Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1907-12-04
THE / ] ARMY.

The ARMY
No Ground For Demagogic Defamation
Against Militarism.
%I think it is only lack of foresight
that troubles lis, not any hostility to
the army. There are. Of course, fool,
ish people who denounce any care Of
the army or navy as t'mili tarism, !" but
i do not think that these people are
numerous. This country has to con-
tend now and has had to. contend, in
the past with many evils. and there is
ample scope for all who would work:
for reform. But there is not one evil
that now exists or that ever has exist
ed in this country which is or ever
has been owing In the smallest part
to militarism Defamation against
militarism has no more serious place
in an earnest and intelligent move
ment for RICH eousness In this country
than defamation against the worship
of Baal or Astaroth. It is declama-
ton against a nonexistent evil, one
which never has existed in this coun-
try and which has not the slightest
chance of appearing here. We are
glad to help in any movement for In
ternational peace, but this is because
we sincerely believe that it is our duty
to help all such movements, provided
they are sane and rational, and not be-
cause there is any tendency toward
milftarism on our part which needs
to be cured. The evils we have to
fight are those In connection with In
dustrialism, not militarisn. Industry
is always necessary, just as war is
sometimes necessary. Each has its
price, and Industry in the United
States now exacts and has always ex-
acted q far heavier toll Of death than
all our wars put together The stats
ties Of the raIlroads Of this country
for the year ended June 80, 1906. the
last contained in the annual statistical
report Of the interstate commerce com
mission, show in that one year a total
of 10S,324 casualties to persons, OF
which 10,61S represent the number Of
persons killed. In that wonderful hive
of human activity, Pittsburg, the
deaths due to Industrial accidents IN
1906 were 919, ali the result of acct
dents in mills, mines or on railroads.
For the entire country, therefore. it is
safe to say that the deaths due 10 in
dustrial accidents aggregate In the
neigh orhood of 10000 a year. Such
a record makes the death rate in ali
our foreign wars utterly trivial by
comparison. The number of deaths in
battle in all the foreign wars put to-
gether for the last century and quar-
ter aggregate considerab bly, less than
one years death record for our indus
tries. a mere glance at these figures
is sufficient to show the absurdity of
the cutlery against militarism. +. $#.
But again and again in the past our
little regular army has rendered serv-
Ice literally vital to the country, and 1t
may at any time have to do SO In the
future. Its standard of efficiency and
instruction is higher now than ever
in the past, but it Is too small. There
are not enough officers, and 1t Is, i'm
possible to secure enough enlisted men.
We should maintain in peace d fairly
complete skeleton of a large army. A
great and long continued war would
have to be fought by volunteers, but
months would pass before any large
body of efficient volunteers could be
put In the field, and our regular army
should be large enough to meet any
immediate need. In particulars it is es-
sential that we should possess a num-
Der of extra officers trained in peace
to perform efficiently the duties ur-
gently required upon the breaking out
of war =.s II 5z2 5
The medical corps should be much
larger than the needs of our regular
army In war. Yet at present 1t Is
smaller than the needs Of the service
demand even In peace. The Spanish
war occurred less than ten years ago.
The chief loss we suffered In it was
BY disease among the regiments which
never LETT the country AT the mo-
ment the nation seemed deeply Impress
ed by this fact, vet seemingly 1t has
already been forgotten, for not the
slightest effort has been made to pre-
pare q medical corps Of sufficient size
10 prevent the repetition of the same
disaster on a much larger scale IL we
should ever be engaged In a serious
conflict The trouble In the Spanish
war was not with the then existing
Officials of the war department; ii was
with the representative Oh the people
as q whole who FOR the preceding thir-
ty years had declined to make the
necessary provision for the army. I'M
less ample provision is now made by
congress- to put the medical corps
where It should be put disaster In the
next war Is inevitable, and the respon-
slhility Will not lie with those then III
charge Of the war department but