Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1898-06-17
Spirit Of the Dress.
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.
THE COST OF WAR.

THE COST OF WAR.
War is the destruction OF life ana prop
erty. To innlct upon their opponents all
possible damage is the purpose of com
batants, and in order to accomplish this
there is the most reckless sacrifice of
their own blood and treasure. When
once nation has declared war, cost
cannot be counted, and men and money
are thrown into the contest as IL neither
were worth saving.
In earlier times the fighting was man to
man, with primitive and inexpensive
weapons, and was often protracted for a
long series of years. In this country the
combat is largely that of costly engineer
ing and equipment and is more a matter
of financial resources. Soldiers no long
err 90 to war with their own personal
following, to be slain singly, but as units
in great armies, to be moved down in
battalions and regiments. War chests
are no longer filled by private contribu-
lions but by wholesale levies upon the
wealth of nations.
The wreck and ruin of war are incom-
parably greater than they were formerly.
The statistics of modern wars stagger
the comprehension, but they have little
effect in restraining nations from an
appeal to arms upon slight provocation.
In an article written by George b.
Waldron for the June number of
McClure's magazine we find an exhibit
of the cost of some of the more important
wars of the present century, which at
this time, when we are engaged in
struggle involving money expense of
more than two millions a day, is both
interesting and instructive. According
TO this. in the twenty-five years follow
ing 1893, the wars of Napoleon cost the
British and French not less than six
billions and five hundred million dollars
In money, and a million nine hundred
thousand lives, the latter number equal
to the entire adult population of London
and Paris. In the one battle of Water
loo 81. 900 men were lost, 10000 of whom
were British. The Crimean war, though
it lasted but two years, cost the nations
engaged in it billion and five hundred
millions in money and 100000 of their
citizens. The English lost $4,000 out of
an army of 9S, 900; the French 9G,0OO out
of 100000; Turkey lost 45,OOO, and OF
Russia's SIS, 900 that took the field, less
than one-half returned to their homes.
The Franco-German war ended in the
defeat of France in few weeks, but of
the 10000 Frenchmen who resisted the
advance of Germany's legion 1000
were killed or died of sickness. The
Germans had million men under arms
and of these 10 900 were killed and 49,
900 were disabled. Two hundred thous-
and lives were sacrificed in both armies
and the money cost was billion and
half dollars. During the last hundred
years the wars of Christian Europe and
America have cost the lives of five
million men. March them by in single
file and they would make procession
5000 miles long and require six weeks OF
marching day and night in passing. The
wars of the century have destroyed
nearly $4,000 200, 900 of treasure, an
expenditure representing the entire
earnings of more than million men Tor
the entire one hundred years, and the
present combined wealth of Norway,
Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands,
Portugal, Switzerland, Turkey and
Greece. Today the debts of the worlds
leading nations aggregate $2S, ,OOO,-
900, and probably three-fourths of this
is due to war-the sins of the fathers
visited upon the children to the third and
fourth generation.
The experiences of our own country
illustrate the losses caused by war
That seven years of struggle which gave
the nation independence required Sl35,-
100000 Today the nation can raise a
like sum from the gold lying idle in the
treasury. But it then fell upon people
whose population was only twentieth
of the present number, and whose wealth
was much less in proportion. The
United States began their existence with
a debt burden of $75, 100000. This was
about nineteen dollars per capita, or
larger by half than the debt of today.
The deficit fell to $40 100000 in 1872.
Then came the ''second war of independ-
ence," which carried it up to 1927 ,OOO,-
900. By 1886 the nation did not owe a
dollar.
In 1860 the debt was only So, 100000.
But with the firing on Sumter the people
of the North awoke to their task, and
thereafter S2,500,000 a day was needed
until once more a common flag floated