The Washington herald., 1914-09-13

powerful misguiding influence. and one
OF the results has been that this country
10 placing It's trust In God. rather than
In its powder supply. obliyious to Ma
poleon's dictum that God always fights
on the side that has the most powerful
artillery.
The Cost In Blood.
In estimating the cost OF war in human
lives. we cannot count values which may
be placed upon them by sentiments Of
humanity. but only such values as, when
destroyed. make the losing nation eco
nomically 50 much poorer.
According to l. s. Bloch, a newborn
child Of the farming class has a value OF
SIS. At fve years Of age he has value
Of $50. At ten years OF age he is worth
about 500. At fifteen he is worth almost
1900. and at twenty he is worth a little
/ more than 1900. His maximum value is
at twenty. and he begins to deprecIate
in value as he grows older, because OF
his shortened days Of service.
Therefore. the average economic value
OF soldiers may, according TO Mr.. Bloch,
be put at a thousand dollars.
According to David Starr Jordan, il
costs one country about $1,000 for each
soldier Of another country killed In bat
tie. 50 that. according to these two
emlnen peace advocates and peace prop
asandists, when the Germans slsy. say.
a thousand Of the allies, the loss to the
allies is the value OF the thousand mel.
namely, a million dollars, and as 1t costs
the German fifteen times as. much to
kill them as they are worth. the loss 10
the Germans Is 81. Co., so that the
actual German loss Is fifteen as great
as that Of the allies. But as the allies
are killing a good many Germans. they
are generously sharing with the Germans
a fair proportion OF the cost Of the war
Actually these figures are not out Of
the way. The fact Is that. in modern
warfare. labor-saving machinery in the
shape Of magazine rifles and quick-firing
guns, Is so largely employed that most
OF the fighting is now done by ma
chineTy instead of by hand as il used
to be in olden times and the actual loss
Of life for the numbers engaged IL cor
respondingly less than II used TO be,
while the cost is correspondingly greater.
In modern warfare the loss OF money
is far greater than the loss OF life II
Is more the dollar than blood, that is
now shed.
In ancient times, when men fought
hand-to-hand in compact form. with
short sword. spear and battle AZ. they
used often to slay half the numbers en-
gaged-easily ten times as many for the
numbers engaged as are now slain. There
are more than lO.OO0. 900 allies now under
arms against more than 1000 900 Germans
and Austrians. These numbers have not
as yet all been brought face to face with
one another on the line Of battle, owing
to modern methods Of warfare; but tn
der old-time methods with old-tine
arms, they would have been at once
brought into collision in two enormous
armies. In ancient times. less mobiliZa-
ton could be effected in A -ear than
can now be effected in 4 month, but
when the collision came. the issue Of
the war was decided on one great field.
II these great European armies were
armed with short swords, spears and
battle-axes. as they used to be. instead
Of with modern war weapons and engi-
merry. they would. during the time they
have been engaged. very likely have
slain third of their number-certainly
ten times as many in proportion to the
number engaged as have actually been
killed in the present war. Even a tenth
Of their numbers would be a million and
one-haK
Never in all history have such vast
numbers Of men been drawn up in line
Of battle. Never have they been so
scientifically armed. and consequently,
never have they. for the numbers en-
gagged. killed 50 few Of one another
Modern machine guns and quick-fring
guns with bullets and shrapnel and can
lister. are SO deadly that troops in mass
form can not live for a minute in front
of them. but as opposing armies with
the modern war machinery line up for
attack at the present farther removed !
tactical distance, and throw out their
men in long extended battle lines, and
spread them over correspondingly wide
areas, the fight becomes one largely Of
gun against gun. engine against engine. :
with the result that not nearly so many /