The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1935-07-16
Liberal Viewpoint
by DIR. HARRY ELMER BARNES

by DIR. HARRY ELMER BARNES
AHUSSOLINIS apparent determination to at
wi tack Ethiopia in his program of revivng
| the military glories Of the ancient Roman En-
pire renders extremely timely the new and
powerful anti-war book Halt! Cry the Dead"
edited by Frederick A. Barber association Press
| $3.50.
This devastating little work is collection Of
vivid texts and striking cartoons devoted to ex-
posing the savagery, imbecility, wastes and raw
ages of war. II would be difficult to imagine a
more effective compilation in the effort to render
war absurd and repulsive.
The flavor of the book can best be illustrated
by representative quotations from the various
authors whose comments and opinions are as
senbled therein.
From an editorial in the American Magazine
comes the following attempt to give some popu-
| lar impression of what it cost to conduct the
World War for one average day, and let us re-
member that the World War lasted 400 days.
Suppose any court in the United States were
to order the arrest Of 2150 American workers and
sentence them to hard labor for 40 years
What a terrific outcry that action would
provoke.
yet here is something that nobody cries out
about
IF 2150 workers were to be forced to labor
40 years at an annual wage of $500 each, their
combined earnings would pay the total cost of
the World War for just one day"
DENYS P. MYERS gives us some impression
! - of what it costs the United States to
maintain our war machine. This is something
for those who kick at relief expenditures to
chew on
Did you know that every "a hours the
! United States spends about 100000 on its
Army and Navy, and with the new appropria-
tons for 1855 will be spending about $3,000,
900 every day? Do you believe that we need
| tn he hat RI
size hostile nations?
Did you know that only $545,000,0 900 out of
total Federal budget of $3,500000000 was ex-
pended on the civil functions of government
during the fiscal year beginning July l. 1882"
How expensive it is to kill man in modern
war is pointed out by the editors of Fortune:
According to the best accountancy figures,
it cost about $25 900 to kill a soldier during the
World War. There is one class of big business
men in Europe that never rose up to denounce
the extravaganza of its governments in this re-
gard-to point out that when death is left I'M
hampered as an enterprise for the individual
initiative of gangsters the cost of single killing
seldom exceeds $100."
At this moment it will be particularly relevant
and timely to remind the American Legion of
the statement issued by its National Com
mander on Armistice Day, 1928:
1--WE ask that you, upon this Armistice Day,
take solemn resolve that you will leave no act
undone or word unSaid that may advance, even
in the smallest degree, the era of perpetual
peace You may not have the opportunity of
speaking from a platform but this does not
excuse you. If you have one neighbor, one
friend, whom you can convert to the cause Of
peace and fail to do So then you have not kept
faith with those who sleep in Flanders fields"
HARRY EMERSON FOSDICK renounces war
L in the following ringing words:
Il renounce war for its consequences, for the
lies it lives on and propagates for the undying
hatreds it arouses, for the relationships it puts
in the place of democracy, for the starvation
that stalks after it. renounce war and never
again, directly or indirectly, will sanction or
support another!"
Gen. Smedley Butler, who knows what war
bag:
War is a racket I know because I have
been in it for So years 1 am out now to arouse
the American people to put an end to the racket.
Nov they are getting ready to do it again
-. They'll be buying supplies from us and then
they'll want us to come in and collect
well, I will resign my commission first be-
fore I'll go. won't go myself or lead others to
fight for few mems money. The only fighting
I'll ever do again will be in this country if some
invading force lands"
Will Rogers exposes the hypocrisy of good
will trips and speeches while the armament
race goes on:
Imagine individuals doing that. go to
visit you and take along a Winchester and belt
full of cartridges You meet me at your gate
with your best polished machine gun and two
Colts Ass.
But at the banquet that night there is Won
derful speeches of goodwill Then next morn |
ing both of 'em start building more guns.
Viva diplomacy! Nobody is fooled, nobody
is hurt. Viva hooey!"
T.
FINALLY, Prof. Shotwell tells us that the way
Il to prevent war is to stop it before it starts:
THE cruX of the business is that modern !
war is like forest fire. 1t may start from a |
small incident but is soon out of control If
we to prevent another war, we must keep |
it from starting, and to do this we must build |
the instruments of international conference that
will take hold of issues before they reach the
point of conflict
Realism the conflict of interests in the
Far East is contained in Tom Ireland's WAR
Clouds in the Skies of the Far East" (Putnams, |
$2.75), which argues against the wisdom of
American interference in the Orient.
The pacifcation of central Asia by Soviet
Russia is described in vivid fashion by Joshua |
Kuntz in his Dawn Over Samarkand," (Covici- |
Friede So The impact of the World War upon
international finances is summarized in clear
and authoritative fashion by Paul Enzig in his