New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1918-04-05
No Easy War,
General Wood
Warns Nation,
Continued from page l

must be nothing that smatters of in
efficiency in any branch of the govern
ment.
Let us talk no more of what we are
going to do" said the general with
magnetic impressivencss. "Thc time
has now come when we must only
speak of the things we have done and
are doing. And let there be much of
which we may we'll speak.
~ have just come back from a visit
to the most wonderful battlefield the
world has ever seen. There are 12,-
100000 men fighting on a line 800 miles
long and 20 miles deep. They are
struggling back and forth in one IT,
tanic A. over land that looks like
nothing SO much as a piece of Arizona
desert. How one side holds it or how
the other side gains it whenever a
foot is won or lost, is almost past COM
prehension.
America Cheers Allies
"And it is into this war that we are
now plunging. The Allies have long
been looking for us. They are tired,
but determined to fight to the end.
That America has finally begun to play
the part she was expected to play has
cheered them wonderfully, but they
want men, munitions and guns. And
we have got to send them.
| <'Wo NAV brand tho m al hOdc of tho
German. We may scorn and despise
| him, but for Gods sake DO not let US
make the terrible mistake of underes-
timating what he can and will do. He
is the most terrible enemy the, world
has ever had to face.
! eve are now sending our men.
Thank God for that! We are going to
send more and more, but we who are
left behind owe them a tremendous
of their lives is sacrificed because of
ineticiency Enough must die. talked
to a French general in one sector of
that terrible line and asked him how
many men had been killed in the
neighbour God in which he was fighting.
"For a minute he did not answer me.
Then he said slowly: About three men
to every square yard we have fought
over
"That is what we have got to send
our boys into. And it must not, it
cannot, be on the conscience of one
of us, no matter what his position may
be, that a single man is sacrificed be-
cause some one thing that should have
been done here has been left undone.
Must Have Efficiency
"No need of our trying to fool our
solver that because we are rich we
rNuct Ill 1vaalfh 3
sources, our men, will not, cannot win,
unless there is wonderful, efficient CO.
ordination in every department of the
government.
Every man, woman and child in
this country must heip The women,
particularly. must do more and more.
They must lakd the places of the men
to q very great extent On them will
devolvc more and more of the respon-
slbilities of maintaining tie nation
This is no war of pass!on or emo
ton. 1t isn't going to be fought by
enthusiasts. but by men of reason and
courage. They have got to be men,
prepared to face hell all day and
fight al! night.
There is no one to say that war is
nice thing. 1t isn't. But war calls
for the best of men and the best in
men. 1t is the best men who make the |
best soldiers. And no man. be he what |
ne may nave been, who can go over
there and face what he is called on
who does not come out of it a better
matn than he went in.
"Thosc men on the front line are the
most God-fearng men | know. They
nave faced death so many times and in
so many forms that they have long
since left the evils of the world far be-
hind them. You hear little or no pro-
fnOl.V " thpro
spect their God, and revere His name |
more, find, when they know that each !
moment they may be called on to face
Him.
Work for All to Do
This is no war for the SNUG trifer.
the SNUG proftcer or the SNUG poll !
ticlan. This is q war for the best men I
on earth and for the best that is in
those men.
And those of us at home? What
are we to do? Daily, since | have
been back l am asked by men who
believe are genuinely sincere, what
can | do to help?
Good God, there isn't anything YOU
do that won't help if it is only well
directed; we'll co0rdinatcd, efficiently
and conscientiously done Don't any
one of you men to whom I am sneak
ing tonight ever dare ask again wha,
you may do: Buy your Liberty bonds,
buy your War savings Stamps, help
your Red Cross; help, help, help
wherever and whenever you can.
"But don't misunderstood mo T
don't want to see too many men who
might we'll be carrying rifles spending
their time carrying tracts.
Let every man of the age of which
we are making soldiers who is in the
Red Cross, the Y. NJ. c. A. or the other
non-fghting sections of the workers
DC given some kind of an insignia
when VIII indicate that they have
Hnerea 'helr services as fighters and
have been rejected for some excellent
reason: Then we will be glad to well
come them where they are of next best