Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1914-05-21

He declared that 10000 men and two
or three years time and an expenditure
of 100000 a day would be required for
the subiugation of Mexico should the
present complications produce war.
In conclusion he called upon all Amerl-
cans to aid the President in his efforts
to find peace.
Mr.. Taft took the place to-day of
Secretary of State Bryan whose duties
at Washington prevented him from full
filing an engagement to address the con-
gregation upon international Peace"
Oscar Straus, representative of the
United States in The Hague conference.
also spoke. He pointed out that the
Russian japanese war was settled
through mediation and that interference
by an outside power in an international
dispute was no longer regarded as an
unfriendly act.
\ TIME FOR CANDOR
Mr Taft said in part;
with our dreadnoughts and our other
hattleships assembled at Tampico. Vera
Cruz and Mazatian, with 500 or more
of our regular army in possession of
Mexican city. and with the rest of our
available force assembling at convenient
strategic points for possible further in
Vasion of Mexican territory. il may occur
TO some that it is not appropriate to have
q peace Sunday or to hold a peace meet
ing. For those of us, however. who hope
that we may not be involved in further
warike activity, or In actual war, there
could be no time more fitting for an eX-
preston of that hope,
This is not a time for wishing that the
past had been otherwise, but It is
time for candor and clear understand
ing Of the situation. Our arguments and
our hopes for peace will seem reasonable
only when we make 1t clear that We are
not blind to existing conditions.
II yield to no man in my earnest desire
for peace AID in my destation of war: but
an advocacy of peace that ignores condi.
TORS and takes nc note Of what is practi-
cal is ft.tilc and ineffective. Threatened
war between two stable nations is much
easier TO deal with than such condition
as confronts us IN MeZ!co
REVOLUTION rs + DI5EASE
What we have to contend with Is tbs
disease OF revolution. Eighty Ger cent Of
the people are ignorant and illlterAtc
They have suffered wrong and are strus.
sling blndly with purpose more or less
ill-defnod, In a state of society whose
bonds are almost entirely loosed 4 three
years war has laid waste the country,
destroyed It's industry and exposed all
foreigners rcs'dent IN the country to law
less violence and ali their i-vcstnents
there to destruction. 1t has In fact be-
come an international nuisarc". in such
a case a neiShboring nation nay properly
intervene and help the forces of law and
order TO end such anarchy just because
L wishes to live in a quiet neighborhood,
and not from spirit of con-
quest and greed of territory But II we
are TO he involved in war because of Mex
lean anarchy. let us have 1t fully under
stood that we go into It "in the service of
mankind" as the President phrases it. and
upon the issue of a mere punCtilio IN
naval ceremonial
Let us not enter lightly or inadvisedly
on the course that will involve a sacrifice
the extent of which may we'll make us
pause.
NEED 100000 MEN
There are 100000 people in Mexico
There are 10000 square miles. Large
parts of it are trackless deserts large
parts of 1t are difficult mountain ranges;
large parts of 1t are tropical jungle and
forest. We have say 5O,6S mobile troops
of the regular army fit to take the field
in Mexico, II the available military
force of MeXicans trained and made
hardy by a three-year war were to be
massed against our troops, we should
need much larger force than We now
have. to capture the large strategic in
land towns, After we had captured them
and dispersed the armies, the forces
against us would adopt a system Of
guerrilla warfare. The best expert esti-
mate of the force required by us to gar
rison the necessary towns. suppress guer-
rilla warfare and tranquiize the coun-
| try is 100000 men, and II is said that this
would take two or three years and H.
volve an expenditure OF 81 cocoon a day.
"rhe wisest course Tor Us to pursue, If
1.-The duty Is before US of suppressinG an