The Detroit times., 1910-01-07
MUST BUILD UP
NAVY OR DROP BACK
Britain Must Spend $S00000, 900
on Fighting Ships in 1910 or
Lose Leading Position.

LONDON, Jan. s.-4wm. T. Stead
sends the following TO the New York
American:
The Old World confronts the New
Year without any sanguine confidence
In the gifts that may be in store Tor
II. IL II ha that the year 1910 bring
Is no war. many will be content, out
no one Is daring enough to hope that
1910 VIII see any pause in the appall.
Ing expenditure in the preparations for
war. Indeed. the peace OF "beggar-my-
neighbor" competition promises 10 be
swifter than ever. Tor the New Yenr
finds Great Britain at the parting OF
the ways.
Ii John Bull is rot definitely to give
up his historic position as Lord OF the
Seas. he Will have to find an additional
thirty million dclars for warships In
1910. The naval vote In 1909 was
$40 100000: In 1910 II will be over
$500. 100000. unless England has
thrown no the sponge and admits she
Is knocked out.
Germany. which has nearly doubled
its naval expenditure since the las.
Hague Peace confere ence, will speEd
this year nominaily $4,000, 900. but
in reality sl60.00Q.000. because expen-
diture put down TO the navy In Eng
land amounting tesl $4,000. 900 Is dis.
tributed under ether votes In Ger.
many. England, even If she spends
$500. 600 900. will be sore put to main
tain the two-puwe: standard when
Germany Is spending $l60.000.000. To
keep up her twp keels TO one pre-
gram will require naval vote not of
s200. 100000 but OF s3o0.000.0 900.
Must Pay Or Go Under.
II Is a stern ai.ernative-pay or so
under--bnt In this beggarmy-nei ighbcr
game. which has replaced actual war
as the test or tne resources and stan.
ira OF nations. there is no middle way
to escape.
In the pending general election the
gravity Of the Issue is obscured by the
fact that the leaders of neither side
dare put the grim reality before the
electors. The Peers who are protest
ing against the ''ironstrous exactions
OF the budget, do not dare tell the
country that IL they are placed in
lower they will be compelled to exact
hot sixteen, bus twenty millions ster-
ling OF additional taxation. The Lib.
erals. VINO hate all warlike expendi-
ture, prefer to extol the present
strength instead of attending to the
future needs OF the navy.
The anti-German panic mongers
have made Themselves ridiculous by
demanding an army Of two million
men for Che defense of the French
frontier.
The constitutional issue obscures
| the other questions, but when the firsi
tabinetflmeets atIsr the general elcc'
Non TO frame The estimates for the
year. the challenge will have TO be
faced. Great Britain will be at tho
crises OF her destinies.
The Irony OF Gladstone.
VIII she fincn, or will she pay. pay
pay? That is the supreme question
for which the New Year awaits the
answer.
We have been celebrating Glad
stones centenary amid a chorus OF
grateful voices supplied by the nations
which he helped tn liberty and inde-
rendence, but nothing could show how
far we have drlfted from the Glad
stonian era than that we should be
discussing the prospect Of naval vote
of 5000. 900 900. The mere proposition
is enough TO make the Grand Old Man
turn in his grave. His statue In the
Strand lends itself more effective,y
TO floral decorations than the statce
OF his great rival IN Parliament-sq
but Il is eostlier 10 bank up statue
in December with lilies and orchids
than to pile up votive offerings Of
primrosss before Beaconsfeld's In
April.
Unkind are the Fates. On tho
Unionist side Chamberlain Is permsn'
emily invalided. Lord Miner has a
sprained leg. and now the Earl OF
Percy's dead. On the Liberal side
Haldane is laid w with a bad cold.
The Peers will al! retire from the