The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1909-11-18
AN ECONOMIC CRIME.

In an address delivered by Presi-
dent w. C. Brown, of the New York
Central lines, at the annual banquet
of the Railway Business Association,
held at New York Wednesday even
ing, the speaker referred in striking
manner to the wastefulhess of our
present naval policy, subject recent
ly discussed in these columns. Pres
ident Brown said in part
"The United States is building two
or three great battleships almost
every year, which cost, fully equipped,
perhaps an average of nine millions
of dollars each, and it costs close to
million a year each to man, supply
and maintain them.
What one of these fighting mach
ines costs the government would es-
tablish and fully equip two splendid
experimental farms of six hundred
and forty acres each, in every State in
! the Union, to be operated by the gen.
eral Government.
"The establishment of such farms
! by the Government would soon be fol-
lowed by ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
farms owned and operated by the
State in every county in our great
agricultural States.
Such farms, once established,
would not only be self-sustaining, but,
in my opinion, would show a hand
some. profit. The effect of such a
system of practical education upon the
product and profit of the Nations
I farms would be almost beyond COM
prehension.
every thriftless and uniformed
farmer would quickly note the differ
ence between the result of his loose
methods and those Of the experiment
tai farm, and benefit by the COMPARE
son.
men who have no books on this
important subject and who could find
| no time to study them if they had,
would learn by that most apt and
thorough teacher, observation, the
value of improved methods and would
adopt them.
LET the Government invest the
price of one battleship in this import
ant work, follow the investment up
intelligentlyAa perseveringly for ten
years, and the value that will have
been added to each years crops OF
the Nations farms will buy and pay
for every battleship in all the navies
of the world today.
Adopt this policy and it will give
to the great business of agriculture
a new birth Of marvellous possibilities
and make the cultivation of the sol
a profession rather than vocation
1t will double the wealth of the Ma
tons farms and quadruple the in
fiuence, political and financial of the
Nations farmers.
"Ten years after such system be
comes fully effective, the farmers will
| a
of the Nations railroads, and this will
insure in larger measure than is pos
sible under present conditions tina
industrial peace and tranquility so vi
tai to enduring prosperity"
1 President Brown spoke like
3 statesman in the address quoted. TIL
( great powers today are engaged in
t mad race for naval supremacy an
the economic waste of this FOOLS
: policy is something awful to con
S template. War is becoming more in
;. frequent and improbable, as tim
passes, and yet the cost of naval an
a military establishments is CROWN
b enormously every year.
: There was a period in the world
!. history when disputes between ma
e and man were settled by persona
u combat alone. The honor of an In
q dividual was supposed to require sue
l. a course of action. Long ago mar
s kind learned that there was bette
- way. Now we take our ulHerehct
Il into courts of law and justice no loI
n ger is a matter Of brute strengt
alone. There is no reason why di
s putes between nations can not
!, settled by courts of arbitration and
a fairer measure of justice melted OF
a than can be furnished by the heavie
N battalions and the most powerf
- fleets.
l. If each nation maintained sma
81 army and a militia force supplimen
81 ed by a small naval department, fl
IN police purposes. and settled its qua
e. rels in international courts, more e
OF act justice would be obtained, gre
10 number of mem would be availab
ay as actual producers of wealth al