The Bridgeport evening farmer. [volume] (Bridgeport, Conn.) 1866-1917, 1916-01-18

speech last night that he had not de-
cided upon the speech until he heard
how vigorously Secretary Garrison
spoke for preparedness. 1t was not
definitely known until the night be-
fore the dinner that Secretary Garri-
son could attend it. General Wood
had been asked to speak, but at the
beginning of the dinner it was stated
that he had changed his mind about
accepting the invitation after learn
! ing that Secretary Garrison was to
speak During the dinner word went
around that he had decided, to talk,
after all, on the topic of 1.-The military
obligations of the citizens,
S'fThis isn't altogether a question of
poIicy,'sx General Wood said, sit is a
question of humanity. We've no right
to send unframed men out to meet
well-disciplined men in war-it's
murder.
ssSecretary Garrison is absolutely
right in what he says about the mill
tia 1t must be made a national force.
Every great country except China
and ours has a highly developed mill
tary organization. AS the Secretary
puts it, we are depended system
which has failed US in times~of need.
You have only to read the letters OF
Washington to learn what he thought
of unframed men under unframed Of
hcers and divided authority. and >to
study the many failures of the militia
to respond when called by national
need.
1.-The problem is increasingly diff
cult when the army, as at present, Is
under IS separate commanders the
governors OF the state who are IN
charge of the militia. The system Of
depending on volunteers has falleo
us in every war without exception In
,76 this country had its strongest
force, an army of about 81, 900 men.
and it grew weaker every year, until
there were few over $4,000 during the
last year of the revolution.
How did we happen to- win the
war? England-half of twas
with us. or at the least indifferent;
and you will find that the aid of
France came at very critical time.
an the War, of 1912 we lost prac-
tically- every land engagement and
abandoned our capital. The navy
saved us in this war. And at the time
of this war men knew something OF
rifles There is not one man In q
thousand today who knows anything
of the high-power rifles in use. Why
has the navy been efficient? One of
the chief reasons is because Congress
has never authorized any state TO
raise and control a navy as is done
with the militia. In the series of
troops could have handled the situa-
ton The Mexican war was we'll
handled, but the men of the militia
were comparatively few in that con-
fict, and we had our men for enough.
away from home to remove them
from home to remove them from local
political influence.
soThis country has never in all its
history met a first class nation ready
for war; At the time of the Revolu-
ton and the War of 1912 England
was unprepared. In the case of the
Civil War the figures that cover the
drafting of men on both sides when
new men were needed tell you that
the volunteering system failed in that
case, too.
General Wood said that he did not
believe that the obligations of citizen
ship would ever be understood would
ever be understood in this country
until the real military history of,the
failures of the volunteering system
was taught in the schools and else
where.
At the guest table were Frank A.
Vanderlip, Jacob H. Schiff. George F.
Baker, Mayor Mitchell. James S: Alex
ander, the Right Rev. DR.. Charles
Sumner Burch, Capt. Halstead Dorey,
U, S. A; Col. Frederick e, Farms
worth, Alexander Gilbert, William J.
Gilpin, Charles A. Hanna, William J.
Henry, A. Barton Hepburn, Pierre,
Jay, Capt Gordon Johnston, q. S. A;
John A. K1oepfer, William A. Nash,
Eugene Lamb Richards. William
Scherer, Rear-Admira1 Charles D.
Jr., and Augustus Thomas