Evening journal., 1916-05-23
''Futility of Preparedness to
Preserve Permanent Peace

At the Wilmington High School yes
terday morning the prize essays in
the contest conducted by the Delaware
Peace Society, were read. All of them
were extremely interesting and de-
serving OF the highest amount of
praise, as each one showed deep
thought and excellent constructive
work on the part Of the students who
competed. The essay by Miss Marian
J. Kyle, OF the February section of the
graduating class. which won the first
prize in the girls section OF that class,
is herewith given:
Peace is the absence Of private. civil
DIT fereign strife; while history proves
that armament tends towards strife.
This being true. is it not futile to try
to preserve peace by fostering the
very factor that causes strife?
We have learned in private life that
an armed man is a menace to the conn
mrnity. and il Is high time we were
reelizing that an armed nation, like
wise Is a menace to the world. Prep
aration for war is the occasion of
war n the United States has a great
army and navy. then the United states
viii have a great war The spending
of lrast sums of money at this time
upon armies and navies would be the
hascncss ot cruelty and stupidity Be
cause of It's armies and navies the
Ia nd
every human hand that can he spared
Is needed 10 bind mp wounds, while
millions Of widows and orphans are
DIVING of starvation And yet the cry
OF our rulers is for more men to kill.
and to be killed. and for more money
to be taxed from their subjects and TO
be wasted on battlehclds
l3ut. Wt are told that this armament
IS for defense So it has been with
oNery army and navy since the world
BEGAN. The great armies of Germany,
We are assured are for defense, and
Germany is waging a defensive wa
fare against the world We are told
that the Romans engaged in a defen-
sive warfare from the first II was to
defend Rome that they annexed the
cities OF Latium. II was to defend
Rome that they extended their boun-
dafies TO the po and the Pyrenees.
il was TO defend Rome that Scipio
carried the war into Africa, that Cae-
sas conquered Gaul and Pompey Syria
and the East Yes. ! repeat Il, all
wars have been waged under the slo-
gan of defensive wars
Military preparedness is not only
dangerous to our peace, butit threat
ems our liberties Military govern
menis must be autocratic and despotic.
Again and again the liberties Of a
people have been sacrificed to the
ambition OF the leaders Of it's armies.
Caesar i'm Rome. Cromwell in Eng
land Napolean I'm France are signal
examples OF what happens when am
bitioh and military power 90 hand in
hand. Napoleon in the period of hf-
teen years conQuerer and lost Europe
Napoleon freed Europe from the evils
of an outworn system, but he did II
al The cost Of France and OF his owl
ruin. He left France poorer. smallel
than he found it. and himself perishet
on the rock of st. Helena. Such In
stances can be taken from history all
most without limit.
The deplorable revolutionary state
Of affairs existing in Mexico today can
be traced only to just such an origin
Then truly II may be said that all ma
tions. as at present organized, con-
tain in themselves the cause Of their
own destruction. and woe unto that
nation that must fall and perish un-
der the weight of armament. Arma-
mcnts make the state of war contin-
uous Mexico is today suffering from