Marble Hill press. (Marbel [sic] Hill, Mo.) 1881-1923, 1898-04-07
WattersOn on War.

Watterson on War.
We are told that Spain's navy is
more than match for our navy,
says the Louisville Courier-J our
nal. Granted-in ships. But what
about the sailors that man them2
We are told that Spain can send a
fleet up the Mississippi to New Or
leans and another to Boston. May
be. If they burn New Orleans, when
the war indemnity is levied and
collected We'll rebuild it, giving
every individual claimant better
house than he had before, and if
they burn Boston, why, as those
Yankees up there like cash in hand,
we'll paw the bill in full, principal
and interest, and, if desired, in
gold! We are told that Spain would
land an army at Pensacola and
march through Georgia! Well, Sher-
man did that, but WeyIer can't.
These are but the fgments of the
fancy of the timid, or else bugaboo
tales of Wall street and Beacon Hill
to frighten children. Assuming
that the boys of to day are half as
good as their fathers were in 81,
there is hardly more to fear of
Spain than of lot Of buck braves
who, armed and provisioned by
the government itself, and grow
big Of heart in the spring, start a
raid on Washington. During at
least a century the Spaniard has
shown no warlike capacity. He was
once amariner. But. who can now
tell what he will do with his ships?
Indeed, Spain is so mcribund, so
shorn of wealth and power, that,
except for the provoking cause, it
were kind of cowardice to allow
her to wreck herself by contest
so unequal.
The resources of the United
States are so vast that we ourselves
wholly fail to realize them, We
are masters of the greatest Of the
continents. We are the possessors
of perfect system of government.
On our own ground we are more
than match for all Europe, still bar
ring England and Russia. We have
to 60 abroad for nothing. Within
ourselves we are absolutely self
sustaining. In all mechanical
arts and martial appliances we lead
the world. Our food products are
exhaustless. United as nation no
power on earth could successfully
come against us. This is not
buster. 1t is the simple truth and
the statesmen, soldiers and fnan.
ciers Of Europe known it very well.
The American who disputes it
either does not know his own coun-
try or greatly overestimates the
outer world. Upon the material
side we have nothing to fear from
war.
What of the moral side, the
humane side? Truly, war is a great
desolator. 1t is a cruel, a relentless
monster. If we considered it only
from the domestic point of view, the
cries of children, ringing in our
ears, the tears of women, drowning
our hearts, the woe of the weak and
the aged penetrating our very soul,
all of us would be towards. If we
considered it from the human point
of view, considering the claims OF
a common brotherhood in Christ,
al Of us would be Christians. In
that case there would be no MUIR
dered shipmates to mourn, no
starving reconcentrados to deplore
and no assassins to punish. All
the world would be at peace. The
church bells that ring out good
will to man in Tampa would get
ready response from the citadels Of
Havana, and there were never a
tale to tell of treachery and famine.
Not yet the millennium oometh.
Man is still built the other way.
As long as he is brutal and
revengeful he will fight. As long
as he is generous and brave, he will
fight. And since he has but one
time to die, he IS, as a rule, willing,
upon what he deems sufficient cause
to risk his one life upon the hazard
of the single certainty that arrives
soon or late, to all. No man who
knows what war is would hail il
with pleasure, or welcome it as o
friend. God Forbid But God for.
bid that the people of tho United
States permit these atrocities in
Cuba to continue day longer thar
wc can get there with ships enough
to put q stop to them forever
Dr' Iemple,tho archbishop OF Gan
terbury entered an east end church
one night, ana standing in q blcl
pew joined in the singing Of O
Moody aud Sankey hymn. Next I,
him stood a working man who wa'
singing Justify IN tune. The bish
op sang Justify, too, but not in tune
The workingman stood tho dlscord
a. long as 10 eculd, aud then nudg
ing the bishop, said ina whisper
n uII.na .lsv uu Mtatae .n,,te. .,.nlf