South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1915-09-14
TILE QUESTION OF \ MILITARY
CITIZENSHIP.

With a law on the statute books, /
tate or national, establishing a court I
# arbitration for compulsory settle /
nent OF labor disputes, and another /
aw reserving the citizen militia ex-
lusively for national defense and to
uppress invasion or Instruction /
gainst the government then We
would say the movement for the !
maintenance Of a citizen military camp |
n each Of the various states Of the /
Inion would be a very good thing.
1t is the uses 10 which state mi
itias have been put at Lawrence.
Mass, Houghton, Mich. and Ludlow,
-olo.. that have brought such organ
zations into the disrepute that has OF
ate years made their up-keep diff
,ult. II, with state militias on the de-
.line, the movement for citizen mill
las, through training camps, ETC., is
being tnaugurated by the Rockefel-
ers. the copper kings" and the
WOODEN mill wage slavers." under the
sisguiEe OF promoting patriotism. but
n reality 10 institute a sort Of con-
script system with trained conscripts
at its base, the desirability OF the ac-
.ompishment Is reduced to a mini.
mum.
We disagree absolutely with the
statement made at the meeting at the
oliver hotel. Saturday night, that our
ack OF interest in military affairs
marks a decline in our national pa
.riotism Patriotism does not neces-
sarily call for the shedding of any
oody's blood and ought not be con-
founded with militarism in any sense
Of either term. The United States will
never lac'- men to fight its battles
when thI.r services are really need
ed. II they viii but get a hump on,
and have i'm readiness plenty of guns
Of proper force. and ammunition, with
enough skilled leaders to officer it's
forces. you can trust pretty we'll to the
common sense and patriotism of
Americans to fill up the ranks and
with "a reasonable efficiency.
These trained officers can be had.
and a reasonable force Of regulars TO
support them and in training, IL
Washington will but substitute better
salaries for the men. for the army
and navy graft so long in vogue; and,
this supplemented by efficiency rather
than political tests as the basis for
promotions, Will make "A military
career more worth the trying. We
are still for the volunteer army. A
military training would of course be a
good thing for the volunteers, and we
are not opposed TO it, but a military
training with a string on it that is
equivalent TO CONSUMPTION. though
couched under a different head and
available for any other purpose than
for national defense. or TO suppress
insurrection. is a different matter.
A citizen militia might or might not
be conducive to a larger patriotism,
and. 1t might. or it might not, result
in a tendency toward national mill
tarism. In all probability when the
war in Europe is over. as it some day
will be, and the war spirit is less in
the ascendancy than it is now. even at
this distance, much OF this brand Of
patriotism which just now seems TO be
itching for tight will need occasional
applications of salt to keep it active.
We doubt very much II the people OF
America will, when peace is restored,
care TO give very much OF their time
to preparations for killing people. or
even resist being killed. when there
is no very immediate danger in sight,
and for that reason we doubt if a mill
itary spirit. TO the point of creating a
miIitarism OF national caste, will ever
be possible.
Ii is we'll and good that the young
men OF the United States should be
taught how TO handle a gun, keep step,
and properly salute an officer The
discipline OF IL is worth something. In
fact. we regard il as worth more as
a matter OF discipline than for any
thing else. unless. it may be that. with
the masses more subject TO call, II
would have "a tendency TO reduce
jingoism. The iingoist as a rule, is
a man who is pretty certain that hC
won't have TO flght-a very good agi
tator for the war trust" another
brand OF patriotism that is longer OF
dividends than on any branch of th'
public safety.
We would not discourage a cit
zens' military camp i'm Indiana, no.
a state convention such as IL Is pro
posed TO put il up 20 Gov. Ralston e
call There are various considera
tons. however. that should be brough
before the convention. and we hav
referred 20 only a few OF them.
VOCATIONAL LUNACY N THE