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The Kaiser Condemned (The Literary Digest, 1919)
1919, Aftermath (WWI), Recent Articles, The Literary Digest

The Kaiser Condemned
(The Literary Digest, 1919)

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A brief article published some six months after the Armistice in which the editors collected various opinion pieces from assorted German newspapers that clearly stated the deep hatred many Germans felt for their former king. Also mentioned was the possibility that the dethroned Kaiser could possibly stand trial before the court of Nations.

The rotten branch on the Hohenzollern tree must be broken off, so that the tree may once more bloom and flourish. William II is superficial, frivolous, vain, and and autocratic; a lover of pomp; proud of his money, void of seriousness; a petty worshiper of his own petty self; without one trait of greatness, a poseur, an actor, and worst of all for a ruler: a coward.

Click here to read what the Kaiser thought of Adolf Hitler.

The Out of Date Red Navy (The Literary Digest, 1937)
1937, Soviet History, The Literary Digest

The Out of Date Red Navy
(The Literary Digest, 1937)

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While strong on land and in the air, [the Soviet Union] is weak on the water. Most Russian ships are World War or pre-War in origin, and many of her best vessels are in the Baltic, facing Germany, or in the Far East, where Japan looms up.

The five-times divided Red Navy operates four 1911 battleships, seven cruisers, 35 destroyers, between 30 and 60 submarines, 60 gunboats, etc. Total tonnage: 200,000.


Click here to read about a Soviet submarine called the S-13…

The Expansion of the Red Army (Literary Digest, 1935)
1935, Soviet History, The Literary Digest

The Expansion of the Red Army
(Literary Digest, 1935)

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Premier Vyacheslav M. Molotov (1890 – 1986) pictured the Soviet Union as a lusty young giant strong enough to defend itself from both the East and the West in the keynote speech of the Seventh All Union Congress of Soviets, the Soviet Parliament.

In proof of this claim it was shown that in the last two years the Soviet Government had increased the strength of the Red Army from 562,000 men in 1932 to 940,000 in 1934.

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The Expansion of the Red Army (Literary Digest, 1935)
1935, Soviet History, The Literary Digest

The Expansion of the Red Army
(Literary Digest, 1935)

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Premier Vyacheslav M. Molotov (1890 – 1986) pictured the Soviet Union as a lusty young giant strong enough to defend itself from both the East and the West in the keynote speech of the Seventh All Union Congress of Soviets, the Soviet Parliament.

In proof of this claim it was shown that in the last two years the Soviet Government had increased the strength of the Red Army from 562,000 men in 1932 to 940,000 in 1934.

Stalin's Successor, Georgi Malenkov, Forced to Resign (Collier's Magazine, 1955)
1955, Collier's Magazine, Soviet History

Stalin’s Successor, Georgi Malenkov, Forced to Resign
(Collier’s Magazine, 1955)

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Crocodile tears were shed for Georgi Malenkov (1902 – 1988), a buddy of Stalin’s who was forced to resign as Soviet premier a few weeks earlier on the grounds that he had failed to produce any memorable reforms in agriculture (Nikita Khrushchev had drawn up a laundry list of additional Malenkov failings as well). The author sweetly pointed out that the Premiere was not to blame; after all,the entire system of government had been schemed by a dreamer who intended his utopia to be built in Germany or Britain.


Click here to read about Stalin’s Five Year Plan.


Read an article explaining how the Soviets used early radio…

Marriner Stoddard Eccles on Cold War Economics (The Diamondback, 1950)
1950, Recent Articles, The Cold War, The Diamondback

Marriner Stoddard Eccles on Cold War Economics
(The Diamondback, 1950)

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While serving as FDR’s Federal Reserve chairman between 1934 and 1948, Marriner Stoddard Eccles (1890 – 1977) put into play numerous policies that allowed the Federal Reserve to be sublimated to the interests of the Treasury; as a result, he is largely remembered as the patron saint of deficit spending. When he left that position during the Truman administration he went on the lecture circuit where he repeatedly condemned both the post-war economic policy as well as the Cold War policies of the State Department. The attached article summarizes a talk he gave at the University of Maryland in February of 1950.


Click here to read a Cold War editorial by Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas.

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The Policy Behind the Occupation of Germany (Yank Magazine, 1945)
1945, Aftermath (WWII), Recent Articles, Yank Magazine

The Policy Behind the Occupation of Germany
(Yank Magazine, 1945)

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In the aftermath of World War II Germany found themselves occupied by four armies; in the attached article General Eisenhower explained what the policy of the German occupation was to be:

‘His idea is that the biggest job for right now is riding herd on the rehabilitation of Germany’s political and economic structure…We are working toward a government of Germany by the Germans under the supervision of the Allied General Control Council,’ he said. The government will pass more and more under German civil control. At first we’ll have to look down the German’s necks in everything they do.’

-To read more 1940s articles about General Eisenhower, click here.

British Military Campaign Furniture (Mappin and Webb, 1915)
1915, Mappin and Webb Catalog, Recent Articles, Trench Warfare

British Military Campaign Furniture
(Mappin and Webb, 1915)

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The furniture made available for private purchase to British officers during World War One was a far cry from that which their Victorian father’s enjoyed; however, the thought of going off to war without camp furniture at all was foreign to them. The page illustrates the simple, collapsible furniture that was approved by the British War Office for use in the field.

