Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1898-03-30

| dependence and for her own liberty
upon the sea, and that if the Greeks
had not been superior upon the sea at
the battle of Salamis European civili-
cation might have been superseded by
that Of Persia and of Asia. Sparta
was only able to win the supremacy Of
Greece from Athens when she had Gre
| ated navy able to contend with and
overthrow the former prestige of her
brilliant rival upon the seas. Holland
won the war of eighty years, together
with her liberty, because her power
upon the ocean became so great that
no Spanish feet could meet her Great
! Britain, that small island in the ocean,
with few millions of people, through
her dominance as sea power. through
her great navy, is nabled to maintain
far beyond her natural strength an ex-
allied position in the face of the entire
] world. So it has been through all his
tory.
Mr.. Davis-What about the Ameri-
can Revolution?
Mr.. Pendleton, of West Virginia
Yes; what about the American Revo-
luton. What do you desire to know
about that?
MI. Davis-Did we not come out
ahead without navy?
Mr.. Pendleton, of West Virginia
We had the navy of Holland, which
was then almost equal to the navy of
Great Britain, to help us. We had the
navy of France, the second great naval
power of the world. to help us. We
had the navy of Spain to help us; and
it was only with the help of those three
great navies that for the time the al
lied powers became the mistress of the
sea, and the combined French and
Spanish fleets swept the channel that
we first had hope of final victory.
When the soldiers of Washington and
Rochambeau marched to Yorktown to
meet CORVALLIS, the mighty French
fleet of De Grasse was there to block
ade the river to prevent escape or sue
cor by water and to aid in compelling
the surrender of the naughty British
lord and his 1000 soldiers. Truly, it
can be said that the preponderance OBJ
tanned by our allies on the sea did
much for us to win that independence
which has enabled us to take such high
rank among the worlds great powers.
In 1872 what did we find to be our
condition? We went to war with Great
Britain then, and Great Britain had on
her hands not only the Republic of
the United States, but she was also
engaged in that long and deadly com
bat with France, under the guidance of
the military skill and genius of Napo-
leon the Great. Then our small navy,
here and there, was enabled occasion
ally to win a battle When. with equal
numbers we met the British on the sea
they were often forced to give way and
haul down their flag before American
skill American capacity to command,
and American bravery upon the high
seas.
But, nevertheless, what was the con-
dition of our country before that war
was ended? Great Britain blockaded
every port we had; her fleet came here
and her soldiers burned the American
Capitol under our eyes. she drove our
commerce from the sea; while the dis
tress. misery, and ruin resulting from
the blockade and the interruption of
commerce were so great in New Eng
land that before that struggle ended
New England for the first time in her
history became unpatriotic and threat
ened to precede the Southern States in
secession by a period of fOrtyfive
years. That was the condition to
which we were reduced the last time
we were forced into war with a great
naval power that had command of the
sea. i hope never to behold such CON
dition in my time. We have it in our
power to prevent a renewal of such
scenes. | believe we intend to do our
part.
Again, | say that it is a scandal a
shame, and an indignity in the face of
civilization that the richest nation of
all the nations, the most populous col
lection of civilized people that has ever
been seen under one flag that coun-
try more exposed to plumber and spoil
iation than any other in the world, a
nation that has a great name and
great history behind her, one that pro-
claims that it is led and guided by one
of the most advanced and enlightened
of the human races, should permit it
to be said at any time or under any
circumstances that her forts, her far-
bors. and her flag can be insulted for
want of sufficient patriotism among her
citizens to vote the few paltry thous-
ands Of dollars necessary to give her
navy that would defend her in time of
need. and make her equal to any and
all upon all the waters of the earth
where her flag has to be seen. CAP
plause.)
Now, one word more and | shall be
through | believe we are going to
vote this appropriation We are going
to vote it because it is necessary. We
are going to vote it because the adj
ministration and Secretary of the Navy
recommend it and say it is necessary.
We are going to vote it because we do
not desire to see our commerce unpro-
tected. We are going to vote it be-
cause in time of peace we should pre-
pare for war We are going to vote it
because we have ceased to be dema
gogues and intend as far as we can TO
be far-seeing statemen. We are going
to vote it because we do not desire
that in any future time of stress or diff
ficulty we shall be compelled to re-
preach ourselves that when we had
the opportunity we failed to prepare,
instead of waiting until the war had
come upon US, as other nations have
sometimes done in the past
The navy is popular. The Ameri-
can people love il, and they will not