The Washington times., 1915-12-10
Frankly Admits He Does Not
Know How Forces For Cont
mental Army Can Be Raised.
COST WILL BE sls2,ooo,ooO
Secretary Scores Those Who
Declare Increases in Army
Are Not Necessary.

1ne Administrator military pre-
naredness policy is outlined today in an
exhaustive report by Secretary Of War
Garrison. O..
In his report Secretary Garrison not.
only explains in detail the plan for
strengthening the land forces, which
will be presented to Congress- in bills
now In preparation. but he mercilessly
lashes the opponents Of preparedness
Secretary Garrison's plan, in a nut
shell, is to increase the strength OF the
regular army from 10S 900 to 1Sl 800 men:
retain, the militia at its present strength
Of $4,000 and provide for new con-
tinental army of 100000. He would in
crease The available military strength
from 2S7. 900 to 67O,SOO men.
The total first years cost is estimated
as S1S2, 200. .0O0. ...
In adopting this plan Secretary Gar
rison. rejected plan submitted by War
College. calling for q regular army Of
$4,000 men and first years expense of
In Three Glasses.
Secretary Garrison divides the op
ponents OF preparedness into three
classes. states their. arguments and
answers them, ...
In the first class he puts those who
do not feel free to base their conduct
upon a consideration of facts or
conclusions of reason, because of
their Interpretation Of divine iu-
In the second. class he mentions
those who predict that war will never
come to this country. and assert that
therefore precautions for defense are
needless. '.'
In the third class he puts those who
fear that to arm the nation will be
an invitation to use these arms.
The Secretary does not give much
space to the first class which relies
on divine injunction except to say
that he cannot see any distinction be-
tween using physical force to repei
wrong, and using mental force to re
pie. error and moral force to 'repel
AS Lasting Evil.
To the second class who predict that
there will be no more wars Secretary
Garrison says that wars have come
upon the nations from the earliest
date of recorded history.
There is no basis and no founda-
tion to conclude that this great evil
1t therefore must be treated as are
all other existing evils, and must be
prepared against" He would rest on
Preparedness. not prediction.
.; Those who counsel inactiOn because
they mistrust themselves and the ma
tion, who base their council upon the
expressed fear that II we possess force,
We VIII be induced to use it when we
9houid not" are accused Of faulty
This position Secretary Garrison
said, ignored the fact that II nations
which possess force are likely to use
1t when they should not, some nation
which has such force Is likely to use
1t against us when 1t should not. 1t
assumes that our nation may not be
misuse It. I know OF nothing which
1ustines such an indictment of our peo-
pie and our nation"
Reply To ''MiIitarism."
Replying to those who raise the cry
Of ''rnilltarism' Secretary Garrison said:
THE eyes Of many are blinded to
fact and their minds closed to reason
BY an adherence Of what they term
'rnilitarism' without any actual coneep-
ton Of Just what this means or how II
should affect the proper consideration OF
the subject. II by militaTism they mean
the placing Of the military authority
over the civil authority, or II they mean
that the ordinary processes Of govern
TO military authority or influence. no
Argument Is needed to secure u nifty
of opinion that this Is not OF lde-
slrable but in this country I, BILE
II they mean. however, that {, rea-
sonable, sensible precaution OF a mill
tary nature Is militarism. then they
have reached a. conclusion without the
aid of clear vision or sound reasoning.
Those who really fear militarism, or
more accurately stated, those who
dread real militarism. should be the
strongest advocates OF reasonable pre-.
paration. The latter Is the preventive
of u1iiitarism. If they unwisely defeat
reasonable preparedness. they leave the
country in a condition where the inevi'
table result of defeat, humiliation ol
acute apprehension will be hasty and i'll
advised provisions as to armament fal
beyond anything which calm reason anC
wise provision would deem necessary
Driven Into War.
"There will be some" secretaryS Gar
rison continues, who assert that the de
vastatInR effects and the horror pro
duced by the war now being wAgeC
make Il certain that war will be avoid
ed for a long period of time after th'
close of the present war They vii
aTkuS InHL tnc eNHduBliOIl Oh RESOURCES
ard the recollection of the AWFUL sui
ferlnE will have the effect OF deterrinl
nations from entering upon war.
What basis Is there for such belief
Certainly such basis cannot be fount
in histOry--Our own or that Of othe
nations.
'The cOloaists had barely passe,
through the exhaustive and devastating
wars with the Indians before they en-
RaKed in the Revolution, That war wa
surely as exhausting to our meager re
sources and as productive OF horribl
conditions as can well be imagined, an
yet within a very short time after II
close we were on the verge Of war wit
two of the greatest nations OF tn
world. and finally went to war wit
one OF them.
The war between the States ma,
every element of exhaustion and ever,
untOward effect which war produces
ald vet at it's close we took o positlo
I'm support OF the Monroe doctrine whic
would inevitably have brought on wa
With one OF the great nations OF tn
- -. d - a