The Republican journal., 1920-02-12
UNIVERSAL MILITARY TRAINING

universal military training IS national
necessity. Some of these people are
theorists; some of them are professional
military men; some are SPECTATORS; some
are grafters; some are dor agitators who
wish to curtail production so that wages
can be kept at or lifted above the present
level All of them know that they are
not in danger of being called from the
home, the school, the college, or from
good lob, to learn to click their heels,
salute their officers, black the drill
masters shoes, and if apt and servile
may be allowed to engage in rifle and
machine gun practice during the last few
weeks of training.
The general plan is somewhat like this:
It is proposed to conscript all the young
men of the country between the ages of
10 and 10 years, who are physically and
mentally fit, for about six months and to
transport them to great concentration
camps, there to be trained. 1t is esti-
mated that there are about 100000 of
these men and they will be known as the
class of 1921, this being the year for the
inception Of the undertaking. There will
E5e class of those who are between IS
and 10 for 1922, another for 1925 and so
on Indefinitely, each containing about the
same number of men, Thus, after GER
tain number of years, all men liable to
military service will have had some train
ing This is but an outline of the scheme
10 which various other provisions are at
cached.
Some people who are accustomed to
look at things from practical stand
point have suggested that we have now
about 1890, 900 men who have had train
ing in the hard school of actual warfare.
They say, too, that there is no probability
that any nation will become strong enough
to at tack the United States in the next
20 years, and consequently, there is no
Immediately pressing need of training
900, 900 more men each year. 1t is fur
ther suggested that probably this class of
1921 and several succeeding classes would
will again be plunged into war. There
are, also, thousands of oldfashioned faith
ers and mothers who believe that their
sons would be better employed in getting
ready to live their own lives, than in
learning what military instructors con-
slider to be the rudiments to be acquired
before soldiers can scientifically and ex-
peditiously kill other people.
What will it cost? This is question
worth considering before we commit our
selves to this stupendous undertaking.
The present cost per man in the military
service of the United States averages
approximately $1,000 year. Doubtless
this will seem unbelievable to many of
our readers, but it is fact, and there is
no Use in arguing about it. The cost per
man in training for six months would be
at least $1,000, and the cost of 600, 900
men would be 5000, 000,0 600. In addition
to this, army officers have testified, to
$500, 100000 to put the camps Of the
country in condition for system of uni
0ersaj training, that 500, 100000 year
would be needed every year to keep these
camps in condition and that the total
expense in connection with universal
= tr al ri ng for the first year, would be ST.
900, O00,O If an extra billion dollars
are to be taken from the pockets of a
people already harrassed by taxation of
divers and sundry sorts, it would seem to
DC better business policy to use it in
reducing our public debt instead Of turn
ing it over to the war department under
its present improvident and reckless man
agement.