The Liberal democrat. [volume] (Liberal, Kan.) 1911-1924, 1915-12-10


training they need to take care of them
selves and OF 1t. The military arm OF their
government. which they will not allow to
direct them, they may properly use to
serve them and make their independence
secure-and not their own Independence
merely but the rights also Of those with
whom they have made common cause,
should they also be put In Jeopardy.
They must be fitted to play the great
role in the world. and particularly in this
hemisphere. for which they are quail
fed by principle and by chastened ambi-
ton to play.
1t is with these ideals in mind that the
plans of the department OF war for more
adequate national defense were conceived
which will be laid before you. and which
| urge you to sanction and put into eff
feet as soon as they can be properly scru-
tinized and discussed. They seem to me
the essential first steps, and they seem
to me for the present sufficient.
They contemplate an increase of the
standing force of the regular army from
It's present strength of SOB officers and
1902 9S5 enlisted men of all services to
strength OF 7136 officers and l34,707 en-
listed men. or 1883. all told, all serv-
ices, rank and file, by the addition of 81
companies of coast artillery, 10 com
panies Of engineers. ten regiments OF In
ldnlIys lOuI ItBlllthNS Va ~ A'iN' -
and four aero squadrons. besides $50 Oni-
GERS required for a great variety OF extra
service especially the all-'mportant duty
of training the citizen force of which !
shall presently speak, 1872 non-commis-
stoned officers for service in drill, recruit
ing and the like. and the necessary quota
of enlisted men for the quartermaster
corps. the hospital corps the ordnance
department and other similar auxiliary
services These are the additions neces'
sary to render the army adequate fer its
present duties, duties which 1t has to
perform not only upon our own CONT
mental coasts and borders and at our In
terror army posts. but also in the Phil
ippines, in the Hawaiian Islands, at the
lsthmus and in Porto Rico.
Force of Trained Citizens.
BY way Of making the country ready
to assert some part of its real power
promptly and upon a larger scale. should
occasion arise tho plan also contemplates
supplementinP the army by force OF
100000 disciplined citizens, raised In incre'
ments of $4,000 a year throughout pc
| Rod OF three years. This 1t is proposed
| to do by process of enlistment under
! which the serviceabe men of the coun-
| try would be asked to bind themselves to
serve with the colors for purposes Of
training for short periods throughout
three years, and to come to the cOlors
at call at any time throughout an addt-
| tlonal "furlough" period Of three years
| This force of 100000 men would be pro-
| yided with personal accoutrements as fast
as enlisted and their equipment for the
| field made ready TO be supplied at any
| time They would be assembled for train
| ing at stated intervals at convenient
| places in association with suitable units
| 81 Vaptttar Their DpriO6 OF
annual training would not necessarily ex-
coed two months in the year,
1t would depend upon the patriotic feel
| Ing OF the younger men OF the country
whether they responded to such a call
to service or not. It would depend upon
the patriotic spirit OF the employers OF
the country whether they made it posi-
BILE for the younger men In their EN-
ploy to respond under favorable condl-
lions or not. |. for one. DO not doubt
the patriotic devotion either OF our young
men or Vt those who give them employ
| ment-those for whose benefit and protec-
ton they would IN fact enlist.
The program which will be laid before
you by the secretary Of the navy Is sim
Harry conceived. II involves only O
shortening of the time within which plans
long matured shall be carried out; but II
does make definite and explicit a program
which has heretofore been only implicit
held IN the minds OF the committees or
naval affairs and disclosed in the debates
Of the two houses but nowhere formu.
lated or formally adopted. II seems tC
me very clear that 1t will be to the ad.
vantage of the country for the congress
to adopt a comprehensive plan for put
ting the navy upon final footing OF
strength and efficiency and to press thai
plan to completion within the next five
years. We have always looked to the
navy OF the country as our first and CHIEF
line of defense; we have always seen II
to be our manifest course of prudence
to be strong on the seas. Year by veal
we have been creating a navy which now
ranks very high indeed among the navie'
of the maritime nations. We should now
definitely determine how we shall com
plete what we have begun. and how soon
Program for the Navy.
The secretary OF the navy is asking
also for the immediate addition to th'
personnel of the navy of 1880 sailors
$50 apprentice seamen, and 1880 marines
This increase would be sufficient to cart
for the ships which are to be completed
within the fiscal year 1917 and also fol
the number OF men which must be put II
training to man the ships which will b,
completed early In 1918 II is also neces
| Sary that the number OF mldSnipmen
the naval academy at Annapolis SHOULD
be Increased by at least 300 In order tina
the force of officers should be more rap
idly added to- and authority Is asked t
appoint for engineering duties only, ap
proved graduates of engineering colleges
and for service in the aviation corps
certain number of men taken from civil
life.
II this full program should be carried
out we should have built or building II
1921 according to the estimates of surviv
al and standards OF classification followet
by the general board OF the department
an effective navy consisting OF q battle
ships Of the first line, six battle cruisers
% battleships of the second line, ten ar
mored cruisers, 10 scout cruisers. fv
hrst-cass cruisers. three second-clas
cruisers, ten thlrd-class cruisers. 1903 de
troyers IS fleet submarines. l57 coast sub
marines, six monitors, 20 gunboats, fou
supply ships. Is fuel ships. four trans
ports, three tenders to torpedo vessels
eight vessels OF special types. and tw
ammunition ships. This would be a nav
: fitted to our needs and worthy of on
! traditions
/ Trade and Shipping.
But armies and instruments OF war ar
only part of what has to be consdere
II we are to consider the supreme matte
of national self-sufficlency and seCurlt
mi.