The Bush Temple presented a rare picture last night. The building was filled to capacity. Long before the meeting was to start, every available seat was taken, so that the police had to close the doors at half-past seven. The stage presented an attractive picture, with American, German, and Irish flags and beautiful floral decorations. Shortly after eight o'clock, Ballmann's orchestra started the meeting with the martial strains of "Unter dem Doppeladler" (Under the Double Eagle, Austrian March), which immediately created the right atmosphere for this kind of meeting. The Vereine Harmonie, Fidelia, Harugari Saengerbund, Schweizer Maennerchor and Mozart, which comprise the Vereinigte Maennerchoere (United Male Choruses) were nearly all represented. A snappy selection called "Sonntag ist's," conducted by Henry von Oppen, earned so much applause that the singers had to give an encore.

Mr. Ferdinand Walther, president of the Chicago branch of the Deutscher Nationalbund, opened the meeting with a few appropriate words, and introduced 2the chairman, Mr. James T. Clarke.

"It is a great honor for me to be your chairman," said Mr. Clarke, "because I'm an Irishman. As such, I and all my compatriots are greatly indebted to the Germans, because only on account of the German-American influence in this country has an alliance of the United States with Great Britain been prevented so far. We value the friendship of the whole world, but we do not care to ally ourselves with anybody. If the United States would pursue this policy, this meeting would not be necessary. We Irish should like nothing better than to cultivate the bonds of friendship with Germany, the land of order and discipline, and of high moral standards. It is foolish to talk of German militarism. Ladies and gentlemen, Germany knows no militarism, but only German patriotism, no matter what some fools like to call it. Militarism is known in one country only and that is England. Would it not be a grievous injustice, an irreparable mistake, if we were to provide that country with arms, munitions, and horses?

"Is it not a paradox for the chief of our nation to set aside a day of prayer 3to implore the Heavenly Father to restore peace, and afterwards to permit these peace apostles to supply a belligerent nation with the instruments of war?"

Loud applause greeted the fitting words of Mr. Clarke who, at the conclusion of his speech, introduced Judge Michael F. Girten. Mr. Girten, who spoke German, said the following:

"At a concert, if I should follow the artist's rendition of a song by reading the words from the program, and should keep on turning the pages, my neighbor would hardly be aware of it. But if the whole audience were to do the same thing, the noise would be enough to mar the performance. Meetings like this one are being held all over the country, and we hope that they create enough noise to make our fellow citizens aware that there are people who have a different conception of the war in Europe than has the Anglo-American press.

"Thanks to divine providence, we are not at war yet, although attempts have 4been made to drag us in. In that case, we should be confronted with the difficult assignment of drawing the sword against our own blood brothers.

"We love peace, and desire nothing better than to help Europe regain it. To make war, one needs soldiers, arms, and munitions. Soldiers without arms and munitions are not sufficient to conduct a war. If there are neither soldiers nor munitions, war will stop automatically. If we stop selling horses to certain nations, they cannot use their cavalry and field artillery. If we stop selling munitions, the battles will soon stop also. And, along with the miseries of war, all other ailments under which the world suffers will cease.

"In conclusion, I would like to say a few words about the German Society of Chicago. This year the facilities of the Society were heavily taxed, because it was not a "good year". During the months of August through November 1913 the Society took care of 218 families, including 600 children, and 511 single persons, while during the same period this year 301 families with 894 children, and 703 single people had to be assisted. Just imagine, ladies and gentlemen, 5what this means for the coming winter if the war should last. Until now, we haven't had any cold or bad weather. May God grant that peace will come soon, and that we will have less poverty and destitution over here."

The Judge was roundly applauded.

After the singers had sung a selection called "Zieh mit" (come along), Congressman Henry Vollmer, from Iowa, was introduced to the audience as the next speaker.

CONGRESSMAN VOLLMER'S ADDRESS

"Shakespeare had a wonderful understanding of human nature and the aspirations of the human heart. In his play "Hamlet," the king seeks refuge in prayer, as he is tortured by his conscience. He prayed, but in vain, because he did not want to give up the throne which he had unjustly usurped. On October 4 of this year, somebody else was imploring God on his knees, and with 6him were ninety million Americans praying for peace.

"Were they like that king? Were they willing only to preserve the formality, but unwilling to give up the material advantages which they had gained by their wickedness?

"Are we to pretend to God that we hate war, and at the same time make money out of the sale of war contraband?

"Can God acquit us of the crime of being accomplices to the European mass murder if we keep this horrible slaughter going?

"The fact that we are aiding only one side in this war belies our repeated assurances of being friendly to all nations. What changes has our "neutrality" undergone since the beginning of the war! There was indignation in high government circles, at the outbreak of the war, when American bankers wanted to make loans to belligerents, because the latter might have bought arms with 7that money. But we are not so scrupulous any longer. For hard cash we can supply the arms ourselves.

"We were asked to act strictly neutral, and were rapped over the knuckles like naughty children if we ever violated neutrality in our speech.

"The cutting of the German [transatlantic] cable is the only noteworthy deed of heroism of the British navy since the outbreak of the war, because now the British can lie to their hearts' content without fear of being contradicted.

"As Lincoln has said, the human mind is like a piece of blotting paper, which can absorb only a certain amount of ink and no more. We let ourselves become hypnotized, instead of fighting back. We were silent when the Allies poured their ink on the blotter in such quantities that many of our fellow citizens firmly believed the stories invented by the British. But the latter have overdone their job of pouring the black ink of calumny.

