Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1922-10-25
A PRACTICAL PROGRAM


essential to success" says Frederick
J. Libby, executive secretary of the
National Council for Reduction of
Armaments. He is right, of course,
with emphasis on the practical"
But what he would regard as prac-
teal, Secretary of War Weeks or
General Pershing might consider i'm
practical. And while there is not the
slightest suspicion that either of
those officials is influenced by greed
for profits from the making of mu-
nitions, there is the further fact that
they have some intimate knowledge
of what they are talking about, a fact
which should not be overlooked.
Secretary Weeks, also, would have
| program. He says: "A systematic
| plan must be worked out to ensure
economic preparedness" His ideas
| of doing that may not, probably will
not be the last word on that subject
, Then there is General Pershing,
whose distinguished career is all the
! proof required that he has knowledge
of the subject, a remarkably level
headed, common sensed individual
and never addicted to military fun
meriCs or swell headed because of his
! position. He told Congress why the
/ army it proposed was not practical
, and his words have never been dis
proved.
| Why are the so-called pacifists, so
, many Of them, urging recognition of
the Bolshevik regime in Russia, the
! regime that came into power through
| violence whose hands are stained
! with the blood of violence, that ex-
! lists only through force? Why, on
| hearing some of the talk INDUCED in
by certain of the pacifists is one re-
minded of the bunk employed by
leaders in bolshevism SO they might
get the power and the pelf into their
own bloody hands?
American soldiers in the Great War
! We're trained to use their bean"
They used it to good advantage. To-
! day they neither want any more of
war nor any more of bolshevism
The large majority of them, judging
| from such evidence as is obtainable,
believe that for the world to get into
another great war would be like COM
, hitting suicide. They, too, know
something about this subject. They
| didn't learn it discussing theories in
! the parlor nor by reading Karl Marx.
Their position is somewhat similar
! to that OF the experts who have been
| trained in the work of providing fire
escapes for buildings. They know
| that however much of brotherly love
! there may be in the hearts of a big
public audience it is likely in time of
panic to act as though there were
no such thing as the golden rule in
existence, and they plan to provide
against such contingencies. If they
be good citizens they will not object
! to all possible instruction and en-
couragement in brotherly love. But
let there be fire drill. let there be I'M
! firing and endless effort to acquaint
l,4 I,a 80
ways by which it may be avoided.
, Dut first. install adequate fire es-
They realize that a panic at such
times is the most foolish thing in the
world, that it usually is disastrous in
its consequences and they would omit
no effort to have the public realize it.
! But if they would depend on that, on
the public keeping its head in a crit
/ ical moment and argued that in con-
sequence any old fire escape would
suffice, they would become a public
pest.
Why not, on the start, recognize
the situation for what it is, a demand
on eternal vigilance: see that care
less, happy go lucky attitude is the
most to be feared incentive to war?
Pretty independent and wilful is
what has been said of another Henry
Ford. now suspected of having an