The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1915-06-26
.'W'ORll- e, WIDE WAR TRUST. .
BY CONGRESSMAN .TAV VI Il !, L r;

BY CONGRESSMAN. %TAVENNER. i
There are tricks in all trades. + II
the peoples Of the several powers can
pc melted to mutual. distrust, 8 suspi-
cion and hatred, for instance, it
1neans increased dividends for the
stockholders of the war traffckers in
each country f&., 4,
The several leading powers aim to
increase their naval strength in the
Same proportion. If one of the DOW
ers can be induced to take on an ad-
dltional superdreadnaught,, it is used
as an argument as to why the other
leading powers should do the same.
1t works as an endless chain, with
the war burden ever and ever in
creaslng on the backs Of the tax
pagers of the world -
II new design can be worked out.
tRat, too, means more grist for the
stipbuilders. It calls for the speedy
scrapping' of the vessel already on
hand as "obsolete,'' "scrapping''
meaning throwing; on the scrap heap
as old junk. So the life of the battle
ship Is ever lessening.
Another trick in the trade Of the
war traders which obviously profit
able, otherwise it would not be con-
tlnueo. Is the hiring of retired! army
ana navy officials and ex-rnembers of
congress by the powder, armor, and
snlppulldlng CONCERNS. These ex-of-
nc1als know the inner working of the
military branches OF the government.
know the personnel in an intima
way, and by private conversation nv
rrcSDOndQncn
are In position to obtain much us.
full information. They know how to
go about things for results. Throurh
these ex-ofhcials the War Trust has
tecome thoroughly atahome: inn WASH
* gton.
) Ihere seems to be no limit to the
extremes to which the war traders are
willing to 60 for business.
Although scarcely behevab BILE. it 10
tile proven fact that British: and Ge-
man war trusts many years ago &C
tually set about to represent to their
respective nome governments tha,
their rivals were planning to build
and building great armadas' of giant
fighting craft, which have since heen
proven absolutely to have been fig
ments OF the imagination pure, and
simple The same character of
campaigns has been going on between
france and Germany, between the
countries in the triple alliance and the
triple entente, and it is yet to be es
tabllshed whether the United States
has not also been.the victim of a. SINH
lar brand of commercialism, in which
fatrlotlsm Is the means and profit the
end.
Misrepresentation as to the building
programs of Great Britain and Ger
many were carried on to such an ex-
tent that the, papers became full of it.
and the suspicion that there could be
but one end to such proceedings. and
that end war.
Specific information replete with
"details. Is available to show just how
the work was carried on. !.:'
Briefly, this is. the story Beginning
In 1905. Mr.. II. III. +.MulHner, manag-
Ing director of the Coventry Ordnance
Co., of England, one of the great
British trafficking concerns, . gave
himself to the work of propagating
the myth of gigantic expansion of
krupp's works in particular and Ger
man military acceleration in general.
lit was an underground campaign.
but subsequent letters and speeches
(Mulliner's communications to London
Times, Aug. 2 and 16, Sept. 21, Dec.
II and II. 1909; Jan. 1, 3, 6, Z, SIP.
Is and ,1S. 1910. etc., Indicate that
Mr. ,Mulliner's information, sent
first to the war office in May, 1906.
was passed on to the admiralty.''
was discussed by them with several
outsiders" and then passed from
hand to hand so that hundreds have
read it."
OF this information" it need only
be added that as soon as it became
public it was 'contradicted by Messrs.
krupp, through Hon. John. ,Leyland.
member of Parliament in England
and other correspondents. After some
years 1t was practically admitted by
the British government to have been
false. Time has proved that. it never
had any real basis :.+>.
But the information" had it's ef-
feet, the effect that Managing Director