entering the war,but , . that If, in the face of .German opposition, America joined the allies, the Germans in America would start a revolution. i hesappolhtrnent 10 inCTtilsef came in the f act that uf the-hundreds the-hundreds of thousands pf German-born Americans and their descendants! de-scendants! but a mere handful, as it were, proved their loyalty to the land of thefree by enlisting in the army and navy, by the purchase pur-chase of Liberty bonds and by various other patriotic acts. mingiy thHoa nvr wa yntfrtaipf j by the kaiser or his advisers that practicallyall of the Germans who have emigrated to America left Germany because of their hated for militarism. They - were freedmen at heart before they left Germany and they realized they were freedmen in fact, whetkthey found themselves beneath the protecting folds of the Stars antf Stripes. Even previous to the entrance of tbc United States into the, war the remark frequently was made by exGermans that, while they naturally hoped that Germany would winthey just as fer-, fer-, vently hoped that in some'manner kaiserism would be defeated. . t ' These patriotic ex-German Americans have realized that the only hope for Germany lies in the crushing of PrussiarNmtocracy . : and militarism, and when this is accomplished there will te as much rejoicing among this class of Americans as will be shown by any other class of patriots. They feel that once the yoke of militarism is thrown off by Germany that country - will have an . opportunity of regaining its ' place of honor in the circle of civilized nations.