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The Reformed South Korean Military (Pathfinder Magazine, 1952)
1952, Pathfinder Magazine, Recent Articles, The Korean War

The Reformed South Korean Military
(Pathfinder Magazine, 1952)

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By the close of 1952 it became evident to anyone who followed the events in Asia that the army of the Republic of Korea (ROK) had evolved into a competent and reliable fighting force; highly disciplined and well-lead, it was finally able to both take and hold ground while simultaneously inflicting heavy casualties on their the enemies. Gone from the mind was that South Korean army of 1950: that retreating mob that quickly surrendered their nation’s capital to the on-rushing Communists just three days into the war, leaving in their wake a trail of badly needed equipment.


After a year and a half of the most vicious combat, the ROK Army put in place the badly needed reforms that were demanded if the war was to be won. Relying on their own combat veterans as well as their United Nation’s allies, recruits were clearly schooled in what was required to survive in battle. As relieved as the many Western commanders were to see how effectively the South Koreans were able to create such a force, the liabilities of this army were still genuine and they are listed in this article as well.

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Thomas Kensett Inventor of the Tin Can | Tin Can History
1945, Click Magazine, Miscellaneous, Recent Articles

The Tin Can
(Click Magazine, 1945)

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When this small piece was published there was a lot of talk concerning the blessings of the tin can. Recycling was in its infancy on the home fronts during the Second World War and tin played a big part for both the military (you can read about that here) and civilly (the home preservation of fruits and vegetables). This short article will tell you more about this helpful invention that aided in the allied victory.

Decrease in Car Production 1930s | US Car Industry During the Great Depression 1932
1932, Pathfinder Magazine, The Great Depression

Motor City Takes It On The Chin
(Pathfinder Magazine, 1932)

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By August of 1932, the Great Depression had finally caught up with the American automobile industry:

For the first time in history auto production has fallen off. Last year’s output was 700,000 cars [fewer than the number produced just two years earlier.]


The research has shown that between the Fall of 1929 and 1932 American automobile manufacturing had decreased by 70%.

1930, Pathfinder Magazine, The Great Depression

The Most Powerful American Men During the Depression
(Pathfinder Magazine, 1930)

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In 1930 a seasoned diplomat and respected attorney by the name of James Watson Gerard (1867 – 1951) created quite a dust-up in Depression-era Washington when he took it upon himself to release his list of those Americans who he believed to have the most power on Capitol Hill. The reason his compilation turned as many heads as it did was because there wasn’t the name of a single elected official to be found on the list – not even President Hoover was mentioned (although his treasury secretary was, the millionaire industrialist Andrew Mellon).


Click here if you wish to read more on this subject and see Gerard’s list of the most powerful men in Cold War Washington.

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The Social Value of the Car (Literary Digest, 1908)
1908, Cars, Recent Articles, The Literary Digest

The Social Value of the Car
(Literary Digest, 1908)

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John Walter Edward Douglas-Scott-Montagu, 2nd Baron Montagu of Beaulieu (1866 – 1929), Member of Parliament, publisher of THE CAR and all-around advocate for the internal combustion engine gave an address in which he extolled the virtues of the automobile in societal evolution. Some of the virtues are just plain quaint while others touch upon elements of Edwardian life we would never consider. Lord Montagu innocently believed that motorists would play a part as unofficial ambassadors; traveling abroad, joyfully chatting with one and all and thereby decreasing the chances of a European war.

He would have been surprised to know what an active roll the automobile played throughout both world wars.

1915, Notes of the Royal Engineers, Trench Warfare

A British Drawing of a German Trench Latrine
(Royal Engineers, 1915)

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Attached, you will find a mechanical drawing made by the industrious souls assigned to the Royal Engineers in order to placate those busy-body brass-hats situated so far in the rear and having little better to do than wonder aloud as to how the Hun tended to deal with his bowel movements.


The author of
The Western Front Companionstyle=border:none is very informative on the topic of trench latrines and tells us that as the war progressed, latrines evolved into loitering centers for those wishing to read or enjoy some solitude. In order to remedy the situation officers decided to position their front-line trench latrines at the end of short saps, closer to the enemy; the reason being that a man was less likely to tarry and would return to duty that much quicker.

A British Drawing of a German Trench Latrine (Royal Engineers, 1915)
1915, Notes of the Royal Engineers, Trench Warfare

A British Drawing of a German Trench Latrine
(Royal Engineers, 1915)

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Attached, you will find a mechanical drawing made by the industrious souls assigned to the Royal Engineers in order to placate those busy-body brass-hats situated so far in the rear and having little better to do than wonder aloud as to how the Hun tended to deal with his bowel movements.


The author of
The Western Front Companionstyle=border:none is very informative on the topic of trench latrines and tells us that as the war progressed, latrines evolved into loitering centers for those wishing to read or enjoy some solitude. In order to remedy the situation officers decided to position their front-line trench latrines at the end of short saps, closer to the enemy; the reason being that a man was less likely to tarry and would return to duty that much quicker.

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