The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1917-11-01
WAR TALKS
By UNCLE A
Military Training Necessary for Safety
and Defense.
Number Four

"Say, Uncle Dam" said Billie. Jim
mie and | have been looking up about
war Ia the encyclopedia at school. We
tound that in the war between Ger
many and France in 1S70-71, Germany
lost in Killed and wounded $4,000 sol.
dlerS while France lost about six times
as many, and besides that, she lost
every battle. We asked Professor ,slo.
cum why this was. He said that re
German army was highly trained and
ably commanded. while the French
soldiers were poorly trained and hat
their war department was honey
combed with jealousy and politics;
h a the OfIc IS We're not much good,
and that's Why France lost the war
and 50 many men. What do you think
about it, Uncle Dang
We'll" said Uncle Dan, Professor
Slocum is right. By ineficiency France
lost that war, together with two Of
her best provinces-Alsace and Lor-
ralne-and had 10 pay u billion dol
lars indemnity money. France today
learned her lesson by that sad expe-
rience, 50 she put in universal military
training, Il as Il result, her soldiers
now know how TO fight and how to
protect themselves. They are losing
less men in the war than the Germans.
France also put politics out OF her war
department, SO that expert authority,
instead Of bureaucratic stupidity, now
directs the army. The result Is.
France has one of the best and most
efficient ar-aies every assembled, and
this shows what thorough training and
good leadership means in warfare.
This saved France In this crisis, as
well as the liberties of the world"
"As war Is now conducted, there Is
no place for an unframed man. A
body OF 10000 well trained soldiers
properly hatlled could defeat five
times their number Of raw recruits and
do 1t every time with comparatively
small loss 10 themselves. Proper train
ing alone will reduce the death and
casualty rate one-third Of what it 9TH
erwisc wonld be, and right here is an
unanswerable argument for universal
military training.
"Our government has no moral right
to force her men into war service
without properly training them for it.
To do so Is simply murder, hence the
frantic effort hat Is now being made
TO give her soldiers some training be-
fore they are sent to the front. II we
are 70 win this war, II will take trained
men TO do IL, and II will take trained
men to win any other war that may
come upon US In the future. IL we
must fight, let us fight to win and not
TO lose"
"That's the stuff" said Billie.
Continuing, Uncle Dan said: "Our
government has expended about $780,
100000 to put up environments and
training stations In order to train the
men called by the selective draft.
When these men are trained the train
ing stations should be Immediately
filed with younger men, say those In
their nineteenth year, to receive six
months OF intensive military train
ing along the lines Of the Chamberlain
bill. This will be OF unreasonable
benefit to them individually. 1t will
do them more good than any other two
years OF their whole life Il will make
them strong, manly, self-rellant. quick
to see and quick to act; 1t will equip
them for q successful life. In short,
Il will rebuild American manhood and
will also give the government a body
of trained men to draw from In case
II IL necessary to defend our flag and