The Washington herald., 1918-06-27

OSWdlu 1dTTlSOn NilldTu Ol the view
York Evening Post wakes almost
pacifistic in laying before members OF
the Senate an urgent appeal for re-
lection of the compulsory military
service law. He insists that it is con-
sidered by its friends to be a cure-all
for many governmental ills. whereas
1t is more an incentive for the release
of all the war tendencies a nation can
have through constant development.
He says:
I'm the years to come. mono of the
recent amazing phenomena will, ! am
sure, cause greater wonderment than
our recent discovery that universal
military service is the cure-all for
our American ills. Do we wish to de-
fend our country? We have but to
adopt the system of training every
boy to be a soldier. and the problem
Is solved. Do we wish to become tn
dustrialIy efficient? Then let us for
get all about vocational training. but
give every American a year under
arms, and prestol we shall outdo
Germany in scientific efficiency, and
management. Is our youth lawless
and undisciplined? Universal COM
pulsory service will end that once for
all Is our democracy halting? /: Is
the tonic OF a democratic army tnat
We need in which all men shall pay
for the privileges Of citizenship by 4
year OF preparation for poison gas
and of learning how to destroy other
human beings. Our melting pot Ii
failure? Then let us pour into it the
iron OF militarism, and II will fuse
every element at once. Finally, IL we
need an American soul-and the war
has suddenly taught us that this
glorious country lacks a soul.-it Is
the remedy Of universal military
service that Is TO supply our spiritual
needs and give us the ability to feel
as one, to think as one, to steer
towards our destiny as of one mind,
imperialistica1ly.
1T is so allurinE and so entrance
ingly easy, the wonder is that We
have never thought of it before. We
saw it going on in France and Ger
many and Russia, but it seemed all
together repulsive in its forms. Amer
leans to be conscripted? Heaven for.
bid. There rose before us the unut-
terable cruelties of noncommissioned
officers and some OF the officers
visions of the thousands OF men COM
ing to our shores with hands mutt
lated to avoid the barracks with their
! open immoralities, their bitter hard
ships, the loss of three years of 50
many working lives.
Advocates of military preparedness
are fond of likening their policies to
the insurance policy upon our 'edi-
fees. But there is a point beyond
which no man would increase his
premiums upon any given premises:
he would tear them down 10 get a
lower rate on a more modern struc-
| ture, or he would build a concrete
structure and do away with insur-
! ance altogether. So the price of uni
versal military servitude Is far too
great price to pay for insuring
peace by any free peoples. It's dan
gers. its contaminating effects, the
terrible weapon it forges for rulers,
| its reducing men to a dead level,
| far Offset the alleged advantages
which are physical betterment, great
er practical efficiency and energy, and
a sense of responsibility to the ma
| tion. For all of these things the
price of compulsory service is TOO
heavy. For it does not train the un-
mt or build up the weak, and it is not
IHtdHl UT lnlenCeU 10 increase eftl-
cheney in civil life It's primary DUR
pose is to turn out killers, not work.
| ers."
The question will likely not be
| brought up for some time to come.
The statement OF the Secretary of
War and other officials close to the
President indicate that White House
sanction of the proposal is withheld
because of the i'll effect 1t might have
just now on our foreign relations,
Advocates of the movement, how
ever. have gained wonderful i'm,
petus 80 far as arousing a demand
for 1t among the people Of the ma
ton. They have secured Endorsements
from all sorts of organizations and
hundreds of thousands of business
men personally have been committed
to the support Of this legislation.
In fact. the movement has grown
so in some places that those who
oppose it are at once denominated
''pacifists" and the like-and the fact
that such pacifists as w. ]. Bryan
and Henry Ford and others have ap-
peared against it brings 1t greater
support, apparently, and rather tends
to minimize the opposition to 1t.
The one thing holding the matter
up at this time Is the number Of
men who are for it who stili believe
that this is an inopportune time to
| bring II forth. This faction Is de-
eidsaly IN ths control In Copgress,