The United States Since the Civil War

by Charles Ramsdell Lingley

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE

The opposition to the Wilson foreign policy is best expressed in Theodore Roosevelt, Fear God and Take Your Own Part (1916). Roosevelt's condonation of the invasion of Belgium is in The Outlook (Sept., 1914), "The World War." Wilson's changing attitude toward the war is explained in A.M. Low, Woodrow Wilson, an Interpretation (1918), but is best followed in his addresses and messages. The early stages of the war and American interest in it are described in Ogg; The American Year Book; J.B. McMaster, The United States in the World War (1918); J.W. Gerard, My Four Years in Germany (1918), superficial but interesting and written by the American Ambassador; Brand Whitlock, Belgium (2 vols., 1919), verbose, but well written by the United States minister to Belgium; Dodd, already mentioned; J.S. Bassett, Our War with Germany (1919), written in excellent spirit. The President's address calling for a declaration of war is contained in the various editions of his addresses, and in War Information Series, No. 1, "The War Message and Pacts Behind It," published by the Committee on Public Information.

The subject of federal agencies for the prosecution of the war is fully discussed in W.F. Willoughby, Government Organization in War Time and After (1919); there is no adequate account of the Committee on Public Information. On the government and the railroads, consult F.H. Dixon in Quarterly Journal of Economics (Aug., 1919), "Federal Operation of Railroads during the War." E.L. Bogart, Direct and Indirect Costs of the Great World War (1918), is useful.

Combat operations are described in the general histories of the war already mentioned, and in "Report of General Pershing" in War Department, Annual Report, 1918.

Accounts of the Peace Conference, the Treaty and the League of Nations labor under the attempt to prove President Wilson right or wrong, in addition to such insurmountable difficulties as lack of information and perspective. J.S. Bassett, Our War with Germany (1919), has some temperate chapters; Dodd is friendly to Wilson, but not offensively partisan; R.S. Baker, What Wilson did at Paris (1919) is readable; J.M. Keynes, The Economic Consequences of the Peace (1920), is interesting and designed to prove a point; see also C.H. Haskins and R.H. Lord, Some Problems of the Peace Conference (1920); the account in the American Year Book for 1919 lacks something of its usual non-partisan balance. On the League of Nations a thorough study is S.P.H. Duggan, The League of Nations (1919). Material opposing the treaty may be found in The New Republic, The Nation, and the North American Review; favorable to it is the editorial page of the New York Times, whose columns contain the best day-to-day accounts of the debates in the Senate.

A full bibliography is A.E. McKinley (ed.), Collected Materials for the
Study of the War (1918).

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[1] As a result of this incident the Senate decided to limit somewhat its rule allowing unlimited debate. Under the "closure" rule adopted March 8, 1917, a two-thirds majority may limit discussion on any measure to one hour for each member.

[2] War was declared against Austria on December 7, 1917. The United States was followed immediately by Cuba and Panama, and before the close of the year by Siam, Liberia, China and Brazil. Many other Central and South American states severed relations with Germany and before the close of the struggle several of them declared war.

[3] The purpose and effect of Wilson's patient foreign policy were briefly expressed by Joseph H. Choate, a Republican advocate of early entry into the war, in a speech in New York on April 25, 1917. Choate declared that a declaration of war after the sinking of the Lusitania would have resulted in a divided country and remarked: "But we now see what the President was waiting for and how wisely he waited. He was waiting to see how fast and how far the American people would keep pace with him and stand up for any action that he proposed."

[4] An official of the War Department estimated that the lumber used in the sixteen cantonments if made into sidewalks would go four times around the world.

[5] Roumania had entered the conflict in August, 1916, but had been immediately overrun, her capital Bucharest taken in December, and that country rendered no longer important before the entrance of America.

[6] The earlier draft law resulted in about 11,000,000 registrants. The draft ages were 21-30 years. Under the later law the ages were 18-45.

The so-called Training Detachments had already been established, providing for the training of mechanics, carpenters, electricians, telegraphers, and other necessary skilled artisans at a number of colleges and scientific institutions.

Almost coincidently with the expansion of the army came an epidemic of the Spanish influenza. Hitherto the health of the army had been extraordinarily good, but the epidemic was so widespread and so malignant in its attack that during eight weeks there were more than twice as many deaths as in the entire army for the year preceding.

[7] By November 11, 26,059 prisoners and 847 guns had been captured and at one point near Sedan the American advance had covered twenty-five miles. 1,200,000 American troops had been engaged and the weight of the ammunition fired was greater than that used by the Union armies during the entire Civil War. In November the American army held twenty-two per cent. of the western front. The losses of the A.E.F. during the entire period of its activities up to November 18, 1918, were by death 53,160; the wounded numbered 179,625.

[8] An armistice had been signed with Turkey on October 31, and with Austria on November 4.

[9] Something little short of a revolution in American international relations was taking place when the President of the United States received in Paris lists of callers such as that mentioned in the newspapers of May 17, 1919:

Prince Charron of the Siamese delegation; Dr. Markoff, of the Carpatho-Russian Committee; M. Ollivier, President of the French National Union of Railwayman; M. Jacob, a representative of the Celtic Circle of Paris; Messrs. Bureo and Jacob of the Uruguyan delegation; Turkhan Pasha, the Albanian leader; Enrique Villegas, former Foreign Minister of Chile; Foreign Minister Benez and M. Kramer, of the Czecho-slovak delegation, to discuss the question of Silesia and Teschen; Deputy Damour, concerning the American commemorative statue to be erected in the Gironde River; a delegation from the Parliament of Kuban, Northern Caucasus; the Archbishop of Trebizond, Joseph Reinach, the French historian, and Governor Richard L. Manning of South Carolina.

[10] The Secretary of War estimated the total of all these groups at 13,650.000

[11] The Eighteenth Amendment is as follows: Section 1. After one year from the ratification of this article the manufacture, sale, or transportation of intoxicating liquors within, the importation thereof into, or the exportation thereof from the United States and all territory subject to the jurisdiction thereof for beverage purposes is hereby prohibited.

Section 2. The Congress and the several states shall have concurrent power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

Section 3. This article shall be inoperative unless it shall have been ratified as an amendment to the Constitution by the legislatures of the several states, as provided in the Constitution, within seven years from the date of the submission hereof to the states by the Congress.

[12] As the Congress that which had been elected in 1918, the Senate was controlled by the Republicans.