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Show WAR TILL KAISERISM ENDS, SAYS WILSON CAN BE NO THOUGHT OF PEACE UNTIL DESTRUCTION OF MILITARY AUTOCRACY. President Forcibly Answers all Feelers For Compromise at Gathering at the Tomb of Washington on Independence Day. AYashington. President Wilson on July 4 answered feelers for a compromise peace, with ii new and imiiunlilied consecration of America to the struggle for cleaning military autocracy au-tocracy from the earth. At an Independence Day gathering on the gentle slopes of Mount Vernon, home and tomb of George Washington, and surrounded by scenes which looked upon the creation of this nation, tlr president addressed a small gathering of officials and of diplomats of the allied al-lied nations. But he spoke to the world and ho spoke the logical sequel to his "force without stint or limit" declaration of several weeks ago. Reign of Law. Unreservedly, the president declared that there could be no thought of a peace which did not mean the destruction destruc-tion of military autocracy, or its reduction reduc-tion to virtual impotence. "A reign of law, based on the consent con-sent of the governed and sustained l.y the organized opinion of mankind," was the way he summarized in a single sin-gle sentence the objects of humanity ia the world war. Whether the president was addressing address-ing his remarks directly to the recent speech of German Foreign Secretary von Kuehlmann or to the foreshadows of a renewed German peace offensive, or whether he merely took the occasion occa-sion of the celebration of American in-tlepedence in-tlepedence to emphasize to the world the war aims of the nation can only be I divined. i Text of Speech. I The president's speech in full was ! as follows : ! "Gentlemen of the diplomatic corps and my fellow citizens : "I am happy to draw apart with you to this quiet place of old counsel in order to speak a little of the mean-j mean-j iiig of this day of our nation's inde-I inde-I Jjfndence. This place seems very still and remote. It is as serene and untouched un-touched by the hurry of the world as It was iu those great days long agone when General Washington was here nad held leisurely conference with the men who were to be associated with him in the creation of a nation. From these gentle slopes they looked out upon up-on the world and saw it whole, saw it wi t h the light of a future upon it, saw it with modern eyes that turned away from a past 'which men of liberated tpirits could no longer endure. Meant for Mankind. ''It is for that reason that we cannot can-not feel, even here, in the immediate presence of this sacred tomb, that this is a place of death. It was a place of achievement. A great promise that 'vas meant for all mankind was here ?iven plan and reality. The associations associa-tions by which we are here surrounded are the inspiring associations of that noble death which is only a glorious consummation. From this green hillside hill-side we also ought to be able to see with comprehending eyes the world that lies about us and should conceive anew the purposes that must set men free. "It is significant significant of their own character and purpose and of the influence they were setting afoot iliat Washington and his associates, like the barons of Runnymede. spoke and acted, not for a class, but for a I'eople. It has been left for us to see to it that it shall be understood that "ipy spoke and acted, not for a single People only, but for all mankind. They were thinking, not of themselves and of the material interests which 'entered in the little groups of landholders land-holders and merchants and men of affairs af-fairs with whom they were accustomed accus-tomed to act, in Virginia, and the 'olonies to the north and south of her, but of a people which wished to be done with classes and special interns inter-ns and the authority of men whom "'oy had no themselves chosen to rule ; over them. They entertained no private pri-vate purpose, desired no peculiar priv-jfge. priv-jfge. They were consciously planning "'ftt men of every class should be free "nd America a place to which men out of every nation might resort who Wished to share with them the rights and privileges of free men. And we 'ake our cue from them do we not? 'e intend what they intended. . Our Purpose in War. "We here in America believe our f'articipation in this present war to be "nl.v the fruitage of what they planted. fJur case differs from theirs only in "is, that it is our inestimable privilege ,0 concert with men out of every nation na-tion what shall make not only the liberties of America secure, but the. liberties of every other people as well, 'e are happy in the thought that we 8re permitted to do what they would j'ave done had they been In our place. Ihere must now be settled once for a" what was settled for America in the great age upon whose inspiration inspira-tion we draw today. This is surely a lilting place from which calmly to look out upon our task, that we may fortify our spirits for its accomplishment. accomplish-ment. And this is the appropriate place from which to avow, alike to the friends who look on and to the friends Willi whom we have the