The confederation of the North-American Athletics include only a small portion of the Germans in this country. If it should accept the most absurd and furious resolutions unanimously nobody could justly hold the vast majority of the German-Americans responsible for such actions, because the confederation comprises but a small minority.

However, the Athletic Union is considered the chief representative of the German-Americans. This is especially true in regard to the athletic clubs in Chicago, which are highly esteemed in general. Even the English-American looked forward to this conference with great tension, because the conference took place in Chicago, where the anarchists not only committed one of their most atrocious crimes, but where they also received the most severe punishment. Naturally, a discussion of this problem was anticipated.

If the friends of the anarchists had succeeded in preventing a definite, clear cut stand against anarchism during the conference, German-Americans, on the whole, would have been blamed for it. The influence and prestige of the Germans, which had been seriously curtailed by the cruel actions of the anarchists two years ago, and by the dastardly behavior of the still unpunished ones, would have been still more diminished. The degree of influence and prestige recaptured by the vast majority of German-Americans during the last two years by dignified and excellent behavior, would have been lost again, and lost for a long time.

The resolution, which was finally unanimously accepted by the conference, contains the following statements:

"The conference is of the opinion that all necessary reforms can be achieved by legal and peaceful methods in a republic. The conference condemns very definitely as criminal every appeal to use force, to attempt changes and revolutions by brutality, as has happened in this free republic. We reject with indignation 3the reproach of being susceptible to anarchist ideas. We are for law and order, and these we will defend at all times."