The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1891-03-13
lnYaflas Artfria

contributed TO the New York Truth by
ex-senator Ingalls,, which has created
so much comment, is in substance, as
follows:
The annual shrek about our defense
less coasts and the bombardment of New
York, Philadelphia and Boston, has
been emitted. The yearly pamphlet
describing the blood-eurdling incidents
and the appalling consequences of the
war with Chill and Spain in 1905. has
been sent to senators and representatives
in congress. The editorial estimates in
the metropolitan press of the amount of
property within reach of an Ital-
ian iron clad in the lower bay.
and of the ransom that could be
eXtorted from the merchants and bank
ers, have all been submitted and are filed
| away for use again in 1892 Their pur-
pose is to reconcile the people to the
passage OF the naval appropriation bill,
and to enormous and proaigate expend-
| itures, in time of peace, for ships, fOrti-
| fications and munitions of war. The ca
pacity OF the United States to create a
navy in an emergency was demonstrated
| in the rebellion. The duel between the
|
Roads, revolutionized naval warfare and
the problem has since been to construct
armor that no prOjectile could pene-
trate. and then invent projectiles
that no armOr could resist. European
| nations have been conducting these
| expensive experiments hitherto, and
the ships of 1880 are already obsolete
| and Anticipated for attack or defense.
20 al
cate the situation, and the navy we are
now building at a cost Of $50, ZOO, 900
will be as worthless in 1900 as Roman
galleys. England, France and Italy
would gladly sell us their fleets at 50
per cent. II we are to depend upon our
navy for protection we must
have ships enough to assemble
at every point force as large
as could be dispatched against It.
The millions we are squan-
| dering on vessels that are
sent on idle brands in ''squadrons Of ev-
Olution" painted pageants of the deep,
had better be spent for earthworks and
powerful guns to command every road
| stead, channel and harbor from which q
hostile feet could threaten orsassail. Is
there any necessity Of spending millions
every year for naval defenses or anv
justification for the historical appeals
to popular appropriation and alarm?
We have no colonies or entangling ALI
ances. Wars break out unexpected, it
is true, sometimes, but from what quar-
ter can danger be nationally an
ticipated? Our relations with
France are those of traditional
amity: with Germany Of kinship and
consanguinity; with Russia of frater-
nifty. The rest are trivial. Our only
enemy is England, and she Is under
bond to keep the peace. No other ma
ton is so venerable and none SO de-
tested. She has incurred the resent
meut of the human race by centuries OF
injustice. Colonel Mcclure, a noted
Mississippi duelist. had occasion to kick
an unresisting gentleman at a hotel in
Natchez. Being not long after in Mem
phis the colonel saw his victim sub
jected to the same treatment. Being
somewhat curious and uncertain as to
the person he said: "Are you the fell
low kicked down stairs in Natchez?"
yes" replied he. ''but, colonel, you
and I know who to kick" England
kicked US when we were helpless and
feeble. She sacked and burned a de-
fenseless capital. She has kicked Ire
land; she has kicked Egypt; she has
kicked the Hindoos, the Zulus. the
Beers, the Chinese; but she Is not in the
habit of kicking her equals. Her cour-
age is prudent and calculating. She
was careful not to kick Napoleon until
the rest of Europe Joined her, and she
endured Russian aggression until she
had persuaded France to bear the brunt
of the Crimean campaign.
In our civil war she did all she could,
short of open hostility, to destroy the
union, and then apologized and paid
damages. Lately we have had another
contention about seal poaching and the
Behring sea. Oceans of ink have been
spent in diplomatic correspondence be-
tween Lord Salisbury and Secretary
Blaine. Great Britain fortified Van
couver, metaphorically speaking, beg
cling us to knock the chip from her
shoulder, or to tread on the tails
of her coat. Legally she had an
open case at least; in some
respects the best of the argument. A
casus belli could, easily. been found
if wanted, and we were assured that the
danger was imminent. The boldest
held his breath for q while. Immense
appropriations were promptly voted for
Notifications and the navy, and then
while the national hair was standing on
end, England suddenly came into our
supreme court as sutton, and
submitted the whole controversy
to the decision of that great
tribunal. The newspapers that de-
scribed the dramatic utterances con-
tanned in another column of the same
issue an account of the proceedings in
the old senate chamber, in which Lord
Salisbury submitted the claims of Eng
land to an adjudication as question of
international law. 1t was reassuring,
but it was laughable. nevertheless.
JOHN ]. INGALLS,.