The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1916-02-20
S~choolmasters and Headmasters Have
Brilliant Meeting at Harvard Club
After Dining the Two Associations Discuss Preparedness. v
Oswald Garrison Willard and Talcott Williams as the
Chief Speakers of the SYMPOSIUM.

w RtONO NIt Ntluif-
plant superiority to any guns alioat. We
arc not oven to wait and nee whether
there will not be a feet action In the
year 1915 In the North Sea which, will
make tho Meet Of the United states OF
double the effectiveness of the German
and all our proposed colossal investment
OF public funds q needless waste.
We are not only not TO see II there
Will be disarmament by Joint action us
q result Of tho struggle abroad but are
deliberately and wtifully TO put the
greatest obstacle that We can in the way
OF achieving this thing for which lu-
mainly. European humanity at least.
hungers moro than anything else. The
London Telegraph may marvel and say.
'Wo have the spectacle Of the greatest
democracy In the world. although scpa-
rated from Europe by more than 1000
miles. In such a hurry for more men Ut
war that It has decided not even to wait
Tor II lessons on construction and
armament which the war may teach
Lord Rosebery may say. 4 know notii-
Ing more disheartcning than the am
nounccinent recently made that the
United States-the n great country
left IN tho world FREQ from the hideous.
bloody burden Of war-is about to ON
bark upon the building Of a huge armada
destined TO BIO equal Or second to our
own. II means that the burden will con.
t!nue upon the other nations and be in
creased exactly in proportion to the fleet
OF the United States.' The FrunkJurter
Zettun0. the ablest and most enlightened
and perhaps the most influential PAPER
In Germany. can say the same thing and
ask how In the face Of this programme
America can continue to decry German
mil!tarism. We care nothing for all
OF that. We are to go straight ahead
binding this country TO build battleships
Tor the next i've years which will not
be afioat or In commission for ten years
To come. What business men the world
over dream OF charging their plants
and taking new risks In the face of the
possibility that the whole product
would be scrnpped as fast as turned
out. when by waiting a single year u
number OF the unknown factors could
be solved? I venture TO assert hone
who are not candidates for political
Office.
More thar that. every one ia sound
Of my voice will agree that We do no;
at this hour know what We possess Ia
the way of military and nava arma-
ments. !. horde Of writer's for the press
and so-called experts have suldeul!
arisen to assure us that GUY navy il
practically worthless. that our coas. de-
fences. upon which we have lavis!i.i
$3.50. zoo. 200. are without worth and can
be shot to pieces by guns ON ships li!,ed
~ of the coast out of I'M ou the
other side. there are experts who say
that our navy Ia better than ;lla: ot
Germany. while still others say that IL is
far Inferior. Some aver that we hav,
sunk to fourth place, others tina We are
second In the world. Three Of the fore
most admirals arc In the latter Class,
Fletcher. commanding our great Atlantic
fleet Badger. his predecessor IN tina,
command winterhnlter. commanding
the Asiatic feet. all Of whom have tes;i-
fled before u committee OF Congress that
! our navy Is second to that Of England.
The President says fourth. .\dmlgal
kato. the Japanese Minister Of Marine.
has publicly stated In Parliament that
the Japanese navy has but half the
strength Of the American, which makes
US at least third III the race fol. !avu
supremacy.
do We stop in our mad rush for more
ornaments to settle this problem o:.ce
for all to the satisfaction Of the Amer
lean people? Oh. no. we are going
ahead without inquiry. without asccr-
tanning the facts beyond dispute. We
arc not to sit down and quietly discuss
between ourselves whether we should not
take the private profit out Of the making
OF the instruments of hell and destruc-
ton lest that avo OF n statesmaniille
examining Of the problem. Was there
ever a case like IL? Being assured that
there Is no haste. We are yet told that
there Is haste. Being assured that sX.
perts are not to be trusted. We are Yet
told to trust them. How mauy years "
agitation and investigation did It take
us 70 obtain our financial preparedness
which stood the test OF the frishtful
shock Of August. 1914? How many
commissions did We not appoint. how
many thousands OF pages of testimony
did we not take? But whe, Il comes 10
q question which we are told involves
our national existence We are not 10 stop
FOR n single authoritative inquiry, sucil
as senator Newlands, Il preparedness
Senator. asks for. to wait FOR peace and
quiet to CAIN our disturbed and distorted
visions. At the moment that the Presi-
dent says. We ars threatened from no
quarter we are TO lesislate In hysteria.
adequate preparedness! Never was
there such n will OF the wisp AZ this
adequate preparedness. No Tying Dutch
man was ever more tantalixing upon the
seas than this phantom OF adequate pre-
paredness-in France. in Germany, in
England. in Russia, In Italy ana Ill IN,
rest. 7 challenge You TO SHOW me Il
single case OF Il nation who's soldiers
and sailors deemed Themselves ;,de-
nyateiy prepared. The German mill
taris.s didn';. G!d neither did the Brit
/ ish ,avalis.s. Dit not Lord Charles
| Beresiord rage about the unprepaieNuc-4
~ the British navy IN 1913 precise. NJ
Cong.es.rlan Gardner raves about orrs"
! Tho only general that I ever heard Of
who had enough troops Wal a dc;td gen
era!. There are W. many kinds o. aoc-
| ouute preparedness US there are mel III
the War Department. Senator Cham
berlain has Jiis plan OF aoequate pc
%pareLness, i.s. 900 regulars: Mr.. Carr
son insists upon 1<1 .0oO. plus the con-
i~inentai army; Congressman LAY has "a
| different prescription. Congressman
Mann asks for from 100000 to SOC, 900.
Lieut.-Col Ham wants 1.O23.0O0 reg
ulars. Gen. Macomb 100000. Gen. Wool
eco. 600 and $4,000 reserve officers. and
so has Congressman Gardner q different
prescription. and 81 for the professional
soldiers, our War College experts want
500, 900 regulars. when Germany. sur
rounded by possible foes on every bor-
der. was content with CSC, 000-the
100000 men. plus reserves. that the
world IL being called upon to crush as
a menace to the peace OF the world.
When Germany crushed trance In 1870
the horrible menace OF French militarism
which had drenched Europe In blood for
more than u century was transferred
Ia Hcrlin. Ia the only question mt the
outcome Of this war to bs whether mill.
tarism IL to DO transferred from Berlin
to London or 10 Washington?
''rho military Instinct and tho mill
tary grasping for power are the same