Evening star., 1939-01-10

SPEAKS ON NATIONAL DEFEN
was heard last night in the Ma
lzation that in the world about us
wars and the prospects of more wars
are terribly menacing.
Adequate national defense for the
United States as a national policy
Is simple to affirm, but the exact
limits are not SO easily specified.
Adequate is relative term. 1t
affords large differences of opinion.
What is adequate under one set of
circumstances may obviously prove
inadequate under different circum-
stances.
In my Judgment, however, as mat
ters stand today we must avoid
exaggerated emphasis on European
war perils and territorial ambitions
OF European dictators and in the
determination of our program of
adequate national defense we should
concern ourselves with our own
needs, for our own security and
nothing else. Let me add, also, that
1 do not favor armed forces based
on the theory that If we have an
armed force of supersize and effec-
tlvenesS it will prevent dictator ma
tions from starting a general war in
Europe.
The need of an adequate Navy,
OF an adequate Army, of an adequate
air force, of adequate trained re-
serves-all to be adequate for our
defense and security is, I repeat.
generally recognized But when it
/ comes to fixing size and number in
the various categories. and defining
the limits of adequacy, and setting
upon the time factor-the pace at
which We shall proceed with the
building of ships and coast defense
and aircraft and naval and air bases
and the amount of money out of
the national Treasury that we shall
appropriate and expend for national
defense-we encounter great diver
gence of opinion.
Expected No Stampede to Arm.
Let me say at this point that a
recognition by the Congress of the
necessity for expansion and accel-
Grafton of our national defense pro-
gram in many directions ought not
to mean-and I am confident that it
does not mean-any stampede to ap-
prove any intemperate and ill-con-
sidered and uncharted course OF
multitudinous activities and ex-
penditures postulated upon the need
for preparedness.
We took a major forward step
toward strengthening the first line
of our national defense-our Navy
in the enactment by Congress last
year of the naval expansion bill
which was intended to give reality
to our declared policy of maintaining
naval parity with Great Britain and
ratio of to with Japan.
We are not embarking upon any
new naval policy. We are not set
ting out to outstrip England or Japan
in naval building We are not pro-
posing to build bigger ships or more
than any other nation. We are not
seeking naval superiority. But we
are aiming to attain and then MAIN
tain the 5-5-3 ratio.
Testifying before the Senate Naval
Affairs Committee last April, Ad-
miral Leahy. chief of naval opera
tions. stated (and I quote his exact
words: The Navy Department is
of the opinion that the Navy author
lied in this bill will be sufficient to
provide an adequate defense to
America provided the foreign ma
tions do not expand their navies be-
yond what we now believe they are
doing" TT is not" Admiral Leahy
added. sufficiently strong to insure
our being successful against foreign
attack, but it is believed to be suf-
ficient to provide reasonable assur-
ance." On this same occasion he
defined an adequate navy as one
(and I quote words summarized from
the Senate committee report Ca
pable of meeting and defeating the
enemy navy at sea, as the only sure
way that they can be kept at a
distance from our coasts and the
only sure way to bring it to close"
"A Navy sufficiently strong to oc-
cupy the attention of the enemy"
he said, will prevent bombing at
tacks against our large cities and
industrial areas; will automatically
insure safety to our coasts and will
free most of the trade routes except
for sporadic enemy raids
Not an Aggressive Program.
Admiral Leahy laid emphasis in
his testimony on the fact that the
expansion of the Navy authorized
by the Congress at the last session
was not. and I again quote his words,
sufficient to permit of aggressive
action overseas, of policing the world,
or of projecting an invasion of the
territory OF any naval power"
I commend that statement and
am sure it is a source of gratifica-
ton to the American people to
know that the Navy's attitude toward
an adequate NAVY is in eyact cor-