happiness to he associated in action, the faith and purpose with which we act. The Opposing Forces. "'This, then, is our conception of the great struggle jn which we are engaged. en-gaged. The plot is written plain upon every scene and every act of the supreme su-preme tragedy. On the other hand stand the peoples of the worlij not only the peoples actually engaged, but many others also who suffer under mastery, but cannot act ; peoples of many races and in every part of the world the people of stricken Russia j still, among the rest, though they are for the moment unorganized and helpless. help-less. Opposed to them, masters of many armies, stand an isolated, friendless friend-less group of governments who speak I no common purpose but only selfish ambitions of their own, by which none lean profit but themselves, and whose j peoples are fuel in their hands: gov-einments gov-einments which fear their people and yet are for the time their sovereign lords, making every choice for them and disposing of their lives and fortunes for-tunes as they will, as well as of the lives and fortunes of every people who fall under their power governments govern-ments clothed with the strange trappings trap-pings and authority of an age that is altogether alien and hostile to our own. The past and the present are in deadly grapple and the peoples of the world are being done to death between them. Settlement Must Be Final. "There can be Rut one issue. The settlement must be final. There can he no compromise. No half-way decision de-cision would be tolerable. No halfway half-way decision is conceivable. These are the ends for which the associated peoples peo-ples of the world are fighting and which must he conceded them before there can he peace. "1 The destruction of every arbitrary arbi-trary power anywhere that can separately, sep-arately, secretly, and of Its single choice, disturb the peace of the world: or. if it can not he presently destroyed, at the least its reduction tu virtual impotence. im-potence. "2 The settlement of every question, whether of territory, of sovereignty, of economic arrangement, or of political polit-ical relationship, upon the basis of the free acceptance of that settlement by the people immediately concerned, and not upon the basis of the material interest in-terest or advantage of any other nation na-tion or people which may desire a different dif-ferent settlement for the sake of its own exterior influence or mastery. Consent of the Governed. "3 The consent of all nations to be governed in their conduct towards each other by the same principles of honor and of respect for the common law of civilized society that govern the individual indi-vidual citizens of all modern states in their relations with one another; to the end that all promises and covenants cove-nants may be sacredly observed, no private plots or conspiracies hatched, no selfish injuries wrought with impunity, im-punity, and a mutual trust established upon the handsome foundation of a mutual respect for right. "4 The establishment of an organization organ-ization of peace, which shall make it certain that the combined power of the nations will check every invasion of right and serve to make peace and justice the more secure by affording a definite tribunal of opinion, to which all must submit and by which every international readjustment that cannot be amicably agreed upon by the peoples' peo-ples' directly concerned shall be sanctioned. sanc-tioned. Great Objects Condensed. "These great objects can be put into a single sentence. What we seek is the reign of law, based upon the consent con-sent of the governed and sustained by the organized opinion of mankind. "These great ends can not be achieved by debating and seeking to reconcile and accommodate what statesmen may wish, with their projects proj-ects for balances of power and of national na-tional opportunity. They can be realized real-ized only by the determination of what the thinking peoples of the world desire, de-sire, with their longing hope for justice jus-tice and for social freedom and opportunity. op-portunity. "I can fancy that the air of this place carries the accents of such principles prin-ciples with a peculiar kindness. Here were started forces which the great nation .against which they were primarily pri-marily directed at first regarded as a revolt against its rightful authority, but which it has long since seen to have been a step in the liberation of its own people as well as of the peoples, peo-ples, of the United States, and I stand here now to speak speak proudly, and with confident hope of the spread of this revolt, this liberation, to the great stage of the world itself! The blinded rulers of Prussia have roused forces they knew little of forces which, once roused, can never be crushed to earth again ; for they have at their heart an inspiration and a purpose which are deathless and of the very stuff of triumph tri-umph !" Thought a Linen One Better. Mr. Bacon I don't like those paper pa-per napkins, dear. Mrs. Bacon Why don't you like tlM.Mll ? "Well, you know very well, dear, that it doesn't look very high-toned for lite to eat with a paper napkin tucked up under my chin." |