Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1916-03-25
before he got on solid ground. daughter

before he got on solid ground. daughter
and applause)
If the policy which they had in mind
January 18th prevailed. our citizens would
have had no right to go upon the sea as
neutral and non-combatant.
| Now / have very little sympathy with
those yenturesome Americans who seek
out places Of danger in which they may
| involve tn ir country, very little sympathy,
| but if we are charting the sea for future
rules Of international warfare which are
helpful, we must take into consideration
| the fact that a man may get into dan
eerous situation without any contributing
cause upon his part at all. Suppose after
the Titanic went down a British merchant
ship. with one gun at the stern, came to
it's rescue, picked up al passengers. sup
pose that that ship, the Carpathia, had
I drifted into the danger zone. and SUBJ
marine craft, without warning, had sent
| it to the bottom Of the sea? My God,
| is there anywhere in America spirit
! that would tolerate such an attack upon
| the rights of our citizens? Certainly not
We are charting the sea. not to accom-
modate warfare, but in the interest Of the
| non -combatant and the neutral The as
tronomer who sits in the blue mountains
! of California. ascertaining the distance
of the sun and the stars. that ships may
sail the sea with greater safety, is doing
| his work for a quarter of a century
| ahead, and those in charge of our inter-
national relations are fixing the standard
that must endure for quarter of a GEN.
fury hence: and that government is
pusillanimous, that will not stand erect
and maintain the rights of our citizens,
| perhaps in dangerous places without
| their own contribution, and l have not
| any doubt at all but what they will do
| it, although 1 have not the sublimest
| faith that the recent declaration from the
! White House will not be altered before Ii
becomes effective as an international rule
of law.
The Presidents Speeches.
| Then again, the President came before
! Congress, and think he said that this
ambitious preparation program was
academic. Then he went out West, and
/ every time he made speech he got more
enthusiastic until finally he sufficiently
! recovered from his first indisposition to
declare that we should have the largest
navy in the world. Well. now. let's see
I what he has done about that. the larg-
est navy in the world He said he didn't
know what day might bring forth, that
! we were in the midst of trouble. and yet
he sold two battleshins, in first-class con-
dition. to Greece, who has scented trouble,
for ST., 900, at the time, of course, when
the Democrat raid upon our revenues was
so great that we were trying in every
way to keep up the treasury balances.
! Those two battleships, the Idaho and the
! Mississippi that he sold to Greece were
far better battleships than the Olympia
which in Manila Bay won our victory
over the Spanish fleet. without the loss
of gun or the loss of a ship or the loss
of man. (Applause)
Is It Criminal Negligence?
The President said there is a danger.
Well, if that is SO he did not need
to so out West to reach that conclu-
; sion. We have got s190.01o,000 worth Of
warsnips now under construction in
our yards. Some Of them have been
authorized years ago. One hundred
and ninety million dollars worth of
those crafts. and they are being fin
ished at slow pace. eight hours a day
only. II we We're in great danger. why
did he not step over to the telegraph
office and wire the New York Navy
Yard to speed up on their work, put
on two and if necessary three shifts,
and get this work out, to meet the
danger of which he was so appre-
hensive? One Of two things is true.
Either there was no danger or he is
criminally negligent for not speeding
up our work in the navy yards of the
country. (Applause) one of two things
that is true. | do not think we are in
any danger myself If he does ! am
entitled to know it, because | am
member of the Committee on Foreign
relations. l am frequently called in
conference. If there is any danger |
am entitled to know it. l have given
YOU my word see no cloud on the
American horizon. We could provoke
trouble, if we wanted to- any minute
Assuredly no one will do that. I see
no danger threatening us from with
out. Germany has all she can do. and
her resources are being tested to the
us. We are her arsenal and her bank
She cannot fight us. tApplause) Aus
trla. has no just quarrel against us,
and France. God bless her. (Applause>.
she has no quarrel against us. / do
not think We are in danger from with
out. l think our greatest danger is
from within. daughter and applauseo
l took part in the Massachusetts cam
paign for about ten years. know
something about how the people there
felt. But it was a strange sight TO
me to see the president against pre-
paredness before the Massa chusetts
election and for it immediately after
he heard the result of that cleo
ton. haughter) I see no danger
from without. unless Costa RIGA should
take exceptions to our apparent will
llngness to assist Nicaragua to rob
her OF half her interest in the Near
aqua canal l see no danger. Cur
danger is from within.
His Respects to |. w. W.
That band of lawless. anarchistic
element that go around among our