Albuquerque morning journal., 1910-12-15
Declared Foreign Foe Might
Land on Pacific Shores and
1t Would Take Years and MIL
lions TO DiSIodge Him.
CONFIDENTIAL REPORT
SENT TO CONGRESS
Speaker Sends 1t Back With
Polite Note Explaining That
House Only TranSaCts BuSi-
ness in Open Session.


4 ~"-~"~eN
Washington, Dec. IA report
from the war department showing
how the country was inadequately
protected against invasion from for
eign governments was sent to the
house today as a secret document,
and after several conferences and hur-
ried telephone messages, was return
ed to the war department because the
house could not receive a secret re-
port
| Members of congress who saw the
document before its withdrawal say
the report of Secretary Dickinson
points out that the country is wholly
lunprepared for war; that there is a
woeful inadequacy of men, guns and
ammunition that the army should
be reorganzed and that council Of
national defense, with q secretary of
war at its head, should be created
| by congress.
The report Of General Wood. mark
ed confidential, dealt with these
matters and gave official administra-
tlon to matters that are of more or
less common knowledge among army
and navy experts in this country and
abroad. In fact, the Ssai significance
of the document is thai 1t makes Off
cial admission Of conditions already
we'll known among army and navy
officers,
General Wood, before the house
military committee, furnished some
interesting Information. He discuss
ed the whole subject of national de-
fense, told where the weak points lay
and laid particular emphasis on the
possibility of attack from the Orient.
He did not give vent to any alarm
list view. but talked confidentially OF
the prudence of taking immediate
action to guard against any possible
trouble from Japan or China.
Representative McLachlan of Cali
fornia, the author of the resolution
which brought about the official ex-
positions of the weakness OF the mill
tary defenses said:
"a foreign country could land 200,-
000 troops on the Pacific coast in
thirty days and the only intimation OF
trouble would be their blowing up
of the mountain passes, thus prevent
ing any communication with the east.
In the three states west of the ROCKY
mountains-C Oregon and
Washington-we have 1900 regular
troops, and 5000 state militiamen.
The best military authorities say that
ii would take years to dislodge for
eign troops if they ever secured
foothold under these conditions and
that 1t would cost the United States
a billion dollars
A bill introduced by Representative
Hobson embodies the administration
idea Of a national council for defense
and is the result of his conference
with President Taft, Secretary Dick
inson and other officials.
The holding up of the report grew
out of opposition Of Representative
Tawney of Minnesota, chairman OF
the appropriations committee, it is
said. He Is understood to have had
his attention called to it some time |
ago.
He then called the attention of the |
president to the policy of retrench-
mcnt in appropriations at this time
and advised him that, ftguratively, If |
the conditions cited in the report were
made public the whole retrenchment
policy would be interfered with.
After looking up precedents, the
speaker concluded there was no war
rant for the reception of the report
as a confidential communication.
Therefore he returned IL to Secretary
with a polite letter, calling
attention to the rules OF the house
which require all ordinary executive
to be printed.
recognition of the force of the
word confidential" marked upon the
document would involve its reference
10 a secret session which, the speaker
said. would be a procedure unpreced-
.nted for nearly a century,
Secretary Dickinson received TINS
etter very late in the day and conse-
luently withheld his answer until to-
morrow 1t is probable he will with
lold from the house the appendices
% the original report which contained
he confidential matter and resubmit
he document. emitting the inJunc-
iOnal confidence.