Fulton County tribune. (Wauseon, Ohio) 1883-1925, 1920-05-21
WILSON'S U-b0AT
ORDER REVEALED
Daniels Says President Told
Navy to Sacrifice Half of
Fleet to Win.
MADE ADDRESS ON FLAGSHIP
President Demanded New Methods Be
Used in Warfare Against German
Submarne-ShoW British
How to Beat Foe.

Washington, May 13. President
Wilson's hitherto unpublished war in
structions to the officers of the Allan
tic feet, given in person on the quar-
terdeck of the flagship Pennsylvania
on August II, and bidding them
throw tradition to the Winds" "strike
the word prudent from their vocabu-
laries'' and "do the thing that is auda-
cious to the utmost point of risk and
daring" were made public here by
Secretary Daniels.
In opening his address to the Off
GERS, Mr.. Wilson said:
Admiral Mayo and Gentlemen:
Il have not come here with malice
prepense to make a speech, but have
come here to have a look at you and
to say some things that perhaps may
be intimately said and even though
the company is large, said in con-
fidence:
This Is an unprecedented war, and
therefore, it is a war in one sense for
amateurs. Nobody ever before con-
Quoted a war like this and therefore
nobody can pretend to be a profess
sional In a war like this. Here are
two great navies, not to speak Of the
others associated with us-our own
and the British, outnumbe-ing by a
very great margin the navy to which
we are opposed and yet casting about
for way in which to use our su-
periority and our strength.
1--WE are hunting hornets all over
the farm and letting the nest alone.
None Of US know how to go to the nest
and crush it, and yet I despair of
hunting for hornets all over the sea
when l know where the nest is and
know that the nest is breeding hornets
as fast as 1 can find them.
Il am willing for my part and
know you are willing because I know
| the stuff you are made of am will
ing to sacrifice half the navy Great
Britain and we together have to crush
that nest, because if we crush it the
war is won.
81 have come here to say that dc
not care whether it comes from the
youngest officer or the oldest, but
want the officers OF the navy to have
the distinction Of saying how this wal
is going to be won.
II am willing to make any sacrifice
for that. I mean any sacrifice Of timt
or anything else. l am ready to pu
myself at the disposal of any Office
| sy, h1 h,x,
to run this war. will not undertak,
to tell you whether ne does or not
because know that 1 do not, but
will undertake to put him in communi
cation with those who can find ou
whether his idea win work or not
"We have got to throw tradition t.
the winds. AS have said, gentlemen
I take it for granted that nothin
that 1 say here will be repeated ant
therefore I am going to say this
Every time we have suggested any
thing to the British admiralty the re
ply has come back that virtual
amounted to this, that it had neve
been done that way, and felt lik
saying, Well, nothing was ever don
so systematically as nothing is bein
done now
Therefore, I should like to Sc
something unusual happen, somethin
that was never done before; and, in
asmuch as the things that are bein
done to you were never done before
don't you think it is worth while t
try something that was never done be
fore against those who are doing ther
to you?
"There is no other way to win, an
the whole principle Of this war is tn
| kind of thing that ought to hearte
and stimulate America. America
the prize amateur nation Of the worl(
Germany is the prize professional ne
ton of the world. Now, when it come
to doing new things and doing thel
well, will back the amateur agains
the professional every time. He know
so little about it that he is fool enoug
to try the right thing. The men this
do not know the danger are the rasl
est men.
"Please leave out Of your vocabt
larry altogether the word prudent
Do not stop to think about what
prudent for a moment. Do the thin
that is audacious to the utmost poir
of risk and daring, because that
exactly the thing that the other sic
I does not understand, and you will wi
: by the audacity of method when yo
y cannot win by circumspection an
prudence"