The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-01-30
DEPENDENT ON OTHERS

fense."
 DEPENDENT ON OTHERS Americas improvident neglect to build merchant ships, the President said in ex- planation, had left the country dependent upon other nations to carry it's commerce, nations now at war, all friends of Amer iea, but preoccupied, stubborny steadfast in the maintenance of their main pur- pose.
 Wherever the ordinary rules of com merce at sea and or International re- lationship are apt to be thrust aside or ignored" he continued, there is danger of the more critical kind of controversy.
 Nobody doubts that, given time enough we can assert any amount of force necessary. But when the world is on fire, how much time do you want to take to be ready? When you know that there are combustible materials in the life of the world, and in your own national life and that the sky IS full of floating sparks from a great con1agration, are you going to sit down and say it is time when the fire begins to do something about 1t?
 T do not believe that The fire is going to begin, but 1 would be surer of it if we were ready for the fire"
 National defense, the President said, was not a party matter. He was sor- ny that the issue arose in a presi- dential campaign year, because of the danger that politics might becloud it. Republicans and democrats, he de- clared, were equally patriotic and should be able to agree on the nation al defense of their common country.
 RESTS WITH PEOPLE
 But. after all, the President con- tinued, the issue did not lie with Con- gress. He felt that Congress would do its part The issue lay with the young men and the employers of the coun- try. The question was whether the young men would volunteer in answer to the call and whether the employers would place no obstacles in the way of their responding. Not until this ques- tion was answered, the President said, would it be known whether America was to have an adequate national de- tense or not He expressed confidence that his appeal would be answeerd.
 The President criticized both advo- cates of peace at any price and the advocates of large standing army. The latter, he declared, are counsel 1ors the source of whose counsel is pas sion;' the former he likened to a man "so in love with peace that he cannot imagine any kind of danger; I almost envy him the trance he is in."
 Thousands heard the Presidents views on national defense at two meet ings in Pittsburg and other thousands crowded Grays' armory here tonight, where he brought his day to a close with the last of the three addresses. The President will spend the day quiet ly here tomorrow, leaving at midnight for Milwaukee to deliver address Monday which some of his advisers re- gard as perhaps the most important of his tour
 ARRIVED IN DOWNPOUR
 President Wilson's special rolled into Cleveland in a downpour. The heavy rain. however. did not deter tens of thou sands from standing patiently along the mile or more from the station to the hotel. They applauded him all along the route.
 After dining at the hotel, the President and Mrs. Wilson drove between side walks black with umbrellas. to the arm ory. There a crowd of 5000 had been awaiting him for more than an hour Many were turned away.
 To give them an opportunity to hear him, the President decided to address an overflow meeting from a balcony of his hotel
 The President entered the hall at S:3g ; ssnid long and deafening applause and / thereafter began to speak,
 After his speech at Gray's armory to- night, the President returned to his hotel and delivered a brief informal talk from the balcony to several thousand people standing in the rain in the street.
 He said he had worked a full day and added, amid laughter, that he would be breaking union rules by laboring over time
 SITUATION UNPRECEDENTED
 q suppose that this country has never found itself before in so sim gular a position" said the President "The present situation of the world