Polk County observer. (Monmouth, Polk County, Or.) 1888-1927, 1911-02-07

coast in four weeks time and could
keep coming until she would have
i 900, 900 trained troops here in less
than year. Separate expeditions
would take the Philippines, Samoa,
Hawaii and Alaska, which would give
the four great strategic bases to con-
troll the Pacific and to outfit expedi-
tions to operate in any direction-and
in this loss we would lose one-third of
our regular army.
We would then have 10000 regulars
and possibly 100000 partially trained
militia, and these troops are scattered
all over the country 1t would take a
long time to get them together and
even then not possible to get them
here, as our railroads would be de-
stroyed through the mountains, and all
help from the East shut off. few IN
dividuals would blow up the bridges
and tunnels at the first bugle call. We
would then have less than 10000
armed troops on the Coast.
"It took us four months to raise
PIG. 900 poorly armed and partially
trained troops during the Spanish war
In that time the Japanese could have
100000 troops on our shores, at one or
more points.
During the Civil War we had to
make drafts and use all sorts of expe-
dients to get enough men. We have
since paid out $4,000, ,00OO 900 in pen
sions, and with the new bill will pay
out annually over 5000, 900 in PEN
sions. All of this is not even interest
on what those old veterans have really
earned in saving the nation. Think OF
such long war-four years-and the
lives and billions of money it cost. 1t
is cheaper to be prepared for war, as
it will prevent it or else shorten its
duration, saving life, property and bill
lions of money.
conditions have entirely changed
since the Civil War, when they fought
in solid columns at only few yards
distance, with now obsolete weapons.
we now use extended formations.
The enemy could open fire on us from
behind a neighboring hill and out OF
sight, with their high power and high
angle guns, while with our new rifle
man is in range if he is in sight
three miles away Then what would
our citizens do with ordinary rifles,
against such arms? They would all be
picked off before they ever got
chance to fire.
Average Man No Marksman.
''The masses are no longer the crack
shots they were in early days. when
every man had to be prepared to de-
fend himself and home against Indians
or kin his meat from the wilds We
have a few, very few, men, who hunt
and know how to shoot their own
rifles, but the vast majority these days
are unskilled in rifle shooting, specially
with long range military rifles. | will
venture to say that there is not ri11e
to every man in the county now, and
not enough ammunition to make big
noise.
''It is idle talk to say such men with
all sorts of inferior rifles and no am
munition could even attempt to stop
trained troops with modern arms Not
only this, but we are not prepared to
equip ourselves, nor to take care of our
health. The ratio of death from dis
ease to killed is appalling-think of it
we lost 56 men from disease In the
Spanish war, where the japanese lost
one in the Russian war, proportionate
to the number killed.
II have already pointed out that
japan has the ships, the men and the
arms, and it would only be case of
embarkng them and debarking them
on our shores 20 days after We have
no naval strength on the Pacific. 1t
would take our battleship fleet four
months to get around the Horn, and
when they did get around they would
have no base, as the Japanese would
have secured them three months ear
Iler, and our fleet would be cut Off
from ammunition and supplies, In
time of war she could not use foreign
ships to carry her supplies, as she did
In her memorable cruise.
Supply of Arms Lacking.
with our present capacity, it would
take us about two years to make
enough small arms and about ten
years for the field artillery and their
necessary information to arm ana
eauip an army equal to the army that
the Japanese could mobilize in SO days
We COULD not arm such a volunteer
army IL we called il out. A trained
4, aNtrK KFFal.
unteers. and you can readily see that
we could not in year arm, equip and
drill volunteer army that could repel
a such an invasion. And the japanese
already being prepared, what would
they be doing all this time?
"The Pacific Coast Is over 5000 miles
from Washington and our political
military and financial strength. II Is
really closer TO Japan, according t6
transportation facilities. This modern
world is small nowadays, as everything
IL measured by time. With Japan''
big fleets of fast ships. she could put
men here faster than We could rail-
road them out from the East, even II
we had them and the tunnels wer,
not blown up.
b Il mention all OF these events and
conditions. TO show what Japan has
done.and how she is prepared, and
! how unprepared this Coast Is against
an Invasion We know all Of thess
things that Japan has done. and viii
consummate skin and seeming ease
and the future alone will tell us, how
much greater strength and resources
she is now conceallng-this giant of q
I decade-siient. serious. secretive anc
mysterious.
Japan Must Expand.
These four little islands, not so larg'
as our own state. packed with almos
40. .OOO. 600 people-must have room 4
! grow-must have more land, resourc
es and money. Asia is dcnsely popu
r lated and offers no room and she ha
already been subjugated by Japan