Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1915-11-22
TALK OF DEFENSELESS
CONDITION T0MMYR0T"
House Leader Kitclin Says Country
Is Prepared and Navy Is
big Enough.
5 TAXATION
BURDEN
FEARS
Leaders of His North Carolina Dis
trict DO Not Agree With His Views
and Are Casting About for Man to
Succeed Him.


fiINSTON y. G.. November Gloon
| gresham Claude liitchin has issued Il
statement TO papers in his district. in
which he charged that the reopie or
the country have been alarmed by
false representations of the Navy
League and 'other militaristS
He declares the United states Navy
ls second only 10 Great Britain's, and
is far superior to the German or
French
The present program or the admin
istration exceeds greatly that which
was proposed by Hobson and Gardner
last year. and If carried out will eN-
ceeu the combined increases OF all the
naNies of the world In any SinGi: year
OF history. continues MIR Kitchin He
maintains that there is a perfect ur-
derstandinG and siRcerc mutual re-
srct between himself and the prcsi-
dent.
All the talk and writings about our
utter heiplcssness. our dangerous un-
preparedness. our deieusclcss condi-
ton. is pure tommyrot." the Demo
cratic House leader SANS
The fact is we have built and are
building the strongest and most pow
ertul navy III the world. OF twenty
or Germany's battleships listed by our
navy yearbook sixteen are not able
10 go more than Loco miles from base
TO engage III naval warfare.
Not one OF the sixteen can carry
So''l enough 10 70 from Hamburg to
within 500 miles OF New York and re
turn.
The Oregon. which some OF our
naval experts say is obsol"ro. the In
diana and massachusetts also. in every
characteriStic OF lighting ship, are
German battleships listed by our year
book. Four OF the German ships list
ed by our yearbook as Dreadnoughts
are in reality not Dreadnoughts.
OF the big guns of tho ships we
have 2Si. while Germany has ONLY 1o4
We are prepared"
Mr.. kitchn speaks OF the terrible
burden OF TAXATION" and says the
treasury is unable TO stand the in
crease.
NO man in the administration or in
IN" Ways and Means Committee has
Yet been able to solve the problem Of
thlS enormous increase OF revenue
W hen the pcoplc begin to pav the
taNes for this enormous increase they
Will then perhaps realize what the
program means"
SAYS COAST DEFI3NSES
ARE NOT SURPASSED
our coast dcfcnSeS are as good AS
any in the world Mr.. Kitchin saws
would he impossible for Germany
or any other country to ever lombard
or land soldier on our coast pro-
"idcd we are equipped with mines and
submarines. with these We are ran
idly cquipping ourselves"
me statement says that the New
lork Herald, in a 'purported interview
by it's Washington correspondent with
me. printed story on November 10
winch was "a pure fabrication, a de-
!lberate falschood, manufactured in the
Herald Office in New York"
The Herald, whose owner years ,ro
abandoned his country TO live in Paris
ana who by cable from Paris dictates
MS policy, has Mr.. Kitchin alleges,
been fighting the Democratic party
nearly twenty years. never made n
reference IN the remotest way 10 the
sentiment in nay district or TO the
folks back home"
Having the approval of my judg-
ment and conscience, after mature
"tudN ana thought, and impelled by :,
schsc OF duty, take the step. matter
otherwise TO myself" the statement
concludes.