The Lake Charles echo. [volume] (Lake Charles, Parish of Calcasieu, La.) 1876-1898, 1885-12-19

OUn COAST HpEFENsEs.
views of Hon. sam'I j. TiIden


Tilden, has sent the following lette
to Hon. John G. Carlisle:
GREYsToNE, Yonkers, N. Y, Dec. !
Dear Mr.. Carlisle: As public opin
ion points to you as the Speaker Of
the next House of Representatives,
desire to submit a suggestion as tc
one Of the public objects for which ar
appropriation ought to be prompt and
liberal.
In considering the state and man
agement of the public revenues, the
subject involves the questions, whether
we shall extinguish the surplus by re.
dncing the revenue, or whether we
shall apply the surplus to payments on
the public debt, or whether we shall
seize the occasion to provide for our
sea coast defense, which has been long
neglected.
l am of the opinion that the latter
is paramount necessity, which ought
to precede the reduction of the reven-
ue and ought also to precede an exces-
sive rapidity in the payment of the
public debt.
The property exposed to obstruction
in the twelve seaports : Portland,
Portsmouth, Boston, Newport, New
York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Charles
ton, Savannah, New Orleans, Galveston
and San Francisco, cannot be less in
value than five thousand millions Of
dollars. To this must be added vast
amount of property dependent for its
use on these seaports.
Nor does the statement afford n
true measure of the damage which
might be caused to the property and
business of the country by a failure to
protect these imports from hostile
naval attacks.
They are the centres of foreign
commerce but of most of the internal
trade and exchanges of domestic pro-
ductions. To this state of things the
machinery of transportation has be-
come adapted.
The interruption of the currents of
traffic by the occupation of one or
more of our principal seaports by
foreign enemy or the destruction of
them by bombardment; or the holding
over them of menace of destruction
for the purpose Of exaeting contribu-
tion or ransom, wonld intiict upon the
property and business Of the country
an injury which cannot be foreseen
nor measured. The
ELABORATE AND COSTLY FoRTIFIoA-
.... TIoEs,
which we're constructed with the
greatest engineering skill, are now
practically useless. They are not
capable Of resisting the attacks of
modern artillery.
A still greater defect exists in our
coast defenses. The range of the best
modern artillery has become so ex-
tended that our present Notifications,
designed to protect the harbor of
New York, where two-thirds of the
import trade and more than one-half
of the export trade of the whole
United States is carried on, are too
near to the great population of New
York city. Jersey City and Brooklyn |
to be of any value as protection,
To provide effectual defenses would
be the work of years, 1t would take
much time TO construct permanent
Notifications, A small provision Of
the best modern guns would take
several years. Neither Of these works
can be extcmporized in the presence
Of emergent danger
A million of soldiers with the best
equipments on the heights surround
ing the harbor of New York, in our
present state ofpreparation, or rather,
in our total want of preparation,
would be powerless to resist small
squad of war steamers,
This state of things is discreditable
to our foresight and to our prudence.
The best guarantee against aggres-
sion, the best assurance that our di-
plomacy will be successful pacifeated,
and that their rights and honor will
n Ibo;r tnowledae hat | va ] ora I, % H. H.
, ,a,;an ~ yiaJ;cota ~ our \" ronnto,;on anJ
interests
Will ,vo ma, ago,d - ho aos
mIns ,,oa,o ~ ~ ns dtana 49, - -, ~ oaaant a
,,sns ,gasa :" ~ T H. a dofoasaies. e, v" M" os no
a.';asu - os ~ fao. ,ha, 80 haan ~, y"
'or.esS M ~ T. ~ aiI aass KY ~ na'e es
sc.eq w o,a'pny Ple'aas'op aa.''',s.a,; :, ~
enSu ish,Ies sise' "@p; = sg's,ne'a,o
Y IA ~ ;a.nIt Psy - ~ ", 2ands ~ 's fdss;an
~ t;as 'ns' ~ s"9 "A"' f" '"ss"
''%'ps
IL ls now more tpan sl1ty years
'lnce We announces ils y % a,.. sns worla f .ps.
N $500 .a.1a,, is M fc r.i,htf cg,,,a Y
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