The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1904-10-07

the work of concord that he desplay~
ed when he sought peace and ensued
it on the field of battle. No presl-
dents in our history have been so
faithful and so efficient as the last
two in the cause OF arbitration and
of every peaceful settlement OF diff
ferences. I mention them together
because their work has been harmon
ious and consistent. We hailed
with joy the generous initiative OF
the Russian emperor. and sent to
the conference at the Hague the best
men we had in our civic and military
life. When the Hague Court lay
apparently wrecked at the beginning
of its voyage. threatened with death
before it had fairly begun to live.
it was the American government,
which gave it the breath of life by
inviting the republic OF Mexico to
share Our appeal to its juslsdlctlon;
and the second case brought before
It was at the instance Of Mr.. Roose-
welt who declined in its favor the
high honor OF arbitrating an affair
Of worldwide importance.
I beg you to believe. it is not by
way OF boasting that recall these
incidents to your minds: it is rather
as profession OF faith N cause
which the present administration has
deeply at heart that I ask you to
remember, in the deliberations upon
which you are entering, the course
to which the American government
is pledged and which it has steadily
pursued for the last seven years. 1t
is true that in those seven years we
have had a hundred days Of war-
but they put an end forever to blood
shed which had lasted a generation.
We landed few platoons of marines
on the Isthmus last year; but that
act closed without a shot sangul-
nary succession Of trivial wars. We
marched little army to Peking; but
it was to save not only the beleag-
uered legations, but a great imperil-
ed civilization BY mingled gentle
ness and energy, to which most OF
the world beyond our borders has
done Justice, we have given to the
Philippines, if not peace, at least
nearer approach to it than they
have had within the memory of men.
If our example is worth anything
to the world, we have given it in the
vital matter of disarmament. We
have brought away from the far east
$1,000 soldiers whose work was done,
and have sent them back to the fields
of peaceful activity. We have re-
duced our army to its minimum OF
10000 men; in fact, we may say we
have no army, but in place Of one
nucleus for drill and discipline. We
have three-fourths Of one soldier for
every thousand of the population-a
proportion which if adopted by other
powers would at once eliminate wars
and rumors of wars from the daily
thoughts of the chanceries of the
world.
But fixed as a tradition is, clear
as is our purpose in the direction OF
peace, no country is permanently i'm
rnune from war so long as the desire
and the practice of peace are not uni
versal. If we quote Washington as
an advocate of peace, it is but fair
also to quote him where he says:
ITO be prepared for war is one OF
the most effectual means OF preserv-
ing peace" And at another time he
said: TO an active external COM
merce the protection of naval force
is indispensable. To secure respect
to a neutral flag requires a naval
force organized and ready to vindl-
cate it from insult or aggression"
To acknowledge the existence Of an
evil is not to support or approve it;
but the facts must be faced. Human