The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1874-12-05
In Peace PreDore fo,. Wor !

In Peace Prepare for Var.
One day after the election of 1873 the United
States government was thrown upon the eve of a
foreign war and that too with nation that
Yields powerful Navy compared with ours
Sunset Cox, assuming the leadership of the Dem
ocratic party in the House of Representatives, of
-fered a resolution recognizing the independence
of Cuba. The adoption of the resolution might
have been productive of tornado more disaster
Gus than that which fired upon the "Virginius."
But the prudence of the House of Representatives
dictated the rejection of the resolution because.
it for no other reason, we were in no condition 10
cope with Spain on the sea. The cool Judgment
OF Congress dictated the appropriation of six mill
lions of dollars to fit up our dilapidated Navy in
order that, if necessity demanded it, we should
be in some sort of condition to meet Spain should
war grow out of the outrage committed By the
Tornado" upon the "Virginius" We have
not forgotten the mercurial ardor and the patri.
otto zeal that flowed spontaneously from numer-
Gus assemblages demanding that our broadsides
be let loose upon the barbarous Spaniards and
that they be chastised for their wanton outrage
upon civilization. We remember how the as.
semolage, presided over BY Col. Yerger, of Con-
federate fame, at the Maryland Institute, fifteen
days alter the occurrence, demanded "raparation
to the flag, the surrender of the survivors nd the
butchers who perpetrated the outrage" We re-
member how the eloquence of Hon. VIM. P. Pres
ton portrayed the duty of the government Of the
United States under the circumstances We re-
member how the President was landed for what
gallant things it was hoped he would perform in
the premises. To put all these fine things into
execution, if the occasion required it, could only
be done with Navy-one that should be able to
cope with Spain's and be credit to the most re-
spected nation on the globe. And to our chagrin
and modification we had no such Navy YES
sci floating the American flag was fred upon
without proyocation on the open sea, Americans
slain and others captured-and the American ma
ton presents the Notifying spectacle of being
obliged to set men to work in 'hot haste" to fit
up old hulks to avenge the wrong and vindicate
the honor of the American Republic No other
nation with half the prestige or respect OF ours
would have been in such sorry plight. Had
war been the consequence of the affair, we should
have been under the necessity of asking "lhe
Spanish butchers to wait until we got ready
that is until we built and equipped dozen or so
of war vessels Ofcourse ''the Spanish butchers"
would have granted this simple request of ours.
nfrom any quarter we shall be threatened with
similar danger, we shall be obliged to play the
same ridiculous, disreputable role. There is not
the slightest reason why great and powerful
nation like the American Republic should occupy
such discreditable attitude. We know no jus.
tiication for it. We know of no cause for it ex-
eept false and narrow notion of economy enter
tanned by the Republican party. We believe in
economy when it is broad and statesmanlike.
We endorse heartily any plan or programme pur-
sued by Congress and the administration that
prevents any useless expenditure of money. But
a policy that leaves our Navy in its present
lamenable, shabby condition has about the same
claims to be called economy as the refusal of
man 10 have his house insured because it saves
money. The man who refuses to have policy
of insurance on his house reveals the fact that be
- Suoi tsiSuteu ouStuesS uau Tue poiCy toat
keeps the United States without a respectable
Navy deserves to be classed in the same category
In our humble opinion, the President should
recommend to Congress the adoption o: such
measures as shall put the Navy upon footing
that will exempt US from the necessity of rushing
to the forest for timbers and TO the forge for iron
10 bailu en-of-war every time decrepit old
dynasty like Spain shall insult our flag or out
rage our seamen or citizens. If the recommends
tioH does not come from the President, Congress
should be law unto itself and naugurate pro-
gramme of this sort. We do not desire that they
should authorize the construction of Navy suf-
6cient to go to war with England. Bat we should
boast something far more creditable than we
have. Men-of-war very different things from
armies. When the rebellion began we had an
army ia Washington in less than a week after ii
was called for, but the war was half over before
we foated decent war vessels. Men, horses pro-
visions, ammunition can be raised in a compare
lively short space of time. Men-of-war are quite
different matter. If we are pushed to have
them at once, we shall likely do as we did in the
last war, buy them OF some other nation and
give them the money that our own artisans and
workmen should have. If Congress understands
its business it will deal with this matter without
delay