US Presidency
1925

In common with other nations, itis now more determined than ever to promote peace through friendlinessand good will, through mutual understandings and mutual forbearance. Wehave never practiced the policy of competitive armaments. We have recentlycommitted ourselves by covenants with the other great nations to a limitationof our sea power. As one result of this, our Navy ranks larger, in comparison, than it ever did before. Removing the burden of expense and jealousy, whichmust always accrue from a keen rivalry, is one of the most effective methodsof diminishing that unreasonable hysteria and misunderstanding which arethe most potent means of fomenting war. This policy represents a new departurein the world. It is a thought, an ideal, which has led to an entirely newline of action. It will not be easy to maintain. Some never moved fromtheir old positions, some are constantly slipping back to the old waysof thought and the old action of seizing a musket and relying on force. America has taken the lead in this new direction, and that lead Americamust continue to hold.