Bisbee daily review., 1909-04-14
SOUNDS NOTE
 0F ALARM ON OUR NEXT VAR
General Drain Discusses Nat ionaI Weakness and the "Unpreparedness" of This Country to Meet a Foe

WASHINGTON. D. c. April 13.-To a majority of those who will read the article in Pearson's Magazine for April. written by Gen. James A Drain entitled Getting Ready for Our Next
 War" the facts so plainly and fore ibly set forth therein will come as a revelation of national weakness.
 knowledge of which has heretofore been almost exclusively confined to the few.
 Gen. Drain is an expert on National
 Guard affairs, both in theory and practice. He is chairman of the Mill tia Board, recently created by Con
 gress; chairman of the executive committee of the National Guard As sociation of the United States, as well as prominent member of the Nation al Board for Promotion of Rifle Prac- tice and President of the National Rifle Association of America. He has been distinguished in the service of the State of Washington and after having been its Adjutant General, in which position he remodeled it's mili- tia laws and reorganized it's guard. is now chief of ordnance of that state. No man in the country is better fitted to speak with authority on National Guard matters and it may be said that the views set forth in the arti- cle referred to have the unqualified approval of the War Department.
 Some home truths.are boldly stated by Gen. Drain who hodls that "A na- tion unprepared to defend the lives and the property of here citizens by force of arms is, in this fiercely com petitive age, as foredoomed to pain and deadly peril as he who dares the wintry blasts in garments of guaze." Continuing he says: We Americans have sat too long at the feet of those vainglorious praters of our impreg- nable security" our "undying patriot ism and ou 'matchless military ar dor There never was a time in our history when we were secure We are not now secure, but we are nearer security than ever before"
 Gen. Drain treats earnestly and at length of the sublime folly which has characterized Americans in the past where war was concerned.
 When some man more wise than his fellows tries to tell us that we are the weakest nation of our size in Y born of ignorance, We smile and point to our 13,00O,0OO able-bodied citizens: and then pass on to our profit-taking or fun-madng merely plying the poor prophet who has sought to impress us with his military rubbish"
 We may call ourselves a patriotic people, but ours is puppy patriotism. earnest, but ignorant It is not of the slightest use for a citizen to wish his country we'll unless be really does something to make her better
 "A minister of a nation with whom we have a business disagreement- and future wars will arise chiefly from this cause-will question. first if we are willing to fight, and then. if we are able"
 Gen. Drain reviews the present po- sitiOn and the possible remedies for military weakness. He rejects the idea of a standing army of 250,000 men costing. at present figures, s350,- 000, 900 per annum. The proposition of conscription with service for nom inal pay is dismissed. Instead of these he submits the following con crete plan for the future:
 Maintain a small but well-paid and highly trained regular army, as nucleus around which a larger army can be built. to be, outside of this use, a training school for officers it with a force organized in peace for service in war. made up of men who wish to fight when fight ing is to be done, and who are willing to give some time from their civil employment to fit themselves for eff cient service. That is to say. main tain for the first line a force of 100.- 900 regulars. costing s150,000 900 a ..... nnn nnn .........-s.aL.