The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1916-01-21
Roosevelt Passes a Hot One to
Uncle Sam.
National Strength and Pride
TOmmyrOt, Says L. r.
KILL 1000 IN DEFIANCE TO us.
All NOncOmbatants, but Make
No Accounting.
Worse Than Old Time Pirates
of the Spanish Main.

Washington. Jan. 21.-In a paper
written by Colonel Theodore Roose-
welt. read last night before the Ma
tional Security congress, a pro-pre-
uaredness organization, the ex-presi-
dent even exceeded MS characteristic
strenuous sentiment in a general ar
raignment of the diplomatic. army
and navy policies of the present ma
tional administration. He declared
that in defiance to warnings by the
United States, submarines have ex-
acted a toll of 1000 lives in the last
II months.
Colonel Roosevelt calls the proposed
continental army plan sham; our
navy, he asserts, is inferior, our for
eign diplomatic position, cowardly.
He said in part:
During the last three years we have
been technically at peace. But during
those three years more of our citizens
have been killed by MeXicans, Ger
mans, Austrians and Haitians than
we're killed during the entire Spanish
war. 1t is true that the American
citizens killed during the past three
years have been mostly noncom-
batants. including women and chill
dren, although many men wearing the
national uniform have also been killed.
some of them on American soil But
the fact that women and children are
killed instead of full-grown men in
dim.n;sces the horror.
Campaign of Murder.
"On February II it will be a year
since the time when we notified Ger
many that in case any of our citizens
were killed, we would hold her to
strict accountability; and during these
eleven months the passenger ships
sunk by German or Austrian sub
marines in defiance of our warning
have included among others the
Falaba, Lusitania, Arabic Hesperian,
Ancona. Yasaka Vile de la Ciotat and
Persian. They were British, Italian.
Japanese and French. Many hun
dreds of Americans were among the
passengers and a couple of hundred
of these, including many women and
children were Killed. The total deaths
on these ships since March last
amount to between 1000 and 2,10O.
1.-The campaign against them has
been a campaign of sheer murder, on
a vaster scale than any INDUCED in in
a like time by any of the old-time
pirates of the Indian ocean and the
Spanish Main. Now, the total num-
Der of lives of noncombatants, includ
ing many hundreds of women and
children, thus taken exceeds many
times over the aggregate in all the sea-
fights of the war of 1912 both on the
American and on the British side
Land of Sham.
IF any individual finds satisfaction
in saying that nevertheless this was
peace and not war it is hardly
worth while arguing with him; for he
dwells in a land of sham and of make
believe. The United States senator,
or governor of a state. or other pub
lie representative, who takes the po-
sftion that our citizens should not, III
accordance with their lawful rights,
travel on such ships. and that we need
not take action about their deaths. oc-
cupies a position precisely and ex-
actly as base and as cowardIy land I
use those words with scientific pre-
cision) as if his wife's face was
slapped on the public streets and the
c1ly action he took was to tell her 20
stay in the house.
Every man who is both intelligent
and patriotic must therefore advocate
preparedness, thoroughgoing and ade-
quate, and therefore the willingness to
incur the necessary expense for
financing preparedness.
Nearly eighteen months have gone
by since with the outbreak of this
war it became evident to every man
willing to face the facts. that military
and naval problems and international
problems of every kind were infinite
" more serious than we had had rea-
son to believe, that treaties were alb
solutely worthless to protect any ma
ton unless backed by armed force
and that the need of preparedness was
lnllnlIGlN more urgent tnan any man
in this country had up to that time
believed.
Is National Folly.
'For eighteen months, with this
world-cyclone before our eyes, we as
n nation have sat supine without pre-
pairing in any shape or way. 1t is an
actual fact that there has not been
one soldier, one rifle. one gun. one
boat added to the American army or
navy SO far, because of anything thai
has occurred in this war. and not the
slightest step has yet been taken look
ing toward the necessary prepared
ness. Such national shortsightedness,
such national folly, is almost incon-
ceivable.
we should consider our national
military policy as a whole. For some
years we have been using the navy
internationally as a bluff defensive
force, or rather asserting that it would
be so used and could be so used. It's
real value is as an offensive force in
the interest of any war undertaken for
our own defense. Freedom of action
by the fleet is the secret of real
naval power.
Ou- Defense Program.
"Fo= reasons have given elsewhere
I believe that we should base oul
military and naval program upon the
retention and defense of Alaska
Hawaii the Panama canal aud all it.
approaches including all tho point!
Of South American soil north of the
aCnafor and of course Including tn.