Daily Arizona silver belt., 1909-07-03
DAILY ARIZONA SILVER BELT

month, France as many, Japan at least SUU,OUU we with good fortune, million in twol years"
 Great Britain, Germany Austria, France, Italy, Russia and Japan are all busy laying down Dreadnoughts and spending money in the development of airships Great Britain is frankly alarmed at the naval policy of Germany. What is the avowed purpose of Germany in the building of great navy! Nothing less than the protection of her commerce.
 In two different ways Germany and the Unit ed States have learned the lesson of prepared ness In the FrancoP Prussian war the Germans placed an initial army of 57S000 men, l59,000 horses and l ,2S4 guns in the field within d fort night after the declaration of war. They were ready two or three days before France. It was that which enabled the mwithin six weeks to bring about Sedan. Preparedness in this case gave Germany Alsace-Lorraine at the ekpense of France. Lack of preparedness cost France, in addition; thousands of lives and millions of francs.
 Our lack of preparedness in 1861 cost us hundreds of thousands of lives and $3,500,O ,O00,- 900 in pensions, outside of the cost of the Civil war itself We took no heed of this, however, and when the trouble with spain arose congress began to issue calls for an army of 216000 men four days after the declaration of war. In four months the required number had been enlisted but the men in large part half organized half drilled, half equipped In two of our great camps more men died by disease than were killed in the entire war.
 In her recent war Japan mobilized 100000 men just as fast as she could possibly need them and she is supposed to be able to put in the field +,-h oe month We could not get together battIe-wor- thy fighting line in less than one year
 We have played too long at preparedness We are not executing faithfully the trust i'm posed upon us by those who died that we might be free We are not prepared today to- protect the interest of our citizens in foreign countries. We have gone, every one of us, our own way, and hay not seen to 1t that those who represent us in congress have done their duty in the most vital of all things-the maintenance of our inde- pendence and the continuance of peace, in order that our industries may develop.
 We are independent only because thus far our independence has not been seriously threatened We are at peace only becaus our position as a world power is recent, because we are as yet only on the edge of the international maelstrom
 The day we celebrate is the day of the Decar- ation of Independence-no the day that saw independence won Even as the declaration it. self did not ensure independence so Fourth of July oratory will not maintain it.
 There is no straddling this issue. We must either be prepared or not. If we are not to be prepared, why go to any expense at all? Why not save the money dispensed yearly by the War and Navy departments! If we are to be prepared let us go at it in the right way Let us provide sufficient men to man the guns which are mounted on our coast Notifications! Let us provide sufficient officers to command our sol |dlers! Let us have National Guard which is worthy of the name, and house and equip it as it should be equipped! Let us lead not follow in the building of our navy And let us make responsible for preparedness the men who have been trained in the profession of war, men who in the event of war will be called upon to do the planning and the fighting! Our next war will not be with Spain of 1898.
 Reverence for the memory of the men of 1776 will best be expressed self-nterest will best be served-our duty to our children and to our children's children will best be discharged, if we celebrate the day of the Declaration of Inde- pendence by an equally determined declaration to maintain our independence in the only way in which independence can be maintained short of the miennium so long as the blood of man runs red.
 ''lt has been clearly proven that majority of the people of Georgia are ignorant, fickle and narrow -minded,' writes Mr. Charles T. \I,<x.1n 4h, Il-