The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1916-02-04
President Appeals
TO the Country
Continued from page p

naHullnB IHeIHj inc TuulinenIdFy at
quaintance with camp life; the rudi-
mentary acquaintance with military
drill and discipline, and we ought to
see to it that we have men of that
sort in sufficient number to constitute
an initial army when we need an army
for the defense of the country.
~ have heard it stated that there
are probably several million men in
this country who have received a suf-
ficient amount of military drill, either
here or in the countries in which they
were born, and from which they have
come to us. Perhaps there are; no.
body knows, because there is no
means of counting them, but if there
are so many they are not obliged to
come at our call. We do not know
who they are. That is not military
preparation. Military preparation
consists in the existence of such a
body of men known to the Federal
authorities, organized Professionally
by the Federal authorities and SUBJ
ject by their own choice and will to
the immediate call of the Federal au-
thority.
eve have no such body of men in
the United States except the national
guard. Now have very great re-
spect for the national guard. have
been associated with one section Of
that guard in one of the great States
of the Union, and l know the charac-
ter of the officers and the quality of
the men, and l would trust them both
for skill and efficiency; but the whole
national guard of the United States
falls short of 10000 men. 1t is char
acterized by the very great variety of
discipline and efficiency as between
State and State, and it is by the Con-
stitution itself put under the author
iy of more than two-score State ex-
ecutives. The President of the Unit
ed States has not the right to call on
those men except in the case of ac-
tual invasion. And, therefore, no mat
ter how skillful they are; no matter
how ready they are, they are not the
instruments for immediate national
use.
81 believe that the Congress of the
United States ought to do, and that
it will do, great deal more for the
national guard than it ever has done;
and everything ought to be done to
make it modern military arm, but
that is not the arm that we are imme-
diately interested in. We are inter-
ested in knowing that there are men
all over the United States prepared,
equipped and ready to go at the call
of the national government upon the
shortest possible notice. Because,
gentlemen, let me tell you very SOL
EMMY you cannot afford to postpone
this thing. / do not know what sim
gle day may bring forth.
81 do not wish to leave you with
the impression that / am thinking Of
some particular danger. merely
want to leave you with this solemn
impression that / know that we are
daily treading amidst the most intri-
cate dangers and that the dangers
that we are treading amongst are not
of our making and are not under our
control; and that no man in the Unit
ed States knows what a single week
or a single day or single hour may
bring forth. These are solemn things
to say to you, but it would be unwor.
thy of my Office if did not come out
and tell you with absolute frankness
just exactly what l understand the
situation to be.
II do not wish to hurry the Con
gress of the United States. These
things are too important to be put
through without very thorough sift
ing and debate, and l am not in the
least jealous of any of the searching
processes of discussion. That is what
free people are for, to understand
what they are about and to do what
they wish to do, only if they under.
stand what they are about. But it is
impossible to discuss the details Of
plans in great bodies, unorganizet
bodies of men, like this audience fol-
example. All that l can do in this
presence is to tell you what ! know Of
the necessities of the case and to ask
you to stand back of the executive
authorities of the United States il
urging upon those who make our laws
as early and effective action as pos.
sible.
Not Afraid of Anybody
America is not afraid of anybody
/ know that l express your feeling
and the feeling of all our fellow-cit-
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