The Waco daily examiner. [volume] (Waco, Tex.) 187?-1888, 1885-12-05
SAM'L J. TILOEN.
The Sage of Greystone Writes
a Letter to Carlisle on
Coast Defances.
He Says, Let the Revenue Alone
and Use the surplus for
Gums and Forts.
He Touches Deftly Upon the
Monroe Doctrine, and Asks
Pertinent Questions.
We Must BE Able TO Com mand
Entire Respect From All
Foreign Nations.
WORDS OF WISDOM.
saml. j. Tiiden Speaks Plainly Of
Our Coast Defenees.

| Our Coast Defenees.
New York, December Mr.
Samuel j. Tilden has sent the follow
ing letter to Hon. John G. Carlisle:
GREYsTosk YosKrEs. N. Y..l
December /, 1885 !
Dear Mr.. Carlisle: As publ,
opinion points to you as tho speaker
of the next house of representatives
l desire TO submit suggestion as Il
one Of the public objects for which at
appropriation onght to be prompt
ana liberal, in considering the stat,
and management of the public rove
nues. The subject involves tn,
questions whether we shall ex-
tinguish the surplus, by reducing
the revenues, or whether we shall APP
ply the surplus revenues to payments
on the public debt, or whether we
shall seize the occasion to provide fol
our sea coast defcnces, which have
been loug neglected. am of the
opinion that the latter is paramount
necessity, which ought to precede the
reduction of the revenues, aud ought
also TO prcccde an excessive rapidity
in the payment of the public debt.
"The property exposed TO destrrc-
ton in the twelve seaports of Port
land, Portsmouth, Boston, Newport,
New York, Philadelphia. Baltimore,
Charleston, Savannah, New Orleans,
Galveston aud San Francisco cannot
be less In value than SO, 0O0, 900, 900 To
this must be added vast amount OF
property dependant for It's use, on
these seaports; nor does this state
ment afford true measure for the
damage which might be caused to
the property and business of the
country by failure to protect these
seaports from hostile attacks. They
are centres, not only of foreign COM
merce bat also of internal trade, and
exchanges OF domestic productions.
To this state of things the machin-
cry of transportations of the whole
country has become adapted. The
interruption ofthe currents of traffic
by the occupation of one or more of
our principal seaports by a
foreign enemy, or the destruction of
them by bombardmeut, or the hold
ing over them the menace of dcslruc-
ton, for the purpose of exaciiug con
tEIDutluh VI luusOil, NouIu luHlCt
upon the property aud business OF The
country All injury which cannot be
forseen nor measured. The
elaborate and costly fortifi-
cations which were constructed
with the greatest engineering skill
are now practically useless as they are
not capable of resisting the attacks of
modern artillery.
"a still greater defect exists in our
coast defence. 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-halt
of the export trade of the whole
United States is carried on, are too
near the great populations of New
York city, Jersey City aud Brooklyn
to be of any value as protection.
"To provide cflectnal defences would
be the work of years, as II would take
much time 10 construct permanent
Notifications, A small provision OF
the best mouern guns would
take several ears. Neither of these
works can be extemporized
In the presence of iminent danger. A
million of soldiers, with the best
equipments, on the heights surround.
lug the harbor of New York in our
present state of preparation, or rath-
err, in our total want of preparation.
would be powerless to resist n small
squadron of war steamers. This state
of things is discreditable TO our fore
sight and to our prudence.
"The best guarantee against agrees
sion, the best assurance that our
diplomacy will be successful aud pa
cifc, and that our rights and honor
will be respected by other nations, is
in their knowledge that we are in a
situation to vindicaic our reputation
aud interests. While we may afford
TO be deficient In means of oiiense, we
cannot afford TO be defencelcss. The
notoriety of the fact that we have
neglected the ordinary precautions OF
defense invites a want of consider
alton in our diplomacy aud injustice
arrogance and insult, at the hands OF
foreign nations.
II is now moro than sixty years
since we announced to the world
that we should resist any attempts,
from whatever quarter they might
come, TO make any new colonization
on any part of the American cont.
nent; that while we should respect the
statue quo, we should project th,
people of the different nations
iuhabiting this continent from every
attempt to subject them to the do
| ,,;pinu nf any tnrnt1n nnNap or In IL,
terfere with their undisturbed eXer
else of rights of seli-governmont
This announcement was formal!
made by President Monroe after con
sultstion with Mr.. Madison aud Mr.
Jefferson. IL was formulated by JOIN
Quincy Adams. Our government ha
firmly adhered TO the Monroe doc
trine aud even so late rs 1868,
warned Napoleon Ill out OF Mexico
ID is impossible to foresee In
the recent scramble of the Europea,
powers for acquisition of colonies
how soon an occasion may ARISE 60
our putting in practice the Monro
doctrine. II is clear that there ough
to be some relation between our as
sertlOn of the doctrine and our prep
: aration TO msiptain II.
at is not intended to recOmmen
any attempt to rival the great Euro
pean powers In the erection of a pow
erful navy. The changes which hay
rapidly occurred by diminution 9th
relative resisting power of the defer
. slye armor of our iron-clads and b
, the increased efficiency Of our moder
artillery which, on the whole. hs
gained in the competition, suggei
that we should not at present ehtt
into the creation of armored vessel
"ln the questions that beset tn
subject until they have reached 81