Newark post., 1913-12-03
International Arbitration
Discussed By DR.. Holmes

DllIdlloll.
The speaker referred to the idea
that originally prevailed, of the
earth S being ruled by violence of
the dominion in the animal world,
where the creature with the thick
est hide, the most powerful jaws.
and sharpest claws, ruled over all
weaker creatures. History is like
a looking glass country. The only
way to get on in the future is to
look back i'll the glass and profit by
what we see there. We must Get
away from the idea of being ever
lastingly prepared not to be rea-
sonable but violent.
In the animal world two-legged
creature, standing on end, and
with teeth, claws, and skin not
worth mentioning from stand
point OF perfection, came along
and conquered the universe. Can
we not as nations learn that our
strength lies in our intelligence
rather than in our power to wreak
vengeance For forty years we
have been busy making guns, then
making larger guns, and on and on
III an endless see-saw which takes
us nowhere. Some day we shall
awaken to the stupidity of such a
policy. If there were no better
known method to follow our pres
ent course would be right and
proper, but let us consider some of
the facts.
The United States has been
party to over a hundred cases of
arbitration. There is no instance
on record where the decision has
been questioned or force has been
necessary in enforcing it. The con-
dltlon seems due, rather, to lack
OF appreciation of what intelli-
gence means. We as individuals
have reached the stage where we
know we can't have everything we
want. We have yet to learn it as
nations.
DIR. Holmes quoted some start
ling figures which illustrated the
vast sum spent i'll the upkeep of
our army and navy. In 1881, we
spent $13,O00,000; in 1891, $22,
100000; 1901, $56,OOO,OOO; 1911.
$l2l 100000; 1912, $13O,OOO, 900.
and although the Secretary of the
Navy has not yet officially report
ed for this year the appropriations
total something like $146,0O0,OOO.
During the eight years preced-
ing the Spanish American War an
average of $57, 100000 was spent
on our army and navy, annually.
During the eight years following
the average expenditure was $185
100000 annually. Two-thirds of
our national income is spent on
our army, our navy ana our pen
slons. When we finished the Civil
War we had debt of somthing
like $3,00O,000,O00. During the
1890 s we reduced the sum to 81.
OO0,O00,000 since which time hav-
ing entered upon the policy of en-
larglng the navy, with all it's
great expense, the old war debt
has remained the same. The sum
expended is great enough to re-
forest three times all denuded for
est lands of the country or to
build two Panama Canals.
Can we imagine our impressions
If it were possible for us to stand
off on some other sphere and view
the methods of this old world? We
would see great nation whose
people claim intelligence, spending
tWo-thirds of their income prepar-
ing to defend themselves against
some possible enemy that may be
lurking somewhere, and shutting
their eyes to the real enemies in
their midst who are destroying
their citizens by the hundreds of
thousands annual y-such as the
bacclll OF tuberculosis at the rate
OF 10000 per year and the bacilli
Oh lFphold fever, 1000 annually. |
Some there are, declared the
speaker, who claim that courage
and vlrility and manhood can be /.
nurtured in no way so satisfactor-
lily as by a war, but the looking
glass of history proves that the
is true. The towards stay
at home; the flower of a nations s
manhood goes to war. The facts
that III France the birthrate is
lower than the deathrate; that the
stature of the French soldier is 9
inches less than the average two
generations ago are not accidental
but the logical results of the Ma
Doleonic wars. The period of
ireek brilliancy when she set a
standard which orr s1lhsau,,ant ci,,