The Washington times., 1916-06-01

Tdko termany, TOT o4atnpio' oeop
by step from the days of Frederick the
Great. one of the greatest organizing
geniuses in history. the German army
has grown. Stein. Scharnhorst, ana
Causewitr introduced their ideas and
established the basic lines OF the struc-
ture. about a century ago. half
century later came Moltke ana Roon.
Already. at that time. In the days OF
the first railroad building. Moitke
realized the relation between the rail-
road and. national growth and between between
transportation and national defense.
Today, the striking power OF German
troops against numerically superior
forces is due to the possession OF the
most highly deWe1opea eonps ,ha a'r0sa Saar. v Of
preparation In peace times Tor the
work of peace and war. Won Moltke.
when he undertook the organization OF
the German army In the eos Of the
last century. brought to 1t the tradi-
tions and experience that reached back
beyond the time Of Napoleon. These
military traditions and experience ana
knowledge have been gradually accu-
Ional touch from one officer to the
other. The same lesson Is taught by
other European nations. Even now.
in the midst of the terrible stress OF
the war, every European nation has a
ering information and knowledge. Inc
French army traces It's conception pach
to the days of the French revolution:
when hostile coalition Oh k,ngs dnmocraeH ,,,c1
and was met by "a nation IN arms.
THE British navy traces an unDroken
line of tradition back to the Gays Oh
Cromwell; all the experience ana knowi-
edge of a mighty sea-faring people nave
been woven into the structure OF this
marvelous organization; in II the spirit
of such men as Nelson. lives today
Rushed Into Trade.
The United States is being rushed
headIonr into world trade. Whether 1t
wishes It or not. 1t has become world
mower and must face international rrob-
lemA Unsodved questions. such as
Mexico, cannot be sidestepped. watch
full waiting" has brought disorganiza-
ton and anarchy to Mexico and in
creased our humiliation from month
10 month. Petty warfare today with
bandits reveals our army organization
ns entirely Inadequate. We cannot wait
for the slow growth Of our military
establishment during generation as
accomplish our work within five or ten
years Our hrst step must be to d.
vorce the army and navy organizations
absolutely from politics. Military ef-
factor. 1t is an om!nous sign that fore,
bodies Ill when personal politics and
conditions of vote-getting influence pre-
paredness legislation.
In army and navy much depends
upon the ability. personal efforts and
character OF Its leaders. The art or
warfare has changed enormously within
the last two years. war today Is as
ms warfare then was from, the warfare
of the civil war. Experienced army
men must deal with the problems OF or
ganization In our army. But we must
minds are open to the changes that
have taken place. Some of the rimplest
ana most elemental changes of the past,
such as the fire control system for our
battleships' encounter opposition that that
effort and tactful handling Of Of
acers OF high rank in the navy. We
must create permanent board OF ex-
study our military and industrial prob
lens. and correlate all the different
phases of our effort for preparedness.
Recommendations by these experts
must, be OF such high quality that they
pressions Of that which Is best to be
done. But they viii not be worth heed
ing until We hold to the Rravest ac-
countability. ut the bar Of public opin-
UNIT men in office as Secretaries of War
and of the Navy.
Results Now Achieved.
In the ordinary walks of life, in
ordinary institutions, the results
achieved are tested constantly. Faulty
workmanship in a factory becomes i'm
mediately evident in defective goods. A
business that Is mismanaged soon ends
in failure. An army or navy, however.
Is tested but raroly. Yet army and
navy organizations are always peculiar
ly beset by dangers. Routine, and even
the discipline that becomes routine, are
likely to create habits that prevent the
adoption of the many improvements In
science and metho1 that the rapid de-
velopments of our time make possible.
We can meet foes that use every re-
source OF science and technical skill
only II we are fully alert ourselves.
The army must be respected and hon
ored. Therefore II must be kept keyed
up to the highest point OF efficiency. The
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