Evening star., 1940-04-28
President Roosevelt Leeds
for National Defense
By Open L. Scott.

with the opportunity to say: II told you
So" The President now points with pride
to q whole series Of forecasts come true
with regard to Europe.
While Mr.. Roosevelt Is not reminding
the Nation of the fact. nonetheless the
United States today Is deeply indebted
to the President for one forecast upon
which he. acted. The President, even
before taking Office in 1888, sensed trou-
BILE brewing in the world On entering
ONCE he found the American Navy in a
lamentable state Of disrepair. Not a ship
Of any Importance had been laid down
for four years. For IL years this coun-
try had followed the policy of attempting
disarmament by example-cutting down
American naval strength in the belief
that If this country became weak at sea
rival nations would sacrifice their arms.
Actually, in the Pacific, Japan was
taking advantage of the American policy
to increase the strength Of her navy rela-
tive to that Of the United States BY 1881
she felt strong enough to challenge the
British and Americans in China-and got
away with it.
President Roosevelt, as almost his first
act in office. started to remedy matters.
IN the act creating N. r. A. was a So, 3,OOO,-
100000 public works appropriation and
1t permitted use of some of the funds for
naval building. The President was ac-
cused of seeking to build up big Navy
at the expense Of the unemployed. When
later he pushed for more funds with
which to build battleships he was accused
OF looking for trouble. Congressman con-
tended that all this country needed was
mosquito fleet that could dash out and
launch torpedoes against any navy that
might approach the American shores.
When the President sought authority to
fortify the island Of Guam, far out in the
Pacific, he was accused Of trying to pick
trouble with Japan. When he sought an
air base in Alaska-only this year-the
House cut out the appropriation.
Now some very interesting facts are
coming to light
Japan has as large navy-except in
dreadnaughts-as the United States.
| Another fact is that Japan, with 10
dreadnaughts to the American Is, will
launch four more during the next year
while the United States is launching one.
A third fact, as revealed to Congress, is
that the Japanese right now have Is
aircraft carriers to the American 7: a
total of As cruisers to 43 for the United
States; 1872 destroyers to 81 for this coun-
| try and Sc submarines to 46 for the
| United States.
AS expressed by Admiral Harold R.
Stark, chief of naval operations, the
japanese are "uncomfortably close to a
| SIS ratio" with this country
In other words, even after President
Roosevelt's constant emphasis upon large
appropriations tor naval construction and
| after all Of this country's naval spending
| in recent years, the American Navy has
slipped back in relative strength COM
pared with the JapSnese Navy. There
now is to be time lag of from II to 18
months before the construction efforts
under way here will overcome the advan-
tage that Japan gained by jumping the
gun in the naval race.
All of this, under normal circumstances,
would be academic. But today, just at a
crucial period in the relative strength of
navies the Japanese are limiting broadly
at their primary interests in the South
ern Pacific region in which the United
States and Great Britain also claim pri-
mary interests. The United States in
fact, has had to serve notice that it will
be unable to ignore any move by another
power that might upset the status quo in
the region of the Dutch East Indies.
President Roosevelt, as result, can
tell his critics in Congress and in the
country: II told you So" If he had not
acted to increase American naval
strength when he did, this country today
would be in very weak bargaining posi-
ton just at time when the whole world
is in turmoil The fact that only four
Senators voted against spending billion
dollars on the Navy in the year that be-
gins July l is measure of the confidence
that the Senate now places in the Presi-
dents judgment on national defense
needs.
AS it turns out, too, the working of
events over which this Nation has no
control, suddenly makes apparent how
vital would be base at Guam If the
American Fleet ever should be called upon
to keep open the supply lines to the Dutch
East Indies that island would be almost
essential for air and seapperations. Con-
gress, however, has not seen fit to author
ize funds for development either of an
air or naval base at that point.
The Army and Navy now cost about two
billion dollars year, which seems like a
lot OF money. These expenditures, how
ever, represent only about one-fifth of the
total Government expenditures and less
than 3 per cent of the national income.
The British are devoting more than half
OF their budget and Is per cent of their
national income to armament. The
Japanese are devoting two-thirds of
their budget and 30 per cent of their
national income to armament. Germany
is devoting most of her budget and nearly
SO per cent of her national income to
armament. And so it goes
The meaning of these figures Is that
in spite of the steadily rising outlays by
this country on arms, other nations are
forging ahead in relative military and
naval strength owing to their vastly
greater proportionate expenditures.
Where the United States is devoting less
than per cent of its national energy
To Y,ronarotion for NOR ofbor MN IL, -.