Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1916-01-23
THOSE WAR pIcTrniis.

There are number 81 lessons In
file war pictures on exhibition at the
crystal thcalcr which Should be well
learned BY Americans. There y
plenty Of fighting shown--rifle and
machine guns throwing their streams
az bullets, rapid fire artillery big
guns, from which thousand-pound
shells are thrown which tear holes
In the ground twenty feet deep, huri-
ing tons Of earth high into the air.
and there are the shrapnel shells
bursting In the air aud raining death
on the men below.
Incidentally, men are seen falling,
dead or wounded. as charges are
made now and then soldier who Is
fighting IN the trenches gives a quick,
conyulsIyo shndder ana Hes still.
These things are seen on the fields
Of hattie.
Bni. far more impressive are the
long trains on which the wounded
are borne from the war front TO the
cities Of Germany and Austria the
unloading Of the wounded on strctch-
tra. the scenes IN the hospitals OF men
who have been blinded, who have lost
one or both legs, or II may bc only
one arm ~ gone or part ~ the jaw
shot Off. The wounded look happy.
because they won't have to so back
10 the huitic llne.
Working among thu Wounded are
reen hunareds II AoHeu nurses~-
linsmiiing. grim freed women, some
II them are soung SOME ~ them ef
middle age. Lot All Of them grim and
unamiling The horror Of Il All has
entered their souls. That X easily
seen by The hard lines Of their faces
aud the swlfiness and efficiency with
which they discharge the most loaih-
some duties IN crowded hospitals.
These women have no appearance Of
being grief-sirIckeni the look on their
faces indicates no sadness even; ev-
cry line Of the lips aud glance Of the
eye carry with them expression Of
unutterabc determination.
one Of the lessons from these war
pictures h the unspeakahle horror of
the consequences of war Not few
Of the Journal readers have thought |
the president far too cautious in his
dealings with Germany and Austria, !
Japan ana Mexico They think he
should have used the biz stick, as
Roosevelt would have done, and rush-
Cd the country into war il all the
demands OF the United States were
noi complied with nj once,
There are conditions when people
must fight, principles which must be
preserved. even at the expense of
mungled bodies. lifelong blindness.
hldeous suffering In hospitals and
hopeiessness for hundreds uf thous-
ands suddenly stricken from bound
ing health 10 total disability for the
remainder of their liroA But. be-
fore We rush into war We should be
sure that the cause Is sufficient 90
warrant US 80 giving our legs, onr
arms. our eyes, our enjoyment of
life Ia SIS entirety. for its success
not merely TO take The risk of losing
legs and arms and egesisht, because
al OF these things must be lost. ia
case Of war hy thousands maybe by
hundreds Of thousands OF people ns
good or better than We The matter
Of merely being killed ON the battle
field is a minor consideration.
Another lesson frou the war is the
utter preparedness al The Teuionic
forces Win every possible equipment
calculated 60 make their fighting sue.
eessf0l Not the least or that pre-
paredness IS the superb ph, sical con-
dilion Of the thousands Of men We
see marching. running. working, per-
forming prodisies Of physical endur-
bnce
II we are % save our country from
ruin. II we are 10 81 even fairly sure
that our hospitals and. after the
hospitals. our streets are not filled
with the armless the iegless. the
sightless victims al war. we must be
prepared TO meet anY enemy which
might assail IA We mus, hc 20 Wen
prepared that no enemy VIII assail
u unless we give him iust cause Ter
80 doing
As il Is. we haven't even a handful
of trained men. We haven't arms for
an army We have nothing for un-
trained OF trained men TO fight with.
We are beset by bandit nations, and
Our nnprcrarednoss invites them te