The Bridgeport times and evening farmer. (Bridgeport, Conn.) 1918-1924, 1920-08-28

+ people who inhabited this country at
! that time were living probably mile,
| or two, or three or more miles apart
Every man carried a pistol or rifle for
| the purpose of protection But IN due
ftime the processes of civilization went
| on. Counties were formed. a sheriff
was appoin ted and the duty was vest
| ed in the sheriff to protect persons
| and property and so when the sheriff S
! Office had been established, author
| ity given to him permitting him to
| carry weapons law was written
| making it illegal for any one else to
| carry concealed weapons. Villages
i were provided in order to protect per-
| tablished and our police departme nts
werep rovided in order to protect per-
| sons and property and city ordinances
were passed making it illegal for any
| one to carry concealed weapons.
Now throughout years the nations
| of the earth have competed with
| each other in the purchase of battle
| ships; in the buying of ornaments
| and a part of the resources of every
| nation has been devoted to the per-
| lection of the instrum ent alities in
! tended for the destruction of the sons
| Of men. Before the European war
| the nations of Europe had carried
! the burden of debt of billions upon
| billions of dollars all of which was
| occasioned by the fact that when
| England bought one warship Ger
| many bought two warShips and when
| England bought one warship Austria
| bought two and so it went on in that
| way and furnished unending compe-
tition over there. Need I remind you
that 10 or 20 years ago that it was a
1T IL, 4rIr ~
seas and to see newspapers carrying
| cartoons illustrating a farmer at
| tending to his daily labors and carry
| ing on his back o soldier completely
| and perfesS1y uniformed with musket
| on his shoulder, which was intended
to i'm press war1ike conditions upon
the public mind.
Truly the resources of the nation
were wasted in the purchase of a
perfectly needless thing in these days
of a modern civilization. Now, the
high moral purpose of the nations of
the world is this: That all nations
shall stop carrying concealed wea-
pons. Their representatives shall as
semble at table and be morally and
legally bound to stop buying war
ships and that they shall stop mold
ing and creating cannon and rifles
and cease operating the great am
munition factories and agree that in
stead of that, the resources of the
people be turned to the pursuit and
purpose of peace rather than of war.
We have a great national debt, greater
than we have ever had in the past
and yet we will be enabled to pay it
and to pay it without passing through
any burdenSome or oppressive days,
provided we do not have to expend
hundreds of millions of dollars every
year for the purpose of continuing this
senseless, this needless, this inhuman
competition in the buying of arma-
ments with the other nations of the
earth. Civilization cannot stand an
other war such as the one through
which we have just passed. It is nee
essary that every European nation
shall pay its war debt. If it does not
then the financial stability of the
world is upset. I impress it upon
your impressions for this reason: The
financial stability of Europe is essen
tia1 to the financial stability of the
world. So the nations after their
experiences after the war-that is
twenty-nine of them sat down and
signed a compact. What was it? 1t
is perfectly simple.
ct recognize that during the last
few months attempts have been made
men. This is not compact for the
purpose alone that nations will not go
to war but it is also an agreement
that if any differences or controver-
sizes arise then it must be submitted
for discussion and arbitration for a
period of at least nine months time.
There is not a person here but knows
full we'll that if a sober second
thought is given straight for nine
he hot 1aor 11n Tvo-
deed if nine days had elapsed at the
beginning of the war in Europe in
1914 there would not have been
war in Europe. If any nation feels
an offence sufficient to cause her to
go to war then under the agreement
proposed the other nations hermetri-
cally seal her harbors. They decline
to have anything to do with her,
they will buy nothing from her, they
will sell nothing to that nation. That
is the plan. Need I remind you that
is the best thought of the world. The
most logical arrangement that the re-
gime of time has suggested for the
purpose of ending war. When the
Treaty was being written over seas
before any one in Europe knew with
any accuracy of details just. what it
would be-before America knew the
substance or form of the compact
per branch of Congress at Washing
ton signed what is known as a Round
Robin, so-called, that they were
against it. Why were they against it?
Because it promised to make a dis
tinct contribution to the civilizat ton
of the world and the thing that was
shocking to them was that a Demo-
cratic Administration was in charge
and this contribution would not be
~ n ie-f,- - 4,
Democratic party of the United
States.
You search the heart of the earnest
Republican politician and you will
find what his grievance is-that All
mighty God while this great tragedy
was going on, left him and his kind
sitting on the bleachers. That's the
trouble. Well, the compact was pre-
scented to the Senate, it was never rat
flied and the Senator from this State
was a. party to that Round Robin and
/ ask you in all earnestness whether