The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1918-01-23
THE ARTEMUs WARD THEORY
or WAR. s.s'" .
tBy Theodore Roosevelt.)


The great American humorist, Ar
temus Ward, whose writings gave such
delight to Abraham Lincoln, once re-
marked that he was willing to sacri-
flee all his wife's relatives on the al
tar OF his country. Mr.. Ward was not
in President Lincoln's cabinet. Mr..
Baker is in President Wilson's cabi-
met. He takes substantially the same
ground that Artemus Ward did. Al
though possibly with more conscious
humor he has just uttered heroic
statement expressing his pleased &C.
quiescence in the sacrifice of France
and England's armies for the defense
of the common cause. 49,. ..-
On Wednesday last, discussing the
likelihood that the Germans. relieved
from anxiety of Russia, would make
a tremendous assault on the western
front, Mr.. Baker said:
THE impending German offensive
will, possibly be their greatest as
sault The French and British armies
can be relied upon to Withstand the
shock"
Mr.. Baker is President Wilson's
lsecretary of war. He holds at this
time the most important Office in our
government. He thus announces to
our allies and the world that in the
Twelfth month after Germany went to
war with US, America, the richest
country of the world, with a popula-
tion OF 100,000,O00 people, after being
at war nearly year and after such
warning as never nation had before,
lis wholly unable to send ay effective
assistance to repel the greatest as
sault of the war, and that the only
military measure which can be taken
is to express through Mr.. Baker the
belief that the British and French
armies can be relied upon to do alone
the duty which we ought to share
with them. s.. ri.
This statement of Mr.. Baker alb
solves us from all necessity of com
menting on his ingenious defense OF
q system of preparedness which leaves
our small armies at the front with no
ARTILLERY except what we get from the
French, and our army at home with
batteries made out of telegraph poles
and lOgwood. 1t is not necessary to
discuss the exact amount of pride we
should as a nation take in the fact
that as a nation after eleven months
|of war we are proudly emerging from
mess into the telegraph pole stage pre-.
paredness. Mr.. Bakers statement
sums up the situation exactly. We
have been at war nearly a year and
when the Germans make their great.
est assault our preparedness IS only
such as to warrant our expressing the
belief that our allies can win without
our help. ' ~
The New York Times, a supporter
of the administration, comments truth
fully on the situation: mine months
after entering the war not only are
we giving our allies no effective mill
tary aid, but all our hustle and stir
does not hide the fact that through in
competence and lack of organization
and system we are far behind in our
preparation to supply rifles, ammuni-
ton, machine guns, airships, uniforms,
clothing for the troops we shall some.
time have at the front. Our back.
wardness is naturally disQuieting to
our allies. If 100000 American SOL
diers, or half that number, fully equip
Ipped, had stood ON the soil of France,
Lloyd George would have made no
speech to British workingmen restat-
ing after fashion the war aims of
the allies, there would have been no
occasion nor demand for a speech
telling the labor unions what the Brit
ish are fighting for"
The pacifsts, who are the agencies
OF German intrigue, would not be
working for a peace in the interests
of capitalistic and militaris autonomy
of Germany. As the Times well says,
"The man who works for such peace
while Germany is unconquered is the
most heartless of militarists or enc
my of the worlds peace and freedom"