"AND THUS THE WAR COMES TO AN END" MON ONDAY, November 11, 1918, President Woodrow Wilson announced to the world, "And thus the war comes to an end." He added in a procla mation: "My fellow countrymen: The armistice was signed this morning. Everything for which America fought has been accomplished. It will now be our fortunate duty to assist by example, by sober, friendly counsel and by material aid in the establishment of just democracy throughout the world." And why did we go to war with Germany: Because she sank our ships, murdered our citizens, attempted to give us orders limiting our travel on the high seas and tried to stir up other countries against us. The "high spots" of the armistice terms as President Wilson read them to Congress are as follows: The naval terms provide for the surrender of all undersea craft, 250 in all, perhaps, 50 destroyers, 6 battle cruisers, 10 battleships, 8 light cruisers and other miscellaneous ships. All Allied vessels in German hands are to be surrendered and Germany is to notify neutrals that they are free to trade at once on the seas with the Allied countries. Among the financial terms included are restitution for damage done by the German armies: restitution of the cash taken from the National Bank of Belgium and return of gold taken from Russia and Rumania. The military terms include the surrender of 5,000 guns, half field and half light artillery: 25,000 machine guns, 3,000 flame throwers and 1,700 airplanes. The surrender of 5,000 locomotives, 150,000 wagons or railway cars, 5,000 motor lorries, the railways of Alsace-Lorraine for use by the Allies and stores of coal and iron also are included. The immediate repatriation of all Allied and American prisoners without reciprocal action by the Allies also is included. German troops are to retire at once from any territory held by Russia, Rumania and Turkey before the war. The Allied forces are to have access to the evacuated territory either through Dantzig or by the River Vistula. German forces in East Africa may evacuate instead of surrendering. German troops which have not left the invaded territories, which specifically include Alsace-Lorraine within 14 days become prisoners of war. The repatriation within 14 days of the thousands of unfortunate civilians deported from France and Belgium also is required. Freedom of access to the Baltic Sea with power to occupy German forts in the Kattegat is another provision. The Germans also must reveal location of mines, poisoned wells and like agencies of destruction and the Allied blockade is to remain unchanged during the period of armistice. All ports on the Black Sea occupied by Germans are to be surrendered and the Russian war vessels recently taken by the German naval forces also are to be surrendered to the Allies. The American Army had reached a total strength of 3,764,677 men when hostilities ceased, according to official figures at the War Department. Of that number 2,200,000 had been sent to France, Italy or Russia. The remainder were under arms in camps in this country. America's casualties in the war made public up to the hour of the cessation of hostilities totaled 69,420. Of these 12,460 were killed in action. Thousands more have been killed, wounded or captured and it probably will be many weeks before the last list is compiled. It is generally believed that America's casualties will reach 100,000. As this volume goes to press, the American casualties reach 260,000, only 100,000 having been reported. The London Express estimates the casualties of European nations during the war as follows: Germany, 6,900,000; Austria, 4,500,000; France, 4,000,000; Britain, 2,900,000; Turkey, 750,000; Belgium, 350,000; Rumania, 200,000; Bulgaria, 200,000. With the unestimated casualties of Russia and others not included in the above list the Express estimates the total casualties of the war at 26,000,000 men. 11th Month, 11th day, 11 o'clock A. M., 1918-Monday. America, free from the ravages of war, unscathed by the destructive hand of the Hun hordes, looked across the seas to find the battlefields of France and Belgium silent for the first time in four years. Where, for 51 months, giant guns, poisonous gases, and bursting bombs had wrought destruction, there was quiet. At the close of the unprecedented strife Germany stood alone before the wrath of 22 civilized nations. Those 22 were in arms, five others had severed relations with her government and two others-Russia and Rumania-she had embittered by enforcement of a vicious peace. Her enemies had called to the colors over twenty-three million men during the conflict, determined to crush forever the power that had upset the peace of the world. Her Allies, Bulgaria, Turkey and Austria-Hungary, had left her when her strength began to weaken and finally her own people, seeing at last the disaster the treacherous emperor and war lord had brought upon them, overthrew his reign and he has fled the country. In the kaleidoscopic events of the four years of war twenty-four great nations participated in the fighting. Over thirty-three million men were under arms. More than sixteen million men were killed, wounded, or gassed. More than one hundred billions of dollars was consumed in the struggle. It resulted in revolutions in Russia, Austria-Hungary, and Germany. Five monarchs and heirs were driven from the throne. The military dynasties of the Romanoffs of Russia, the Hohenzollerns of Germany, the Hapsburg of Austria, and King Ferdinand, and his son of Bulgaria tottered and fell. The pro-German King Constantine of Greece fled before the wrath of his people. Emperor Charles of Austria-Hungary sees his dual empire a heap of ruins, and Germany, revolting, is proclaiming republics within its borders. It was America's privilege to turn the tide of the war. Her entrance as a belligerent in April, 1917, has been followed by the shipment of over 2,200,000 Yank fighters to Europe, loaning of over $7,500,000,000 to her associates in the war and expenditure of over $20,500,000,000 during her nineteen months in the fight. The French bill against the Hun is 68 billions of dollars. The struggle cost the Allies 200 billions; the