The Dakota chief. (Gann Valley, Buffalo County, S.D.) 18??-1913, 1907-12-12
mendarion for sn extension ~ re rAresA
post. especially ON the rural routes
Presidential Campo Exrenses

| Presidential Campaign Exrsas es.
It Is well to provide that corporations
shall not contribute to presidential or MAJ
tionaf campaigns. The need for collecting
large campaign funds would vanish IL Con-
gress provided appropriation for the.
proper and legitimate expenses of each OF
the great national parties, an appropra ton
ample enough to meet the necessity for thor.
ough organization and machinery, which re-
quires large exenditure OF money.
Ocean Mail Service.
! call your especial attention, to the un.
satisfactory condition OF our foreign mail
service. which. because Of the lack of Amer
lean steamship lines, is now largely done
through foreign lines, and which, particu&
larly SO far as South and Central Americ3
are concerned, Is done in manner which,
constitutes serious barrier TO the extent
sion Of our commerce. The time. has GOMEZ
in my Judgment, to set to work seriously ID
make our ocean mail service oorrespond
more closely with our recent commerciar
and political development The only serious
question Is whether at this time we can
afford to improve our ocean mail service
as 1t should be improved. All doubt ON
this subject is removed by the reports of
the pOstoilicc Department. The Govern
ment of the United States, having assumed
monopoly of carrying the mails for the
people, is making profit of over $3,6O0,000
by rendering cheap and inefficient service.
The Army.
We should maintain In peace a fairly
complete skeleton of a large army. A great
and long continued war would have to ba
fought by volunteers. But months would
pass before any large body Of efficient vol
unteers could be put in the field, and our
regular army should he large enough to
meet any immediate need. In particular it
Is essential that we should possess q num-
her of extra officers trained in peace to per-
form efficiently the duties urgently required
upon the breaking out of war; The rate Of
pay for the officers should be greatly in-
creased: there is no higher type Of citizea
Ana rtnnt, tlnn 4.
should have fair reward for his admir-
able work. There should be a relatively
even greater increase In the pay for the
enlisted men, The rate of deserton In our
army now in time of peace is alarming.
The deserter should be treated by public
opinion as man guilty OF the greatest
crime: while on the other hand the man
who serves steadily In the army should be
treated as what he Is, that Is, as pre-emi-
nently one Of the best citizens of this re.
public.
The Navy.
1t was hoped The Hague Conference
might deal with the question OF the limita-
tion Of armaments. But even before II had
assembled informal inquiries had developed
that as regards naval armaments, the only
ones in which this country had any inter-
est, 1t was hopeless to try to devise any
plan for which there was the slightest pos
sibiiity of securing the assent Of the
tions gathered at The Hague. IL is evi-
dent. therefore, that 1t is folly for this
nation to base any hope OF securing peace
on any international agreement as to the
limitation Of armaments. Such being the
fact II would be most unwise for us to
stop the upbuildlng Of our navy. To build
one batteship Of the best and most ad-
vanced type year would barely keep our
fleet up to its present force. This Is not
enough. In my Judgment, we should this
year provide for four battleships. But Ii
Is idle to build battleships unless In addi-
tion to providing the men, and the means
for thorough training, we provide the aux
iliaries for them. unless we provide docks.
the coaling stations, the collers and supply
ships that they need. We are extremely
deficient in cOaling stations and docks on
the Pacific and this deficiency should not
longer he permitted to exist. Plenty of tor
| pedo boats and destroyers should be built.
| Both on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts,
fortiications Of the best type should be pro-
vided for all our greatest harbors.
We need always to remember that In
| time Of war the navy Is not to be used to
| defend harbors and seacoast cities; we
tions. The only efficient use for the navy
is for ofense. The only way in which 10
can efficiently protect our own coast against
the possible action of foreign navy Is by
destroying that foreign navy. For defense
against a hostile feet which actually attacks
them, the coast cities must depend upon
their forts, mines torpedoes, submarines
and torpedo boats and destrOyers.
II must be remembered that everything
done in the navy to dt 1t to do we'll In
time Of war must be done in time of peace.
Foreign Ana1Fs.
In foreign affairs this country's steady
policy is to behave toward other nations
as a strong and self-respecting man should
behave toward the other men with whom
he Is brought into contact In other words,
our aim Is disinterestedly to help other
nations where such help can be wisely
given without the appearance OF meddling
with what does not concern us; to be care
full to act as good peighber; and mt the
same time, I'm good-natured fashion, to make
intend
posed upon.
The Peace Conference.
The second international peace conferences
was convened Mt The Hague On the 18th
Of June last and remained In session uutil
the 18th Of October. For the first time
the representatives Of practically all tho
civilized countries OF the world united In
temperate and kindly discussion Of the
methods by which the causes OF war might
be narrowed and its injurious effects re-
duced
Although the agreements reached in the
conference did not in amy direction go to
the length hoped for by the more sanguine.
yet in many directions important steps
were taken, and upon every subject on the
program there was such full and consider
ate discussion to justify the belief that
substantial progress has been made toward
further agreements IL the future. The
delegates Of the United States worthily
represented the spirit of the American peo-
pie and maintained with fidelity and abil-
ty the policy of our government upon all
the great questions discussed in the COLI
ference.
German Tariff Agreement.
The adoption of n new tariff by Ger
many, accompanied by conventions for re-
ciprocal tariff concessions between that
country and most of the other countries
OF continental Europe. led the German gov
ernment TO give the notice necessary to
terminate the reciprocal commercial agree
ment with this country proclaimed July 13,
1900. The notice was to take effect on the
lst of March, 1906. Under a special agree
ment made between the two governments
in February, 1906, the German government
postponed the operation OF their notice
until the 30th of June, 1907. In the mean
time l sent to Berlin commission COM
posed of competent experts in the opera
tion and administration of the customs
tariff, from the departments of the treas
ury and commerce and labor. This com.