Evening star., 1941-10-01
BY CLAUDE A. MAHONEY.

In the most warlike speech yet
made by any cabinet member dur
ing the present emergency. Secre-
tary of the Navy Knox told the
national convention of the Ameri-
can Bar Association in Indianapolis
today that eventually We shall lock
NaZl Germany up IL an iron ring,
and within that ring of sea power
she shall perish"
He opened the way for a possible
eXpeditionary force with the direct
appeal that IF We must fight =. let
US determine that we will fight else
where than on our own soil" This
policy, he said, seemed to him to be
a part Of the simplest primer" Of
national defense.
Throwing out a warning against
the terror of defensive thinking"
he said the United States should
never get a "Maginot Line COM
pleX," type of thinking he said
had proved the downfall of every
nation that has tried it.
Best Defense Is Swift Offense.
The best defense always has been
swift offense." he said, "and a
Navy is inherently an instrument
for offensive action because of its
mobility He declared that the
combined navies of Great Britain
and the United States were sweep
ing the German pirates" from the
North Atlantic, and bringing to
England the products of the Amer
ican arsenal.
He called for a world ruled by
laws and not by men, and said the
United States must provide both
the power and the dominant lead
ership Reviewing the history Of
the world since the first World War,
he said the law-abiding and peace
loving nations must take the power
into their own hands and keep 1t
there to prevent the Inauguration
of another world war.
Union With Britain.
Climaxing his discussion OF a
world union of democratic force for
police purposes. he said:
To put in bluntly, we must Join
our force, our power to that of
Great Britain, another great peace
loving nation. to stop new aggres-
sion, which might lead to a world
disturbance, at its beginnings"
Admitting that this Nation should
not indulge in idle dreams of stop
uing all wars, the Secretary said he
was convinced that the United
States will have to provide an in
terregnum in which We will not
only devote ourselves to the pursuit
OF peaceful aims, but provide the
essential might to enforce such
peace on those who are not willing
to pursue such a course" Such
powers in the hands of friendly ma
tions would be much better than in
the hands of aggressor nations.
Freedom of Seas.
He did not limit the terms Of
freedom of the seas to the Iceland
route, but said fatty that no ma
Uions should be allowed to deprive
other powers of the free use of
the seas on which their lives and
futures depend.
This is the essence Of the mean
ing Of the principle of freedom Of
the seas" he said. 1T is for this
that We have fought two wars, and
now, for a third time, have de-
clared We shall insist upon at what
ever the cost-come what may"
Before this Nation can influence
world opinion it must make itself
secure. Mr.. Knox said. He added
| that the nations of Europe, un-
| banded, each in turn had been
made the subject of threat and
blackmail by Hitler. Force alone
will prevent such blackmail. he de-
clared.
Precedents for "Offenses."
The Navy has precedents for de-
fensive "offenses" in the history
of John Paul Jones, the War OF
1872, Farragut at Mobile Bay and
New Orleans, Dewey at Manila. and
our method of conducting the trans
port system in the World War, the
Secretary said. He declared that
use of a swift offense is not only
the best way to make war, but also
the best way to guarantee peace.
Returning to the subject Of free.
dom of the seas, Secretary Knox
said it is 'the hope of the worlo
that sea power for the next hun
dred years, at least. will reside ir
the hands of the two great nations
which now possess that power, the
(See KNOX, Page A-6D