Evening star., 1925-04-19
SHALL u. S. ARM FOR WAR
OR ASSIST CANCELLATION?
Admiral Rodgers Demands Armed Might,
While Gen. Bliss Sees Peace bv
World Cooperation.

this country based upon a rule of evil
dence differing from our customary
one. Moreover, Oriental peoples, COM
prislng a great part of humanity, as
| sign an objective TO court procedure
quite different from our own. We
| look for an honest decision ba sed on
| analysis of the evidence and the as
certained facts. Orientals, however,
seem to prefer a reasonably fair COM
| promise satisfactory to allan arbi
| trail decision rather than a judicial
| one. So that. as was pointed out to
the League of Nations not long ago
! (September I'D by the British repre-
sentative (Sir Cecil Hurst, 1t is likely
that the administration of law by an
| international court might be far from
| pleasing to us. We should not be too
| Sanguine as to what we hear of the
! league and it's court.
Let us keep sound our hearts and
| forget not that we live in a world OF
| jealous rivals for commerce and po-
| litical advantage, remembering that
| not in their good will, but in our
own armed strength alone rests our
| security and our prospects of peace.
| Our present needless attitude toward
/ preparation, and particularly naval
| preparation, invites foreign contempt,
and at any moment may bring dis
| aSter.
Views of Gen. Bliss.
ION the other hand. Gen. Bliss be-
lieves that the world is an associa-
| ton of states. 1t began to be such
with the beginning of international
| law, or perhaps the beginning OF
| that law was the recognition OF the
fact of association. In an associs-
ton no member can effectively do
| anything without the cooperation of
/ nth
as TO our military policy is that we
| should not disarm an American soldier
| nor lay up an American ship of war
| except as the result of such an agree
ment among competing nations. 10y
ally accepted and adhered to, as will
| convince Americans that such reduc-
ton is safe. The world problem is
| Identical with the problem between
| France and Germany-security. War
is great evil. but a general feeling
| in one state that in the last resort
nothing is worth a war would for
that state, be a greater evil. War
| has destroyed civilization. but has
also preserved it. Our civilization is
a heritage bequeathed to US by for
mer generations, by nature itself and
| natures God. to defend in last resort
| by whatever means are found neces-
| sary.
But in stating this as my belief l
do not Intentionally deceive myself.
History Will not show a ase where
one civilization deliberately, of malice
aforethought, without many other
lmpetllng motives, set itself to destroy
another civilization by violence. The
destruction of rights and liberties by
war Is incidental to other causes
and motives. And the whole problem
| of improved relations between the
states grows out of these contributory
causes and motives that tend to war.
Therefore, an attitude of reasonable
preparation for national defense is
| perfectly consistent with an attitude
1 of study and endeavor to check the
operation of contributory causes.
War Instinct Comfortable.
| These causes and motives are very
| numerous and often very recondife
Every sentiment in the human mind
which a few centuries ago impelled
the most civilized individuals to pri-
vate war will, operating in the aggre-
gate minds of nation, impel il to
public war. And these sentiments
have operated so long that they have
become like a blind. brute instinct.
But instinct in man, who is a reason
ing animal, is Controllable by the rea-
son of man. When communities found
that 1t was good to do so. they put
/
vfdual motives that led to private
war. Out of the surrender of the
right to private war came the possi-
hli1ty Of the reign of law within the
! state. Restore that right. and all
| law will of necessity disappear.
| Why is 1t SO difficult for men 10
understand that without similar checks
between states they are liable 10
recurrent outbreaks of savagery that
| hn civ
nurtured from within? 1t would seem
clear that some reasonable check to
the exercise of the right of public
war Is Just as necessary for the de
| velopment of a binding system of in
| ternational law as the total surrender
| OF the right of private war was for
the upbuilding of domestic law. Men
can still fight, even if reasonably dis
armed (and provided all are thus dis
armed, to defend their rights and lib
| critics from wanton attack, and at
the same time the operation of the
motives that lead to many wars NAV
be largely eliminated
/ Arms Check Arbitration.
''If all armaments could be held at
reasonable minimum, sufficient for
the maintenance of peace and order
| within the state, but insufficient to
| tempt state almost without warning
10 attack d similarly placed nefghbof
| such ornaments might play a real
part in the maintenance of peace.
Then diplomacy, instead of being sue
cessful according to the degree OF
force behind it. would have more
chance of being successful on the
merits of its case. When states are
| not ready to strike a quick blow in
the hope of a quick victory # In
| possible that arbitration. when dinIo-
macy fails, may be more readily re.
| sorted to. Then it is possible that the
| habit of such settlements may grow
as men learn that they may receive
| substantial justice more certainly and
! with less cost Even as it Is, look at
| the long list of arbitration of i'm
portant questions. during the last one
| or two generations. All these ques-
tions had they not been thus settled,
| may well have resulted in war In
how many cases would competent
international jury of unbiased men
find that substantial justice was not
| done? / think not one. But unfor-
4 tunately in practice, ornaments are
check upon arbitration rather than
upon war. No. way has been found
to prevent one and then another of
/ the few great competing nations from
| increasing its armament. When the
rivalry Is on there is no limit to 1t
but that of capacity. Enmities are
created, fears are engendered to make
the people endure burdens which, but
for that fear, they would not tolerate
And each has the hope that in the
end 1t will be able to settle its inter
I national differences by throwing its
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