Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1917-03-21
J.. S. now At WAR,
SAY c. 0.P. CHIEFS
Roosevelt, Hughes, Root and
Choate Appeal for De-
Tense of Nation.
UNION LEAGUE is WARLIKE

BY the Associated Press.
NEW YORK. March 21-"This club
asks the American people to face the
fact that war with this country now
exists by the act of Germany, and that
the whole united weight of American
loyalty must be concentrated upon ef-
fective governmental action"
This was the concluding clause of a
resolution adopted last night by the
Union League Club at one of the most
warlike meetings in the history of this
famous organization. 1t wss the bur-
den of speeches delivered bysour lead
ers of the republican party theodore
Roosevelt, Charles E. Hughes, Elihu
Root and Joseph H. Choate.
The resolutions were presented by a
special committee, headed by Robert
Bacon, former ambassador to France
which was appointed several months
ago to investigate the state of the ma
tons defense and the need of national
service. Six hundred members, many
of them men of national prominence.
attended the meeting and called upon
the President ito forestall and repel
German attacks" The club pledged to
the President its earnest support
Making Barbarous War.
Let US not delude ourselves" said
MIR. Hughes. Germany is now making
war upon the United States, making
war with a ruthless barbarity. I regard
these attacks. the method of their con-
duct, as an onslaught on liberty and on
civilization itself"
Germany is making war on u.s., de-
clared Mr.. Root, land we are all await
ing to see whether we are to take it
lying down. 1t is either war or it is
submission to oppression.
In a speech along similar lines Col.
Roosevelt said: I'VE are in war now.
If the sinking of our ships and the
then Bunker Hill and Lexington were
not war We can perfectly we'll send an
expeditionary force abroad now to
fight in the trenches or fight in the
Balkan peninsula wherever 1t is de-
sired. We can get that expedltionary
force, If we choose to. within four or
five months into the trenches. and 1T
will mean everything for the morale of
France. of Belgium. of the allies gem
orally"
Col Roosevelt said that he hoped to
see this country raise an army of 2.000.-
900 men, 80 that II the war lasts for
a year we will be able to be the de-
cisive and controlling element In it."
Lack Of Preparedness.
eff we go to war with Germany" said
the report submitted by Mr.. Baker. our
only real protection will be the ships
Of the French and British navies. and
our own navy. which Is undermined.
I'VE have no coast defenses which
could prevent the landing of troops on
our shores. We have no defense which
would prevent the complete and imme-
diate capture of our coast cities and
ammunition factories in the coast
states of New Jersey and Connecticut,
as we'll as every one of our navy yards.
The facility with which a hostile power
could land itroops on our shores has
been repeatedly and authoritativeiy
Our regular organisations lack many
things. which are vitality essential in
modern war. We lack machine guns of
all types. W6lack grenades and bombs.
We are without trench mortars of the
type. in use in Europe. We are without
various kinds of field signal apparatus.
We are short of modern field wireless.
We are without any of the modern
types of heavy mobile artillery. such
as are in general use In Europe.
I'VE are short of reserve rifles and all
field artillery. We have not a field gun
for volunteers. Our supplies of reserve
ammunition are ridiculously small"