The Washington herald., 1913-09-21

ound. commander of the left wing OF tn
!. Brodie, Chaplain Brown, Leonard Woo
uniform, nothing but my service uni
! form, during my brief experience in
the army.
Ncrccnary Patriotism.
suppose that war always does
bring out what is highest and lowest
! in human nature. The contractors
who furnish poor materials to the
army or the navy in time of war
stand on a level OF infamy only one
degree above that of the participants
, in the white slave traffic themselves.
But there is conduct far short OF this
which yet seems inexplicable to any
man who has in him any spirit OF dis
interested patriotism combined with
any power OF imagination. Respect
able men. who | suppose lack the
imagination thoroughly TO realize
what they are doing. try to make
money out of the nations necessities
in war at the very time that other
men are making every sacrifice, finan-
cial and personal, for the cause.
In the closing weeks of my service
as Assistant Secretary Of the Navy we
were collecting ships for auxiliary pur-
poses sumo HtIs at COEN u U" II
purses, helped us freely and with
efficiency: others treated the AFFAIR as
an ordinary business transaction. and
yet others endeavored. at some given
crisis. when our need was great, TO
sell Us inferior vessels at eNorbitant
prices. and used every pressure.
through Senators and Representatives,
TO accomplish their ends. In one OF
two cases they did accomplish them
81
board established to superintend such
purchases. A more curious experience
was in connection with the point
chosen for the starting for the eN-
pedition against Cuba.
I had not supposed that any huma n
being could consider this matter save
from the standpoint Of military need.
But one morning very wealthy and
influential man. respectable and up
right man. according to his own lights.
called on me to protest against our
choice of Tampa. and TO put in A plea
for a certain other port, on the ground
that his railroad was entitled 10 its
share OF the profit for hauling the
army and equipment! ! happened to
know that at this time this very man
had kinsfolk with the army, who
served gaIlantly. and the circumstances
OF his coming to me were such as to
SnO" tnal ne was Upl aGllllS sCtiNAAs
and had no idea that there was any
thing out Of the way in his proposal.
I think the facts were merely that he
had been trained to regard business
as the sole object in life. and that
he lacked the imagination to enable
him to understand the real nature OF
the request that he was making; and.
moreover. he had good reason to be-
lieve that one of his business cOmpeti-
tors had been unduly favored.
Army Staguation.
The War Department was in far worse
shape than the Navy Department. The
young officers turned out from West Point
are precisely as good as the young Off
GERS turned out from Annapolis, and this
always has been true. But at that time
(sOmethfng has been done to remedy the
worst conditions since). and ever since the
close OF the civil war. the conditions were
such that after a few years the army
officer stagnated so far as his profession
was concerned When the Spanish war
broke out the navy really was largely
on a war footing. as any navy which is
even respectfully cared for in time of
peace must be. The admirals, captains,
and lieutenants were continually practic-
ing their profession in almost precisely
the way that IL has to be practiced in
time of war.
Except actually shooting at foe, most
of the men on board ship went through
in time of peace practically all that they
would have to go through in time OF war.
The heads of bureaus in the Navy De-
partment were for the most part men
who had seen sea service, who expected
to return to sea service, and who were
preparing for needs which they them
selves knew by experience. Moreover,
the civilian head of the navy had to pro-
vide for keeping the ships in a state of
reasonable efficiency, and Congress could
not hopelessly misbehave itself about the
navy without the fact at once becoming
evident.
How High To shave N Males Tail.
All this was changed so far as the army
was concerned Not only was it possible
to decrease the efficiency of the army
without being called to account for It,
but the only way in which the Secretary
or War could gain credit for himself or
the administration was by economy. and
the easiest way to economiZe was in con-
nection with something that would not
be felt unless war should arise. The
people took no interest whatever in the
army; demagogues clamored against IL.
and inadequate though IL was in size,
insisted that II should be still further re-
duced. Popular orators always appealed
to the volunteers: the regulars had no
votes, and there was no point in poll
ticians thinking of them.
The chief activity shown by Congress
men about the army was in getting
special army posts built in places where