PRESIDENT’S LAMON.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXXIX, Issue 3871, 6 March 1915, Page 8

PRESIDENT’S LAMON.

AMERICA’S STRAIGHT TAIJL

VALUE OF BRITISH FRIEND - SHIP.

Robert Sloss, formerly one of tie editors of the popular Appleton c Magazine, of New York, writes In tHo London ‘‘Daily Express”: “Weil, he has certainly handed as a lemon,” said the American reporr-:?' sadly. “1 see you are unfamiliar -with that expressive Americanism, ’’ ho proceeded to explain. “It is derived from an ancient practical joke once prevn lent in the States. Formerly our ‘thriving west cities,’ when t-Ls thousand or so inhabitants wore \vouu to gather in the public wpnaxo and listen to the local brass band discoursing patriotic airs, it was tho favoriv amusement of -uri regenerate youth t:> hold out, in the midst of some soul: i passage, a lemon prominently to tie view of tjie performers. “As no player on the fin to, cornet, tuba, or the like can proper ] pucker his iips at such a sight, the result was always a somewhat painful silence. And now, just an v/o a.e ail blowing valiantly on our wind in strumeuts in a perfectly close Lannor.y about the Anglo-American unde - standing, President Wilson, eelobrat- . tho Hundred Years’ Peace by Lae - :ng us a lemon. ••'I say ‘us’ because, while j do :. aspire to that- high moral plane who. • America poses as the .impeoeab’o frie: • of all nations, J. do not approve of making the motto on the A meric:. .1 dollar to read, -In God Yve Trust —A" Others Cash-.’’ In other words, I long to that growing group of Arm-: - can’s who know on which eido the,: bread is buttered, and who rear that it is not to our interest-—you put it purely as a pocket interest vou choose—to lose the friesSjclur the British people. “BIG BUSINESS.’ “I dont know whether Preric . " Wilson real’y belongs to gror not, but I do know that lie is _ irig the surest way about- losing it sending along a Note that, begins w: * protestations of "the niort frient spirit,’ and ends with a threat t- v if American Big Business sbould thi: it is losing any more money we going to blame it- on you. “You don’t have to tell tno Arccan man in the street, after all : recent practice in reading Whr-: papers and Yeiow-booJ-:.>, that business depression referred to the Note is not due to the things c<-ex-plained of. and our press lias g;y-: vent io considerable surprise t'r. .' President Wilson should r.-ret-'-.cd T it is. “You don’t have to tell the A in-:-can man in the street either tnat didn't exert the ‘pressure’ which t'rPresident alleges. That press-"-• comes plain!-- enough from the er-p per. oil, meat,. and to.-cat ah ing d f nressod, lias been ur'-nt-ly «>: merited by the war. W;..-,t they ; kicking about is that t.-.cy are he::,: prevented from having t;.- ~ .;*> e .*.• g j to he any trouble- over ad tins —11 : no other reason than that FresKi--: for trouble, and probably the mo. agile in side-stc-pping it. v. .ten lie- mj it. 111 then elegant and Hide fin:' j language of diplomacy ‘the difference j will be composed to the entire sum j faction of both Governments.’ . will be buried, and its epitaph wit both peoples will be 'Gone, but nt forgotten.’ “A pretty sour lemon that I si.or, - say. Unless " and the America reporter hesitated—“well, unless or Government- take what you call strong leading line. And, unless I : very much mistake, that is just whi. President Wilson is hoping they w. do. At any rate, that, is the me. charitable view to take of his cor

nection with thus protest. THE TRUE POLICY. "The voters who put- Lirn -in 1: ■' White House have not forgotten he went there personally pledged 1- * prevent Big Business from dictating the policy of the Government, ar - that he promised solemnly to develop a national policy that should bett' - accord with the wishes of tho Am--riean people iii that- respect than c d the policy of the party which he din-' placed. "He knows well enough, that it u not pressure from the American people that forced this protest on ire hands. And if it- is conceivable that he did not- have the political 'nerve’ to tell the business interests which at"« back of it how weak and unwarranted and unstatesmanlike it- is, then it- u also conceivable that he is hoping tint this British Government will sufficiently indicate this view in iheir :~

ply, so that he can pass it on to tho people as a strong indication of Ik ,/ foolish it is for the United States to play fast and loose with a Power up:*-, whose firm friendship the smoot-hn of our future foreign relations with other Powers —to say nothing of econmic fut-u re —-depends.

"At least," ne concluded, “that seems to me to oe about the -only wi.y left- to President Wilson to get that, lemon out of sight rapidly, so ti.. the band can play on."