The Washington times., 1918-01-11

lowing his statement-in-chief to the
Senate Committee on Military Af-
fairs yesterday, Secretary OF War
Baker vindicated his main PROPOSE
tion that no army Of similar size has
been raised. equipped, or trained so
quickly as ours.
There Is no longer an issue of de-
lay or "unpreparedness." Last year
there was an issue OF that kind. but
this year, 1t is last years birds
nest"
The Secretary's answers on cross
examination sustained his state
ment-in-chief, showing that the
country will be ready with men,
with guns, and vita ammunition for
any emergency this year. may bring.
So much for that. Anything more
on that subject is wasted breath.
Another issue holds over and
will not be settled until it Is settled
right" The Secretary showed that
he Is now doing his best to settle, It
right. This Is the issue Of the
Sixty ty-five-Thirty-five ratio of
shoddy, and of the operations OF
volunteer live wire" patriots, col
lecting q percentage on patriotism.
There is a final question Of the pos
sible total of their winnings for
themselves under all the depart
ments as an incident Of their partici-
patton is winning The war"
With this base and treacherous
"proflteering," the Secretary. and the
gentlemen of his department. have
had nothing to do, Of course. They
are against it. Their hands and
consciences are clean. but on the
question Of why and how it could
have come about under a system
which they are supposed 10 eontrol?''
the Secretary had his hardest strain
In holding his own. -- -
He stood by his associates of : e
Council of National Defense "like a
gentleman" He refused to vindi-
cate himself at tine expense Of the
council as q body, or of any slEgls
one of its members. He took full re-
sponsihiity on himself for the. re-
suits of the acts of any memb.r Of
the council, impeached on evidence
of fixing, or helping 10 fix, prices, for
himself or his friends or the Sub
sidiary interests" of his group.
In putin; one Of series Of SINH
lar questions, Senator sMcKellar
summed the evidence in the case of
a volunteer dolla--a-year expert N
cotton duck, virtuallv fixing the
price to give himself chance for
II 1-2 per cent profit on his capital
or each turnover" with possibili-
ties of three or more "turnovers" a
year, and so of profits from 81 to
100 per cent. The total of. contracts
irvolved in all lines under this sys-
TEN was stated at SIPS, 100000, and
the Secretary was crowded hard for
a direct expression of approval or
ndemnation.
He was an expert as well as 4
candid witness. No, summary can
do him Justice in either respect. But
in standing by his associates of the
Council of National Defense he final
ly repudiated the system of arral =
ing, stabilizing, fixing. or unifying
prices through abolishing competi-
tion under which the scandal has de-
veloped.
When asked if he intended to con-
tinue the system, and, il not, when it
would be stopped, he rave the most
important testimony of the day, in
saying that he did not intend to con-
tinue. at is virtually STOPPED
Now" he added. b.. "
That is really the point. The S.
retary has had the benefit of pub
licity. He has acted. AS soon as the
light was turned on, he has put the
dark lantern" out of business. The
dollar-a-year experts who practice
patriotism without a percentage will
be vindicsted. The live wires" and
dark-lantern experts -Till have in
creasing trouble from this time on.
They can no longer use the gag to
enforce the silence that gives con-
sent.
The great event, of the day, of
course, was the struggle for and
against suffrage without regard to
sex, ending in glorious victory, by
a vote OF 274 to 1876.
II was picturesque always, and at
times thrilling.
Who can do it justice? 1t is out
OF the question. So why try?
AS Congresswoman Jeanette
Rankin opened for the defense, she
said all there really was to say in
closing her able and eloquent argu-
ment Gentlemen" she said, how
shall we explain the meaning of
democracy, IL the same Congress that
voted to make the world safe for
democracy, refuses to give this small
measure Of democracy to the women
of their country"
Miss Rankin "said something" in
that sentence. We may emit vol
umes of eloquence in and out of
Congress without doing that. But
when everybody who possibly could
spoke on one side or the other yes
terday, much was said that ought to
be rescued from the limbo of the
Congressional Record.
For example, Mr.. Elliott of In
diana reioiced IN "the miraculous
conversion" Of the President. and
hoped that he would become, "like
st. Paul, a master worker" in the
cause. Republicans envied Presiden-