Huns 64 billions of dollars. The Federal Reserve Board estimates that upward of two hundred billion dollars was spent on the world war. That is seven times the value of all the gold and silver produced from the beginning of the world and twenty-five times the total of all the paper money ever issued by all nations. A dramatic scene, rendered doubly impressive by the simplicity of its setting, was that of this meeting, one of the greatest events in the world's history, between Marshal Foch and his associates and the German bearers of the white flag, as described by the Associated Press. The meeting took place in a railroad car in which the commander-in-chief of the Allied forces had his headquarters. After verification of the Germans' credentials, Marshal Foch read the terms "in loud voice, dwelling upon each word." It does one's heart good to picture Foch "telling it" to the Germans. It recalls the man in the story who exclaimed: "I'm not arguing with you; I'm telling you." The time for argument with the enemy had passed. Foch was now telling them. And then came the German request for a suspension of hostilities "in the interests of humanity." The nation that had tortured and butchered humanity for the last four years, had bombed hospitals and schools, sunk hospital ships, shot helpless civilians, maimed prisoners, committed every atrocity that could be conceived by the mind of man, begged us to stop a fair, stand-up fight with her soldiers "in the interests of humanity" until she could consider the peace terms. Rejection or evasion meant invasion. The forces of civilization awaited the issue with supreme confidence knowing their war is won. And now for the tremendous part which Pittsburgh community had in the World's War. Some believe, and are able to back their beliefs with figures, that without Pittsburgh the war could not have been won, at all events not so promptly. In due course of time the figures will be compiled with reference to the vast values of steel products which went to supply the fighting armies at the front. There are experts who estimate the quantity of war material, strictly speaking, which was furnished by the Pittsburgh district as high as 40 per cent of the total provided by the entire country. In the matter of financial credits it is believed Pittsburgh ranks second only to New York. In banking credits, it is known now that she is second only to that city. Her quotas of the four loans were enormously oversubscribed in each instance. The total subscribed was $492,382,000, divided as follows: First loan, $84,258,000; second, $148,030,000; third, $95,094,000; fourth, $177,000,000. The district is also believed to be the second in the country in the amount of income tax levied and paid. Claims are made that the records of military operations will show Pennsylvania the first state in the Union in the number of her soldier sons who participated in actual fighting. It is said that the completed casualty lists will show the state to have lost in killed and wounded more men than the entire South. In this proud record the Pittsburgh district achieved a high place. The number of sons of Allegheny county who actually entered the service is estimated reliably as being near 60,000. Few, if any, counties in the country exceeded this. Pennsylvania furnished 330,000 soldiers, 250,000 by the draft, 30,000 by the Guard, and 50,000 volunteers. In Red Cross work, Y. M. C. A., and similar activities an enormous amount of work has been done. Almost everybody has had some part in this as well as in subscribing for Liberty bonds and buying War Savings Stamps. It is believed that when the statistical evidence of all this work has been compiled, this city, county and district will take a rank second to that of no other community in the country. More than 47,000,000 American people subscribed to the American Red Cross within a period of 11 months, a total aggregating $313,000,000 in money, and contributed manufactured goods of an estimated value of approximately $44,000,000. The losses mentioned above do not include the losses of non-combatants and property destroyed. The price which the world has paid for peace is appalling, regardless of the fact that the account is yet far from closed. Not until centuries hence will the books of debit and credit be balanced on this great tragedy, in which blood and money have been poured out as never before in all the history of mankind. The debit side of the account we think we know well. Let us turn to the credit side for a moment's consolation; what is it that we there find? Dynasties have been wiped out or have disintegrated. The Romanoffs, the Hohenzollerns, the Hapsburgs are put down, with their arrogance and oppression. Those monarchical idiots by divine right of Bulgaria and Greece have disappeared. Thrones and their heirs have fallen. All over the earth peoples are rising to the blessings of self-government. Mankind never before had so vivid a realization of the preciousness of justice and liberty. New foundation stones have been mined, chiseled and laid for constructive advance in our material civilization. But all these things, desirable as they are, are not worth the price this world has paid for peace. Let us seek something more. Let us transform supreme evil to supreme good, as "God maketh the wrath of man to praise Him," by using the present unprecedented state of world affairs as a divinely appointed opportunity to inaugurate the reign of the brotherhood of man. The right, as it affects all, must prevail. It must master men who have hitherto set it at naught. It must level greed and privilege and caste as it has leveled thrones and dynasties. Every noble youth who died in this Armageddon of the nations died for liberty, fraternity, equality. That is the great prize that has been paid for with the lives of the millions of the dead and the billions of money of the living. Let us write into the world history wherein men's deeds of hate, greed and injustice "tread upon one another's feet, so fast they follow," an epoch of brotherly love in which the first concern shall always be for those who have suffered most and enjoyed least. |