The Washington times., 1919-02-02
Must Be Prepared For
War, Shaw Declares

shores of the North Sea there was
starvation everywhere, and from
Warsaw eastward there were whole
countries of which it could be af-
firmed without improbability that
there was no child under seven years
of age alive.
Even in America, no less than IN
Holland and the Scandinavian lands,
large classes with small but for
merly sufficient incomes had those
incomes deprived Of half their pur-
chasing power.
Control by Single State Dangerous.
After such a terrible demonstra-
tion of the power of the British
navy, its possession and control by
a single state must. appear so dan
gerous to all the others that no one
who grasped the situation shared
the surprise of the innocents when
the rejoicings over the armistice
were suddenly Jared upon by the
claim that the United States must
possess an equally formidable feet
in the announcements of Admiral
Badger and Mr.. Daniels as to the
American shipbuilding programme.
Thus we are back again at the
point reached when the intention of
Germany to build a rival feet was
realized in England and the prepa-
rations for the great. war began.
JUST AS THE LIEUTENANTS
OF THE GERMAN AND BRITISH
NAVIES LOOKED FORWARD TO
DER TAG" WHEN THE PREPA-
RATIONS WOULD BE BROUGHT
TO THE TEST OF WARFARE
DURING THE. RACE OF NAVAL
ARMAMENTS WHICH CULMI-
MATED AT THE BATTLE OF
JUTLAND, THE LIEUTENANTS
OF THE UNITED STATES NAVY
ARE ALREADY LOOKING FOR
WARD QUITE PROPERLY, AND
WILL, TO THE DAY WHEN THE
BRITISH AND AMERICAN
FLEETS SHALL, FIGHT FOR
THE POWER TO BLOCKADE,
WITHOUT WHICH NO NATION
CAN EVER AGAIN FEEL SAFE.
The duty of securing that power
is henceforth Of all patriots as long
as the present anarchy between ma
tions leaves them with no security
against ruin and subjugation, except
the power of self-preservation.
The more frankly this situation is
faced, the more intolerable does il
become and the more overwhelming
seems the Importance of President
Wilson's demand for the freedom Of
the seas.
Small Chance Of Sea Freedom.
The small chance of that freedom
no longer presents any serious diff
Guilty as between England and
America, because America very early
in the war forced England to pay
for contraband take nfrom Ameri-
can ships, and it is not pretended
that England as great carrying
nation with a tradition of free trade
abuses her power by attempting to
make private roads of indispensable
maritime highways in peace
The real difficulty is that she can
and does ruin half the world to save
herself in time of war, and is indeed
unable to obtain a decision by any
other means, for 1t is evident that
had all the ports been open and all
the seas free the armies might have
gone on fighting until the day of
judgment without being forced to
capitulate.
This is, in fact a vital part of
England's case for the. command of
the seas, for if she could have won
the war without it she would
have no plea for insisting on retain
ing it except sheer arrogance.
Power Of Life and Death.
BUT ITS OPERATION HAS
PROVED ALSO THAT THE COM
MAND OF THE SEA MEANS A
POWER OF LIFE AND DEATH
OVER EUROPE, AND THIS con-
STITUTES A HEGEMONY AGAINST
WHICH THE WORLD WILL RE-
BEL AS SURELY AS 1T REBELS
AGAINST THE MERE THREAT OF
A PAN-GERMAN HEGEMONY,
ENGLAND is STILL BOUND