PREFACE

This is one of the best books that has appeared about the war. It

shows conclusively why the United States must put this war through to

a finish, and why every good American and every believer in liberty

and civilization must be heart and soul against Germany. The fact that

Mr. Kahn himself is of German origin emphasizes the contention which

every good American should make, namely, that the Americans who are in

whole or in part of German blood should eagerly take the front places

in this war for Americanism against the attempt of the Prussianized

Germany of the Hohenzollerns to establish a world tyranny.

Not only is the book an admirable plea for Americanism and for putting

the war through, but it is also a no less admirable plea for treating

our internal affairs on the basis of common sense and high idealism. I

should like to see the book circulated throughout the United States as

a tract on Sound Americanism. The last two chapters, on "Frenzied

Liberty" and "The Myth of a 'Rich Man's War,'" should be called to the

especial attention of the persons who, not daring to be openly

treasonable, try to serve Germany by advancing the cause of Bolshevism

in this country, and by downright and shameless perversion of the

truth as to the part played by the men of means in this war. The

chapter on "Frenzied Liberty" is an acute and fearless exposition of

the damage done to liberty by the men here who are trying to play the

part of the Russian Bolshevists, by upsetting order and civilization

in this country. One of the most remarkable, and also one of the most

sinister, of Germany's extraordinary successes has been the way she

has used the forces of disorder in other countries to paralyze the

cause of liberty. She herself is the embodiment of order imposed by an

iron militaristic autocracy from above on the people beneath. She is

the embodiment of that species of order which is the antithesis of

liberty. She personifies it now exactly as the Russian Czars did in

the middle of the last century, only with infinitely greater

efficiency. But her feeling even for order is conditioned by her

unyielding determination that the Germans shall lord over and shall

exploit the rest of the world.

In itself this feeling of intense nationalism is a fine thing, and we

would admire it if it had not been perverted into an assault on all

the rest of mankind, and especially on liberty-loving civilized

mankind. There is in Germany an immense sense of solidarity, which

makes the German Socialist, the German middle-class capitalist, and

the German junker work side by side with enthusiasm for the

subjugation and exploitation of all the Allied countries. The

Socialists have cynically announced that their job is to encourage

pacifism in other countries, and thereby to lessen the resistance of

these countries to German militarism. The Socialists have worked for

the conquest of other countries in the interest of German capitalism,

because they feel they will get some share in the profit, and because

they have been schooled, in common with the rest of their country, to

a brutal cynicism concerning the wrongs and sufferings of other

countries, so long as Germans profit by them. In consequence the

German Government, aided by the German Socialists, has encouraged in

every way the forces of disorder in every hostile country--the

Socialists in France, the "independent" Labour men in England, the

Bolshevists in Russia, the Sinn Feiners in Ireland, the Reds in

Finland, and the most fanatical murderers of Christians in Turkey. It

is for this reason that Germany tries to use the I.W.W. in the United

States, and plays on the foolish American politicians who have

believed that the Russian Bolshevists would be able to infect Germany

with their revolt, or who have believed that they by fine words could

arouse the spirit of German revolt and separate the German people from

the German Government--a thing which can only be done by the breakdown

of Germany's military strength.

Germany has no fears as to her own ability to suppress disorder. The

minute she conquers a Russian province she puts down disorder with an

iron hand. But in the Ukraine, in Great Russia and in Finland she

encourages the party of the Reds, she encourages the Bolshevists; and

the poor, ignorant, gullible peasants follow the lead of the men,

however criminal--sometimes rather more lunatic than criminal--who

would throw them under Germany's feet. The American Bolshevists would

tear America to pieces, exactly as Russia has been torn.

Mr. Kahn's words of warning against them have a special value, because

he is as far as the poles from those foolish Bourbons in our political

and industrial life who, by their persistence in a course of mere

stupid inertia and inaction, would invite the very revolutionary

movements they dread. Mr. Kahn has his face set toward the light. He

realizes the change that must come in industry and in farm life in all

countries. He is anxious to join in every effort, no matter how

radical--provided only it is a sane effort, offering reasonable chance

of success--for securing better conditions for the wage worker and the

farmer in this country. He realizes that failure to strive in a

serious and efficient manner for this end is to play into the hands of

the Bolshevists; and he also realizes that the Bolshevists are, in the

last resort, the very worst enemies of every effort to make social and

industrial conditions better for the wage worker and soil toiler,

because Bolshevism would invite the most violent reaction. As for the

"Myth of a Rich Man's War," Mr. Kahn shows conclusively that in no

other country has the wealthy class been forced to bear as great a

part of the burden in this war as here in the United States.

As a matter of fact, the whole talk of "profiteering" as an element in

bringing on or supporting the war is due either to folly or else to

deliberate pacifist and pro-German propaganda. There was an immense

amount of profiteering in this country during the two and a half years

of our ignoble neutrality between right and wrong. The pacifists and

pro-Germans played the game of the profiteers, and worked hand in hand

with them to keep this country at peace, and therefore to continue the

opportunity for profiteering. Ninety per cent. of the profiteering

stopped just as soon as we went to war. Most of the well-to-do men of

this country, of the men who are free from the menace of immediate

want and who have given their sons a good education, have been the

very men whose sons have freely and eagerly gone to the war. There is

an occasional wealthy man, the owner of a set of newspapers, or an

automobile factory, or something of the kind, who improperly succeeds

in getting his son excused from service, on the plea that he is needed

in the business. But usually it will be found that this man is himself

an upholder of pacifism, or of some of the movements of the very

people who have announced that they are against the war. In this

country the real upholders of the war are the men who themselves have

shown, or whose sons have shown, that they were willing to pay with

their bodies for the principles they advocated.

Mr. Kahn's rebuke to those noxious demagogues who try to aid Germany

and hurt America by prattling about this being "a rich man's war" is

rendered all the stronger because he insists on heavy progressive

taxation of incomes and profits for war purposes. This taxation should

go up to, but under no circumstances go in the slightest degree

beyond, the line at which it interferes with or limits production or

prevents the fullest development of our business resources during the

war. We need to speed up production to the very top limit. While this

war lasts we have a right to demand of every man, whether capitalist,

or labourer, or farmer, that his prime effort and motive be to win the

war, for this is the people's war, America's war--the war of all of

us. The Government should see that every man does his full part.

Therefore it should see that the rich man does his full part.

Therefore, not merely in his interest but in the national interest, it

should also see that no frantic extremist, under the plea of forcing

the rich man to do his full part, renders it impossible for him to

do anything at all. So to act would bring lasting damage to the

community, and, whether intentionally or unintentionally, would create

a condition which would bring the war to a standstill.

This is a capital study of the problems which are of vital interest

at this moment to all Americans who love their country, and who wish

while serving their country also to serve all the free nations of

civilized mankind.