The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1909-10-07
But the Navy is Not a Play
thing.
Lands Ignorant of Present
Conditions.
Grizzlcd Old Sea Fighter In His Char
actcristic Gruff Way Let's II be
Known that the Ohio Congressman
About the Efficiency OF Uncle Sans
Navy.
BY United Press Wire.

Washington, Oct. G--"I am In SYM
pathy with what the president has
said as to the necessity for ship sub
sidy and with that movement as a
whole but | have not any patience
with that class of individuals who in
their advocacy of that program try to
beat the American navy"
This was the caustic comment made
to a United Press representative to-
day by Admiral Fighting Bob Evans
on the speech yesterday at Cincinnati
by ex-Congressnan Charles B. lands
wherein the lndianan declared that
those Americans who are informed
consider our navy buff" in the
course OF his plea for a merchant
marine as a necessity from which
could be drawn the sailors for Uncle
Sans ship.
Mr.. Landis," continued the admiral,
makes the mistake of lot of gent
lemen of his profession, that of talk
ing about things OF which he knows
nothing. or course, we need a mer-
chant marine-but this talk about the
navy being bluff is all d--d rot.
Two things in my opinion have
combined to stunt the growth of an
American merchant marine. First.
the absurd asinity of congress back
in the sixties refusing to take back
into service those ships which during
the war were "whitewashed' or ad-
opted foreign flag during the strug-
gle. Then second, the fact that steam
ship stocks and bonds don't return
the same income as railroad securities
I'VE pay millions annually to have
our products brought to market, pay
it out to foreigners That ought to
go to American steamship lines"
do you regard it as necessary that
there be merchant marine from
which our men OF war might draw
real seamen?' the admiral was ask
ed.
Not at all. The days are past
when the American Jackie has his
fingers full of tar and his hand wet
nowadays Is a mechanical specialist
We'd rather train men to our own
way of thinking. Two days at sea
is generally enough 10 give the green
est landlubber his sea yegs. This
talk of sailors being born and not
made Is not rot. Who ever heard OF
born twelve inch gun pointer?
I'VE are weak in auxiiaries. no
doubt. But we've got the finest navy
in the world. And any one who says
the men-the boys who do the work
are inefilicient. is talking rot. Did
you see the men of the fleet at the
Hudson-Fulton celebration? Do they
look like lubbers? Didn't they pull
away from every one of the other
crews of foreign ships in the races?
They are splendid men-athletes,
picked and hard as IRON.
There have been several magazin-
es lately that apparently fill valuable
space with absurd talk about the In
Effectiveness of the American Navy.
| noticed one recently which partakes
a lot about born and made seamen
and labelh our seamen as 'agricultu-
and tables our seamen the plea for a
ship subsidy just want to say that
il our boys are made sailors they
outpulled the foreign Jackies up in
New York and the men they beat
were graduates of the merchant ma
rine, the sort of born sailors mem
toned IN this attempt at muck
| rake. Ha
I'VE want merchant marine and
need one-but don't anybody make the
mistake of labelling our navy as a
bluff"