The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-08-17
WAR ECHOES

he can foretell the outcome of the strug- gle of the ages in which Europe is now engulfed. The newsboy on the street cor ner can give just as good a guess as the foremost dnancier or the greatest states 1 man in this or any other land as to the 1 length of the struggle and what changes 1t will bring about throughout the world. 1 We may give free rein to our lmagina-
 ton but 1t cannot paint scene of horror
 so great as that which covers all of Eu- rope Millions of homes will be darkened 1 by death and by poverty; billions of wealth. accumulated through the ages by
 work and frugality. will be swept away as though It never existed. Civilization will shudder at the ruthless disregard of hu- man life and at the measures adopted to
 kill and maim men and destroy cities l There are many lessons to be learned by
 the people of our own land from this con
 dition, and we need to learn them quick l y. and put them into immediate effect
 One of these lessons of supreme import
 ance is that through modern development 1 of rail and steamer and telegraph and ], the telephone and wireless communica-
 ton for the transportation of things and I thoughts, through the closeness of busi- ness relatio and the community interest throughout the world. no nation can live unto itself any more than the individual man can live unto himself. Nations touch l nations in all the wide ramhcations of l business, of kinship, of humanity. Many 1 of our politicians have boasted that around this nation we might build Chi nese wall and live in peace and pros perity. Limitless as are our resources their very extent has proven the folly l and the falsity of such statements. Be- | cause we cannot ship our grain and cotton
 our business is halted and for the mo-
 ment trade has been staggered. Many
 men have foreseen this condition because they have foreseen that whenever the great maritime nations of the world were
 arrayed in battle against each other it would be impossible for us to export our surplus products unless we had a mer- chant marine under our own flag The inn practicable plan for shipping abroad our wheat and cotton and coal in the few colliers owned by the navy only serves to show the strait to which our people have been brought and the apparent help lessness of the government by reason or , the need of merchant marine.
 If we would safeguard the future as well as help the present, if we would prepare
 to meet the possibilities of European war which may run as many years as
 most people have counted weeks or
 months, we ought without moments de-
 lay, putting aside all the preconceived mo- tions and political squabbles of the past, so legislate that every American ship yard would within the next few months be teeming with workmen crowding to their limit the building of merchant ships. The fullest upbuildng of our own ship yards is essential, for without their fur ther development the future might find us
 as helpless in many respects at present it finds our commerce helpless by reason of lack of merchant ships built and owned and operated by our own people This is
 no time to bubble over opposition to so- called subsidies This is no time for poli- ticians to strive to be consistent with their records in the past on this subject Con- sistency it has been said, is the resort of small minds. This is no time to do | other than to recognize that we are face to face with a situation so vital that all l political hostilities should be swept away, and that the people of all parties and all sections should unite in passing legisla- ton which for long term of years would | give a fair measure of guarantee that American built and owned ships could be run to profit.
 | If we now had a merchant marine equal l to our needs (and which we could have if | our lawmakers had been more disposed in the past to admit the seriousness of the | situation and to .legslate to meet it), we | would have been saved from the stagna- ton in the grain and cotton trade and the 1 influence which this has had upon every 1 business interest in the country. Our lack of merchant marine has already cost us | to develop by subsidies a merchant ma rine matching that even of Great Britain. | Will we longer hesitate in the face of the dangers which confront us?
 Resolved, That the Southern Cotton Spinners' association recommend to Con- gress the enacting of legislation carrying l such compensation as will stimulate the development of American shipping inter- ests under the American flag to an extent necessary to handle American commerce on the high seas in time of peace. and which will provide at the same time such | transports and auxiliary service as may | be needed in time of war
 This resolution was unanimously and en-
 thusiasticaly adopted in May, 1900, at one of the most largely attended meetings
 ever held by the Southern Cotton Spin rers' association at Charlotte.
 | Kansas City Star: The war cor
 respondent who used to report the
 progress of the engagement hour by
 hour and who could give the command
 CTS advice on strategy and tactics has
 had his day. His last opportunities were
 in the Spanish war in this country aud
 the Philippines and the Boer war in
 South Africa. Since then he has been
 effectively bottled up.
 | Whom Russia and Japan clashed in
 spondents hastened to the scene of ac- l tion. They were received cordially, espe- cially by the Japanese. and invited fre- quently to teas given by high function
 aries. But they were politely told that
 it would be useless for them to get too
 close to the fighting, since they could
 not be permitted to send accounts back
 home. Some of them as special favor. ! T rIk 1,f