The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1916-01-10
CHAMBERLAIN MAKES
PREPAREDNESS SPEECH
Declares We Bully Little Nations and
Cringe to Those of Military
Power.
MONROE DOCTRINE VIOLATED
Oregon Senator Declares Great Bril-
tain Should BE Brought to Book as
Sharply as Germany and Austria.

New York. Jan. s.-No man has
ever spoken more bluntly and unre-
! servedly about the weakness of the
, United States foreign policy. or more
! frankly about the dangers that con-
tinued pacificist ideas would lead to-
than Senator George l.. Chamberlain,
of Oregon, yesterday at there
publican Clubs Saturday nonpartisan
discussion Senator Chamberlain is
a Democrat and the chairman of the
senate Committee on Military AZ
fairs:
he said that in dealing with Haiti
and the smaller nations we have acted
ike great bully, but when 1t comes
10 dealing with the greater powers of
the world we act like towards, he
was ashamed to say. There was not
single instance in diplomatic his
! tory. he asserted that We hadn't got
| the worst of 1t because OF the dicta-
! ton of some first-cla power
| Moro than 400 men of all sorts of
| political beliefs gave to Senator
Chamberlain such applause as men
give when the y are deeply stirred.
They had never heard any comment
! from major government off1jcial
I quite so downright and SO frank. It
appeared that they were fairly startled
I when the Senator charged that Eng
lands alliance with Japan was meant
to intimidate this country, and that
now that the troubles with Germany
and Austria were well along toward
settlement, IL was time to bring Great
britain to book and prepare against
Japan.
Unpreparedness Advocate.
There were numerous other speak
Representative Martin Dies. OF
Texas, whose voice raised for COM
piete unpreparedness might have
! been Mr.. Bryan's with Southern ac-
cent; President John Grier Hibben.
OF Princeton. who warned the United
States that Great Britain's war weak
ness of always being too late. was a
/ frigh;ful example for any nation; the
Rev. DR.. George r. Van de Water.
who told the audience that it was this
nations Christian duty TO fight for
peace: Msjor-General John F.
Organ. who appealed for Congress
sional action to make the national
guard of every State an efficient fght-
ing force, and Colonel Alexaner S
Bacon, who said he could take any
American military expert to Europe
and win the war for the allies in sixty
days-but the address of Senator
Chamberlain was the one that made
ears ring and hearts beat fast.
We all want to reach the same
ends" began the Senator, even III
| with different methods. Now Is tho
time to speak our convictions, even
| though we offend our hearers, l speak
for better preparedness for defense.
Tells of Three Classes.
There are in this country three
classes of persons. First come the
pacificists, who speak for peace at
any price--peace without honor. III
| need be. There is one great people
who have peace at any praice today
China The only others that / know
of Who are al perpetual peace are the
deat /. Which do American people
want--the peace Of China. or the
peace of the dead?
The second class Is made up of
those who believe in preparedness
and that an emergency exists today.
This condition Is a critical one and
believe that VIE ought tn he pre-
pared, The third class, who hold
the balance of power, are those who
have not given the subject OF pre-
paredness much thought, IL any.
Have Played Part OF Bully.
In dealing with the smaller ma
tons We have acted like a great bully.
When Haiti has a revolution and re-
fuses to pay her debts, we send war
ships and a few marines to take
charge. When any of these republics
to the south fail to do their duty
We do not hesitate to send and take
charge of their finances. But when
| 1t comes to the time that we have to
/ deal with the great powers of the
i world, wo do not act like a brave ard
| courageous nation. we act like cow
! ards ! am ashamed TO say.
J Notwithstanding the Monroe Doc
ltrine. We have since 1928 permitted
nstions, and particularly Great Bril-
! tain to violate 1t in more instances
than one. and the United States has
tnevnr done more than to make a
| Nlent protest. Great Britain took
British Honduras and islands in the
! West Indies, but we consented to the
violation, and executed the Clayton
Bulwar treaty in 1852. When we had
| an opportunity to correct this viola
| ton, we reassented to 1t in the Hay
! Pauncefote treaty in 1901. We let
Great Britain construct fortresses in
/ the West Indies in violation of the
I Monroe Doctrine. When American
| brain, energy and money built the
! Panama Canal. We again consented
/ to violation of the Monroe Doctrine
and gave Great Britain in the con-
/ troll of the canal the same voice that
we exercise.
| China and Japan.
when We come to poor, effete
! = NINA, We fOfDld ner laDOrlnS claSeS
! from landing in this country. When
( we come to deal with warlike ma
! ton like Japan. who has people as
objectionable as the laboring GLASSES
of China. we permit her. because she
/ has power, TO say which OF our citi
! zens shall be admitted. A gentlemen's
/ agreement! When we agree with n
! first-ciass power we permit II to die
/ tate to the United States what we
I shall do. We have the humiliating
spectacle of a Secretary of State going
/ TO the California Legislature and
, begging on his knees for them not 10
enact laws which might ruffle the
feelings OF great warlilie power
across the Pacific.
There Is not a single instance in
the diplomatic history of the United
States that we have not gotten the
wors OF 1t. We have yielded in every
! arbitration, and always at the dicta-
! ton of some first-class power.
rather than fight as the American
people feel disposed to do when the
opportunity is given to them. IL the
policy is be continued. we need no
army, no preparedness. All We need
is To let the powers parcel out our
country as is being done in China,
because We are afraid to fisht,
txa1 frnt 1f milf ftAp-