Pioneer press. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1882-19??, 1916-08-26
HOW THE WILSON
ADMINISTRATION HAS
PENALIzED PATRIOTISM.

SA "S-it'>Ni1Ii upon TIC Territory
or the United States from Mexico and
the necessity for the proper protection
OF that frontier" President Wilson on
June IL called out the mobile arms Of
tho national guard for federal service
lie did not Call them out at their
existing peace strength. but at war
strength, which Is practically double.
Lacking system Of reserves, the ma
uonal guard organizations Immediate
~ mad to start Il campaign Of recruit
ing to bring about the desired increase
In their numbers.
patriotic young citizens under the
urge Of the cry, '"Eour country needs
your volunteered for service I'm graf
Trying numbers. According to Senator
Chamberlain chairman of the senate
committee on military affairs. the re-
suit Is that about 49, 900 citizen sol
dlers nave been mustered into the fed
era' service ana are now on the Mex
lean border or In camp In their home
states. There may be more. but fine
administration refuses to make known
the exact figures
LIE movement IS costing the public
treasury many millions Of dollars: if
IS costing the individual citizen soldiers
many millions more. They went to tho
front believing the cry, Your country
needs YOU" for war service. They sac
rihced advancement In their civil occu-
patlons, severed home ties, suffered in
thousands Of instances great financial
loss. The less patriotic, who did not
believe the cry or, believing, declined
10 make sacrifices, fatten at homo on
these losses.
Inc real purposes Of the call are
slowly developing They are two in
number:
F1rst-A patrol Of the border to do
the work which President Wilson's
friend, Carranza, finds it impossible to
do. Because the recognized govern
ment In Mexico Is too ineffective TO
keep its own citizens In check and pre-
vent them numbering Americans on
American soil the American govern
ment undertakes the costly task Of
doing that work for them The muir
der or American citizens on Mexican
soil Is another matter. Carranza may
go as far as he likes in that direction.
Second-A purpose Of the mobiliza
ton on the border and in the canlpS
IS TO train citizens to perform effective
military service. The regular military
establishment Of the nation is mani.
testify too small "Or the actual military
needs. 10 this extent the cry, Your
country needs you,' was correct.
But these facts We're not made clear
when the call was issued. The idea
was promulgated that men were need
ed Tor actual war service, not for mill
tary training. Deceit was practiced.
opposing In the open legislation for
universal military service, the admin
lstration by It's. acts has established
wnat In essence Is a system of COM
pulsory military service 1t is a sys-
tenn all the more vicious because It
operates only against the patriotic.
whereas legaliZed universal training
system equaliZes the burden of mill
tary service among all men and all
classes Of men
When In 1914 Europe plunged into
the greatest war of all history and con-
dlt1ons in Mexico grew intolerable in
tell1gent men realized the fact that 1t
was incumbent on this nation to build
up It's tiny regular army and put it's
other military resources in condition
for use. National safety demanded
this. And yet in December Of that
year, four months after the European
war began, President Wilson went be-
fore congress and declared that all
agitation for military preparedness
was hyster1cal; that we were ade-
quately prepared.
After awhile the administration
changed It's mind and prorcsscd to be
lieve in the necessity for preparedness.
First came an enactment TO increase
the regular army by 2)CUD I1ut the
body Of the country. ana even all
parts of the Democratic HGm;nistra
ton, could not charge trout so quickly
as the head Recruiting for the regu-
lar army Jagged. Not yet have the
10000 been secured.
The need pressed. \ now national
defense act, providing for still more
men In the regular army, was enacted.