The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1907-09-27
Build Ships and Eat Dirt

NEW YORK, September 5.-The
Times this morning publishes the fol
lowing as a Washington dispatch:
''Build ships and eat dirt" Cap
tain Richmond Pearson Hobson, the
country's most strenuous advocate of
greater navy and the new member
of the House of Representatives from
the Sixth Alabama District, coins this
phrase as descriptive of the condition
in which he believes the people of the
United States find themselves by rea-
son OF, their failure to appropriate
more literally in the past for the navy.
Captain Hobson, who has arrived in
Washington for the coming session of
Congress, does not mince words in dis
cussing the possibilities of war with
Japan and the sending of Uncle Sam Is
big fleet to the Pacific. He goes fur
ther than the Department in its an
nouncements, plans, etc, and says the
fleet should go to the Far East and be
kept there.
"The only possible hope of peace is
to get our entire fleet out to the Far
East" said Captain Hobson tonight.
eff Japan can not find some further
pretext between now and the sailing
of the fleet it is not unlikely that she
will cause the so-called Yellow Press
of Japan to initiate the people of Japan,
and use this as a basis to make rep
resentations to America to withhold
the further progress of the fleet, and
if necessary pretend with regret that
she has to urge and insist that we do
not send the feet further.
A CRITICAL JUNCTURE.
All in all, we are at a very critical
juncture in our country's foreign re-
lations, and at a period when the Pa
mama Canal is not complete, which will
be our dangerous period, the period
that will be sought by Japan backed
by the Powers to bring on war.
"During this period, because of our
utterly inadequate navy, our people
must be prepared to not only be ex-
ceedingly calm and conservative, but
to accept any form of humiliation that
may come. We have neglected the
question of defense so long that we
must now eat dirt. Our policy must
be to build ships and eat dirt, and
we can not stop eating dirt until after
the ships are built
Captain Hobson believes the clash
with Japan may come in February, if
postponed that long by reason of af-
fairs in China.
''The official announcement that the
Dowager Empress of China will alb
dicate next February on the Chinese
New Year, brings to the front the
whole question of the fates of that
great empire,' said he.
American diplomacy inaugurated
under Secretary Hay and continued
under Secretary Root secured the adop.
ton willingly or unwillingly by tht
Powers of the open-door policy fol
China. Since japanese ascendency il
the Far East, a plan has been on foo
to overturn this just policy, and tc
substitute for it the dangerous 'spher,
of influence policy"
ANOTHER ATLANTIC FLEET.
NEW YORK, September 4.-Fron
good authority is it learned that at tn,
instance of President Roosevelt tn
Navy Department has already begul
to formulate plans for the establish
ment of another Atlantic fleet, on
that will replace the armada whic
Admiral Evans is soon to take to Pa
eifc waters.
Although the dispatch of these 1
battleships removes from Atlanti
waters the chief naval reliance of thi
country, it is now known that the Gov
ernment has no intention of keepin
the Atlantic seaboard denuded of nava
defense. Its plans, which are now be
ing hurried to completion, contemplat
the establishment of another powerfr
feet of armorclads, whose base viii /
in Atlantic waters. This disposes c