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"During the Civil War, our dear English cousins became convinced that right was on the side of the Confederacy, and that the Union armies were guilty of many atrocities, according to Professor Burgess. At that time, Lincoln sent Henry Ward Beecher to England to spread propaganda for the Northern States and convince the dear cousins of the righteous cause of the Federals. But the South had already poured a lot of ink on that blotting paper [British public opinion], and even the famed Beecher could not do anything about it, but had to leave England without fulfilling his mission. Modesty is certainly a great virtue, but I believe there if little advantage in being overly modest and permitting other people, not so constituted, to wipe their dirty boots on us. As a native, but hyphenated American, I have grown pretty tired of being a doormat for other people. Not only is my own dignity insulted, but also that of the great nation from which I came, and of which I am proud without having to renounce one iota of my Americanism.

"Nobody has the right to question our American patriotism just because we evince loyalty to our native country. Are we to be fooled by that false 9argument that America is fighting militarism? How about English militarism? Did not the British admit that their navy had to be twice as strong as that of any other two world powers combined? England could have prevented the war, because, without England, Russia never would have ventured into it. England with her trade jealousy, Russia with her desire to make Peter the Great's dream come true, Japan with her intention to convert the Pacific into a Japanese sea and to close China's open door, even to us--how glad would America be some day, if the Japanese problem ever became acute, to have a strong Germany at her side!

"If we just refrain from helping the Allies, Germany will defeat this motley gang within three months. But no matter how long the war lasts, no matter how much aid we extend to the Allies, the latter will never defeat Germany on her own soil.

"No country other than America is capable of pouring out war contraband in such large quantities. Sweden and Norway have promised not to export any 10contraband. Is the American standard of ethics lower than the Scandinavian?

"I shall propose a law which strictly prohibits any and all exports of war contraband. But if this war should last, let us at least grant the Germans the one thing upon which we always pride ourselves, and let us observe the rules of fair play even where they are concerned. Let us be honest."

Mr. Luby, who sang two Irish songs, "The Wearing of the Green" and "Mother Machree," also earned great applause.

The orchestra now played the German battle and victory hymn "Die Wacht am Rhein," which was sung by the whole audience, and which reverberated through the auditorium like a thunderbolt.

Mr. John S. Leahy, from St. Louis, was next introduced, and was greeted with hearty applause.

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"When I look at this great audience, my thoughts go back to the man without whom no meeting was held, when it came to fighting for the country which we both loved. I have in mind John Finnerty. Every thinking person in this great country will deeply regret the present war, and will eagerly look forward to the cessation of the great slaughter. If we have come together here today to protest against the export of war contraband, we can base our demand on elementary principles of international law. The request of the chief executive of our country, that we refrain from making any partisan remarks or comments with respect to the belligerents, is nothing more than a virtual observance of the neutrality law. But a neutrality declaration is of value only if we live up to it one hundred per cent.

"It serves no purpose if the action which we are condemning today is excused with the argument that the people responsible for that action did not quite know what constituted war contraband and what did not. The term is easily 12comprehensible to all who want to understand its meaning. It means the exportation of goods, the possession of which will provide an advantage to one belligerent over the other. Special circumstances may permit exceptions. Foodstuffs, which are, strictly speaking, war contraband, must necessarily be made an exception, since they are absolutely essential to sustain life.

"We are going to adopt a resolution here today which is based on a much broader principle than the mere demand to carry out our duty as a neutral power. Our resolution is based on the principle that we are all children of our Heavenly Father, believing in the brotherhood of all men. Right here and now I want to declare that I not only approve of every word in this resolution, but that I also pledge myself to live up to it strictly and unreservedly. Let us live according to the principle laid down by Jefferson: "Peace, commerce, and friendship with all nations, alliances with none." After the founders of this nation had liberated themselves from British tyranny, they invited all liberty-loving nations of the world to find an asylum on these shores. This invitation has made our nation the greatest in the world. England has forever attempted to 13break the might of this country and in doing so has stopped at nothing.

"You Germans love your native land, and if you didn't, you wouldn't be worth-while American citizens. Monarchs in general may mean little to you as American citizens, but the German emperor is one of your own, and therefore you are justified if you say, 'Hurrah for the Kaiser!'

"The Irishman, too, loves his homeland, that country of tears which he has traded for this free country. But this love for the native soil strengthens the love for the adopted country, a country where freedom reigns. But although we are neutral in spirit and action, nobody can prevent us from showing sympathy and admiration for the German people in this, their gigantic struggle, which was forced upon them.'

The noble spirit which was expressed in Mr. Leahy's address carried his listeners away. The spontaneous applause that followed grew louder as the 14well-known veteran representative and champion of everything that is German, Mr. Richard Bartholdt, stepped onto the rostrum.

It took minutes till the storm of applause died down and Mr. Bartholdt could begin his speech. The last speaker of the evening was Judge Joseph Ryan who, after a few introductory words, read the resolutions published elsewhere in this issue. Attorney O'Donnell also earned much applause with his fascinating remarks.

ON THE STREET

On the street outside, an overflow crowd listened to speeches by John H. Leahy of St. Louis, O. Doederlein, Judge Girten, Karl Huertang, and others.

Telegrams and other communications were received from United States Senators James O'Gorman of New York, Joseph Chamberlain of Oregon, Robert M. La Folette of Wisconsin, and Thomas Walsh of Montana; also from President Hexamer of the Deutsch-Americanischer Nationalbund [German-American National Alliance], 15President M. J. Ryan of the Irish National Alliance, and Professor Hugo Muensterberg of Harvard University. All telegrams and communications were read.