Valdez daily prospector., 1918-04-10
AMERICANS ARE WARNED

unexpected strength of Germany to cease beating ton toms and get down to practical work. There has been too much boasting on this side of the At lantic. There has been too much red tape in organizing our armies. We have not moved with the swiftness and with the intelligence of which our people are capable We have been too much content to believe that all is we'll when all is not we'll. There has been too much indifference to the shortcomings of our administrators Too much of the proneness to look upon those who criticise the bungling of the administration as enemies of the government and not the govern ment's real friends.
 Our war work has been done to too great an extent by amateurs. And these amateurs, in order to empha- tsize the importance of their accom- plishments, have indulged too freely in the "thumbing of the index"
 One year has passed and only one army has been organized. This is worse than a shame-it is crime. It is a crime that is chargeable not to absolute incompetence but to neglect. We began the exercise of the nation al conscription law nine months ago, and yet those who were called to the colors at that time have only partial ly been armed and drilled for actual service Week after week is spent by many thousands of men in almost idleness in the various training camps, thus destroying their powers of initiative, causing them to be rest less and discontented. and conscious of their lack of fitness for the service which a soldier must perform in the great war for which they are called to the colors. Several months ago it was announced that the new army would be called shortly. Then the date was postponed, and postponed again, and again postponed, the ex- planation being that quarters were not ready for these national soldiers and they would not be called until arrangements could be made for them to take the places of the first army that was mobilized in various canton ments last August.
 It is not a sufficient excuse to say that this tardiness is due to lack of law or authority. We have vested in our rulers greater authority than is exercised by executives in any civil ized world. We have supplied pro- portionately a greater sum than was ever supplied in equipping men for war. No law has failed of passage that was sought by those who have the responsibility for making war; no ser ious interference has retarded the work, and yet there is the excuse that a republican form of government makes it most difficult to organize armies and navies and to equip them for active service.
 Such an excuse is objectionable be- cause it has no good reason in SUD- port of it.
 We are simply placing our faith in incompetents selected largely for pol itical reasons, and are jeopardizing the very existence of our nation by trusting that existence to such ill equipped administrators. This is the simon-pure truth of the situation, and the sooner the public understands il the sooner there will be sentiment de manding correction even at the ex, pense of those who now enjoy the confidence of our people.
 There has been too much actual employment of the term camouflage There has been too much "four-aush- ing,' and this has got to stop or it will not be twelve months until we will be unsupported by our brave