The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1916-04-29

BY FREDERICK PALMER, who has been
only official representative of the entire
American press with the allies.
Copyright, 1916 by the Wheeler Syndicate,
Inc.
A RTILLERY is the sensation of
n this war. No one disputes that.
n Without adequate guns an
army is helpless. However ex-
cellent its rifles, however well drilled
It may be, it is sheep for slaughter.
The use Of guns means the use of ma
chinery for killing instead of old fash
toned man power. Safe out Of reach
Of rife bullets. the guns work their
will with the infantry.
The United States has not enough
guns for the defense of twenty miles
Of trench front Though a great man.
ufacturing people, a people who be-
Meve in the use of machinery instead
Of man power. we have prepared to go
to war by hand. Our army has been
kept in the period Of the spinning
wheel and the hand loom.
Germany Foresaw Artillery Importance.
Germany was the one nation which
fully foresaw the Importance of artil-
lery before the war. Her attaches
brought the lesson home from the
Russo-Japanese war. The German
staff accepted the opinion of its ex-
perts and acted accordingly. A good
proportion of the immense sum which
Germany used in preparing for this
war went into guns Of every possible
kind and caliber-from the machine
guns that fire bullets to anti-air craft
guns. from mortars that fire bombs to
guns that fire smart little high veloci-
ty shells and enormous seventeen inch
shells.
Germany concluded to use machin.
cry to win instead Of flesh and blood,
yet Germany has never had enough
guns in this war. never enough shells.
There seems no such thing as enough
artillery in modern war. Artillery can
blast any position. any town. any fort.
to pieces. Sufficient artillery can stop
the best infantry in the world. OF all
nations we should be strong in artil-
lery. We have the money to buy
guns. To us flesh and blood are pre-
cious, but we still depend on them.
Preparedness Alone Counts.
The first glimpse had Of the battle
Of the Marine illustrated the power of
gunfire. the last action | saw at the
British front brought the same lesson
I nj, ~
ton. never was | under shell fire with
out thinking just this: Even II we
can't get men to enlist In the regular
army we may have guns. We who
built the Panama canal and have won
the worlds admiration for our indus
trial organization at least can be
ready with guns in case of crisis. If
not with infantry"
The experience Of the British army
in this war is lesson enough. 1t hardly
seems possible that the England of the
British navy and the England that
sent its little army to that heroic re-
treat from Flanders is one and the
same country. The fact that it is
proves that successful warfare these
days il not due to innate heroism Of
the people or their willingness to give
up life and money. but to having the
machinery of war ready.
At Mons and again on the Aisne and
later in the first battle of Ypres the
Germans were firing anywhere from
three to ten shells to one against the
British. who had to sit in their trenches
and take it If they charged they met
the bullet sprays of machine guns,
while they lacked machine guns to
meet the German charges. Again and
yet again. artillery and machine guns
are things you buy. things you build,
the product of factories. not Of the
cradle and of the affection of home,
as men are. So England and France,
too. and all the allies because they
lacked guns paid the price of holding
by the death of brothers and sons
against the merciless blasts of shells.
Is that what you want us to do?
Apparently. 1t is the American plan
In case of war presumably, because
we think we are as brave as anybody.
Dynamite Cheaper Than Flesh.
But what was the good of itp Why
try to stop a buzzsaw with your hands
instead of chucking piece of dyna-
mite into the machinery? Dynamite
Is much cheaper than flesh.
England's agreement was TO put In
100000 men on the continent France
and Russia were to do the rest of the
land fighting. while England held the
sea. The most important reason that
France and Russia needed further as.
sistance was lack of artillery and ma
chine guns This is universally rec
ognized in Europe, but apparently not
In the United StItes.
When England found that France
and Russia could not do ii alone she
had to 90 in-not with 100000 men
but with 100000 That again illus
trates that you never know what ne
cessity war may develop. But if you
are unprepared you may be pretty SUR
your weakness will be found.
In six months England made yer,
good infantry. but it was infantry max
ed 10 the enemy's artillery FIRE. Fo
those 4,OO0.oOO men England ought t.
have had no less than $4,000 guns-15,
600 of different calibers! As many peo
pie in the United States have neve
seen a gun. unless they may have seel
cid cannon in public squares that wer
captured in the civil war. They cal