The Yakima herald. [volume] (North Yakima, W.T. [Wash.]) 1889-1914, 1909-04-21
GREAT NAVY
MEANS PEACE.
AND UNITED STATES NEEDS IT
Secretary Meyer Wants Fleet on
Pacific rs Strong as Present
Total Armament

BOSTON, April ia great navy
is the best insurance against the hor-
rors and expenses of war that the
United States can purchase. 1t Will
stand for peace, while at the same
time 1t will be mighty bulwariS
against any encroachment upon the
dignity of this government. England
once called her navy wooden wallis
Let the United States have ramparts
of steel"
such was the sentiment expressed
tonight by Secretary Meyer. He de-
clared that the cause of peace would
have been advanced II years ago If
the United States had possessed eight
additional battlcships of the Oregon
or Iowa class. Such ships at cost
of fifty million dollars. he implied.
might have averted the war with
Spain, which cost more than half Il.
billion dollars.
This Is the Eve OF Peace
To-day is the era of peace" sai5
Mr.. Meyer. Peace societies, inter-
national tribunals, and the numerous
conferences that have been held dur
ing the past few years all emphasize
this fact, and l am one OF those who
organizations and Assem- blies" Yet,
he declared, 1t was important that the
people of the United States should not
forget that while such peace societies
We're power, their chief value was
as formative influence, to stimulate
sentiment and crystalline public opin-
ion against the horrors of war. THE
really effective and honorable method
Of NJ. ~
to be prepared for war by the pos
session of an efficient, up-to date and
thoroughly equipped feet of battle
ships, both on the Atlantic and the
Pacific oceans He spoke Of the eff
flciency of the globe circling Atlantic
fleet and argued that it should not he
divided between the Atlantic and the
Pacific but our naval armament
should be so provided for that even
tually we shall have a force of bat
| tleships in each ocean equivalent to
that which we now have in the At
lantiC."
Fighting Spirit Is IIarnesscd.
Civilization, said Mr.. Meyer, had
harnessed the fighting spirit inborra
in men and had turned il toward the,
development of science, making It the
man progress and development Of
wealth in the past 20 years; but. he.
declared, lit is still the same fighting.
spirit, and the fact that it has heeu
diverted into other channels should
not be permitted to Danish patriotic
sentiments or to welcome the thought
of peace at any price," II was, he
said, essential that the United States
should be i'm a position to demand jus
tiCc for itself
on the subject OF universal peace,
Mr. Meyer said that in order to bring
1t about there first must be good
understanding among nations and that
to bring that understanding required
international acquaintanceship and
confidence. You, as business men.
fully appreciate the necessity of con-
fidence in business relationships and
you also know that for continuous
business relationships the confidence
, must be mutually satisfactory. Sc
with nations; and in time, as science
develops the modes OF transportation
and brings the different nations into
closer touch there will come better
appreciation, and, finally, that com
mon understanding necessary for mu-
tually satisfactory international rela-
tionships and lasting peace" 1t was
certain he declared, that "A large navy.
with its ships touching at various
ports OF the world, as did the battle
ship fleet would add enormously In
the direction of that better under
standing.