The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1913-10-30
# WAR SHOULD COME
paper read by Otto Mobile before the Chauta,
qua Cirle.)

paper read by Otto Mobile before the Chautau-
qua Cirle.)
If war should come, the United
States would be like Mrs. Murphy's
husband on Saturday nights in a
pickle. Z
The United States Army and
Navy were never so perfect as they
are now; but many men, men who
know, say our fighting force is in
adequate; while others are advoca-
ting the decrease of army, navy and
equipment. 1t is my opinion that
there is sense and logic to both
sides of the question. / am likewise
just as certain that both sides Of the
question consist of the most foolish
of foolishness.
While our perfected navy and
coast defense guard our harbors, our
small, but highly efficient army
maintains strict and rigid watch
over our inland, reinforced, if
needs be by our thoroughly equipped
state militia. And still there are
several nations whose fighting forces
are greater and, perhaps, more eff
cient than ours. If we pitted our
Navy against that of of Great Brit
ian we would go down-maybe. If
we pitted our Army against that of
Russia would possibly.
OF course there is our old standby
to fall back upon. What we lack
In strength is more than made up in
American fighting spirit. /, myself,
sincerely think 50. yet we cannot be
SO egotistical and minded as
to think that others haven't ma
tlonal spirit, or that tact and diplo-
macy is lacking in the experienced
war-leaders and their staffs, Of other
countries. so, perhaps, our fighting
force is inadequate. On the other
hand, is there any danger whatever
of an international war? Emphat-
ically and logically, no! True,
there are a few would-be powers
who are.eternally placing The proverb
ial chip on their shoulder, Or who
occasionally take kick at the shin
of some large and highly respected
country, but they are like flea on a
hound-one scratch of the foot and
away they go, to place a tickle on
some other part; and no nation is
going to take the trouble of knock
ing off the chip unless there be fl
nancial interest concealed in the
padding Of the shoulder beneath the
chip, and then, no doubt, the diplo-
mats would transfer the chip to the
other shoulder and gently remove
the financial interest.
Then there is The Hague; when
the leading nations of the world
draw up an impregnable compact
saying, Let there be peace" it is
almost certainty that there will be
peace, with capital P.
1t perhaps, is trifle broad state
ment to make that both sides of the
question consist of the most foolish
of foolishness, yet | am stating be-
lief that to my mind is correct.
While the present age has already
had countless prefixes tackled on to
it, such as the electric age" the
suffragist age, etc.," it will doubt
less go down through history as the
flying age" Air-ships of every
type are being perfected with such
rapidity, that no country will be safe
from utter decentralization If another
country send one of their fleets of
aerial warships against 1t. There is,
up-to-date, no adequate means of
coping against an invasion of the
above mentioned style.
A county will be in the same pre-
dicament that naked man would
,be on the shores of New Jersey on
summers night fighting mosqui-
tos. We have our armored auto
mobiles, equipped for demoralizing
air crafts, aud also air ships in our
war department. for offense or de-
Tense. Even the state militia Of
California has them in addition to
their submarine service; but think
of the billion-to-one chance we have
of keeping an air craft out of our
country. An ambitious army Off
Ger from an opposing nation, with a
capable and efficient driver, could
start from New York City on a
dark night, sail down the eastern
coast, around the gulf and away to