The twice-a-week Twin Falls times. (Twin Falls, Idaho) 1916-1918, 1918-03-05
NOW WHO ARE THE LIARsg

Actual events have shown that
fatuous complacency on the part of
our officials has resulted in ineffi-
cheney and lelay which would have
meant overwhelming disaster to this
nation if we had not been protected
by the fleets and armies of England
and France For the first IL months
of this war the inefficiency at vitol
points in our government, notably in
the matter of shipping and in the man
agement of the war department, was
worse than anything Russia herself
has ever seen.
Nearly 10 months have now passed
since Germany went to war with us
and we broke relations with Germany
and afterward timidly and helplessly
drifted stern foremost into what We
styled a formal" state of war. The
Russo-Japanese war likewise began
before there was any formal declara-
ton of war. 1t only lasted 16 months.
We have been accustomed to hold out
Russia's action during that 16 months
as a miracle of inefficiency but she
showed herself far less inefficient than
we have shown ourselves during the
l3 months that have just passed.
The above excerpts are taken from
Colonel Roosevelt's Kansas City Star
letter. republished in the Spokesman
Review of March l. He in the same
letter unequivocally endorses Sena-
tor Chamberlain's fearless exposure"
in which the Oregon senator declared
that our military establish did not
exist, that it had ceased to function
because of inefficiency in every branch
of the United States government. The
TIMES has previously shown that the
war department has done more than
twice as much as Colonel Roosevelt
considered possible at the beginning
of the war in the way of getting men
over, but let that pass.
The ablest defender of the Chamber
lain war cabinet bill on the floor of
the senate, is the leading Republican
member of the committee on military
affairs, Senator Wadsworth. of New
York. Senator Wadsworth in the
course of his remarks touched upon
the oversights and mistakes which ev-
erybody admits were made and de-
livered as good a plea for the bill as
anybody could make. But he contra
dicted the statement that nothing had
been done between the time that we
dissolved diplomatic relations and the
declaration of war. He said:
'In the first week OF February 1917
--12 months ago-the German ambas-
sador was handed his passports as a
result of Germany's announcement
submarine warfare against our mer-
chant shipping in those great zones
that she intended to prosecute ruthless
she had marked out upon the ocean.
Although two months elapsed before
congress declared. in the first week of
April, 1917, that state of war exist
ed between the United States and the
Imperial German government, the date
of the dismissal of the German ambas-
sadOr must rightfully mark the com
mencement of our preparations for
war. And the fact is that in Febru-
airy and March of 1917 our govern
ment did inaugurate certain measures
in the war and navy departments, cal
culated to anticipate the inevitable.
- SO far as the mobilization and
control of industry and the creation
and supplying of an army is concern
ed, we were compelled to start dc
novo."
He was far from assuming that all
branches of government had broken
down or that the managers of the war
department had shown lack of intel
ligent foresight in all lines of activ-
ity, or that the officials were to be
personally blamed for mistakes. On
this point he said:
Il think no member of the commit
mittee underestimates the task which
confronted the government and the
people in the spring of 1917. 1t was
stupendous-the more so, because we
had not even laid a foundation prior
to that time. That great things have
been done during these y months can
not be denied-things that we can all
be proud of.
Mr. President, from time to time in
public statements various government
officials have pointed out some of
those things which are to our credit.
Perhaps l may be permitted at this
time to give credit to the war depart
ment and the government generally
for two or three of the most conspic-
uously creditable things, for l think
this discussion should be absolutely
fair and that we should analyze cor
rectly what has been done and. if nee
essary what has not been done
When one considers the mental atti-
tude and psychological condition of the
American people at the time we went
into this war, then considers the rev
dictionary character of the selective-
draft law, and then follows down and
traces the operation of that law,
think everyone will gladly admit that
the operation of that law and the
working of its machinery have been q
remarkable and conspicuous success
far bqvOnd the qxnQcfaffOnc and bnpoc