[Illustration]
_REPRISALS_
_The Only Answer_
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The important announcement that the City will be warned in future when
an air raid is threatened was made on Sunday by the Lord Mayor, at a
meeting at the London Opera House, called to demand reprisals for air
raids. A resolution calling on the Government to undertake air reprisals
on German towns and cities was passed, amidst great cheering.
_London, June 19, 1917._
[Illustration]
_A DISGUISE THAT WAS TOO THIN_
_Bethmann-Hollweg: "That Socialist's disguise is no good, All Highest.
Let's try another clerical peace trick."_
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All over the world attempts were made to create distrust of German
Social Democracy. We were described as being really war agitators,
obedient servants of German Imperialism. The memorandum on our peace
work which we delivered at Stockholm will, we hope, destroy many
misunderstandings and many prejudices which are based on them.
Of course the misstatements and slanders have already begun again.
HERR SCHEIDEMANN,
_Stockholm, June 29, 1917._
[Illustration]
_Dr. Michaelis: "The concentration of the Russian Army compelled Germany
to seize the sword. There was no choice left to us."_
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We must keep before our eyes daily the events of three years ago, which
are fixed in history and show that we were forced into war by Russia's
secret mobilization, which was the great danger for Germany. To have
participated in a conference while the Russian mobilization proceeded
would have been political suicide.
HERR MICHAELIS,
_Berlin, July 27, 1917._
[Illustration]
_THE NEW ST. GEORGE_
_"Give us the means and we will slay this German dragon that threatens
our towns, our women, and children."_
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Southend was bombed by about a dozen German aeroplanes this evening
while the place was full of holiday-makers. The attack lasted a quarter
of an hour and resulted in the death of twenty-three people, the
majority of whom were women and children. About forty people were
injured. One of the victims was a little girl, who was terribly mangled,
and another was a woman, who was also badly mutilated.
_Times, August 17, 1917._
[Illustration]
_GERMAN "MILITARIST" SOCIALISM_
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Does not the cartoonist Raemaekers fail in this cartoon? The artist
Raemaekers is inspired--here as always. But does the cartoonist succeed
this time in burning the right idea, his idea, into the reader's brain?
Here is the real Kaiser and here are real German workingmen. It is they
who are carrying the burden of Kaiserism. All this is convincing. But do
not other workingmen in other countries carry burdens?
The failure is only at first glance. Raemaekers is not concerned to
reproduce the conventional cartoon of workingmen carrying a burden of
other classes on their shoulders. The point lies not in the burden, but
in the nature of the burden, the contrast, so perfectly portrayed,
between the character of the Kaiser and the characters of his proud and
willing slaves. The Kaiser, crafty and contemptuous, but neither so
ignorant nor so stupid as to be wholly unconscious of the foolish and
contemptible position he occupies! The workingmen evidently once strong,
intelligent and enthusiastic, though now blinded and crippled, are
utterly unconscious of what they are doing. Carrying the heavy burden of
Kaiserism seems no more to them than their day's work.
You see Raemaekers knows both Kaiser and workingmen, and so will have
nothing to do with the conventional portraits of either. The Kaiser is
neither a beast nor a fool--however foolish his position may be. The
workingmen are neither labor heroes ready to revolt, nor conscious and
beaten serfs.