The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1918-02-12
(New York Times.)

opened the fight for the passage of
the Chamberlain War Cabinet bill
with three-hour speech in the Sem
ate today in which he attacked the
Administration as having failed to
coordinate the war activities of the
nation. He maintained that Presi-
dent Wilson "does not know the
real situation" which Senator
Hitchcock characterized as ''worse
than alarming"
Senator Hitchcock spoke of the
President as belonging to ''school
of philosophers who adhere to the
belief that all important legislation
ought to emanate with the Execu-
tive" While expressing loyalty to
the Executive, the Senator assert
ed the right to bring to light defects
in the war administration which, he
said, menaced the ultimate aim of
victory over the enemy.
Challenging the statement of Sec
retary Baker that the War Depart
ment had achieved a triumph in the
work done in the last nine months,
Senator Hitchcock asserted that the
Secretary was "out of touch" with
details of department activities.
Mr.. Hitchcock declared "exagger-
ations of the widest Sort" the
"sanguine predictions of Mr.. Baker,
as to our ability to ship men to Eu-
rope and to supply them when
there" ..
In reality, Senator Hitchcock con-
tended, the problem of getting men
to France was extremely grave, and
he expressed doubt whether the Sec
retary realized the difficulties ahead.
He calculated that 5000, 900 tons of
shipping would be needed to supply
i 100000 men in France, if the
men could be got there, and he said
that nowhere near that tonnage
would be available. '1 cannot be-
.lieve," said the Senator of the Sec
retary's prophecy, "that he intend
ed it as gigantic bluff to Germany
or to deceive US, but he was out of
touch with conditions =,
Williams Makes Reply.
Senator Hitchcock's attack on the
Administration brought a rebuke
from Senator John Sharp Williams
of Mississippi, who criticised the
War Cabinet bill and the. bill to
create a dictatorship of munitions
Of munitions as "stupid." He char
acterized advocacy of the measures
as an effort to "put the President in
a hole" -.-
Senator Williams referred to the
attitude of Senators, among whom
was Senator Hitchcock, in the early
days of the war, in favor of a meas
ure to declare an embargo against
shipping munitions to the Allies. At
that time, Mr.. Williams insisted,
they were "playing the German
game" Now Germany's sympathiz-
ers in this country, Senator Williams
said, are Undertaking the Admin
istration.'
"You know these two bills can
not pass this Senate" the Senator
went on. "Why do you insist on
forcing them in this way? Show
where you stand. Are you trying
to pass them so the President will
have to veto them and you can
make him temporarily unpopular in
the country? If that's it, say So"
"Let US not wage this war as Re-
publicans or Democrats" Senator
Williams went on. "Let US not wage
it as Southerners or Northerners,
but as Americans"
Senator Reed of Missouri express
ed sympathy with the efforts of
Senator Chamberlain, Senator Hitch
cock, and the others standing with
them to uncover War Department
delinquencies, but stated his oppo-
sition to the proposed measures as
interference with the constitutional
right of the executive to assume, un
hindered, the authority of Com