The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1941-01-09
GROWING
PAINS
BY MARIE O'DEA
MARYLAND COUNCIL OF DE-
TENSE AND RESOURCES

She's a eight little fort" the Brit
ish reported of Fort McHenry when
they invaded Maryland in 1914. Any
invader would find Maryland a tight
little State. She's little but she's
tough. And she's warming up right
now under the guidance of the Mary
land Council of Defense and Re-
sources, a body appointed by Cover
nor Herbert R. O'Conor on August 1,
1910.
It's chairman is Mr.. w. Frank Rob-
erts, and Mr.. Isaac S. George is exec
utive director. They operate from the
Governors office in the Union Trust
Building in Baltimore. The Council
has twenty-three additional members
divided into seven major committees,
calculated to organize and coordinate
every phase of defense, civilian and
military. For battlefields have gone
out of date and bomb can drop into
the kitchen as well as the fort.
Many of these Council members
have national, even international pres
tige. Every State in the Union now
has a Council of Defense but not one
can boast of more capable leaders.
These State Councils act as liaison
bodies between the Federal Govern
ment's defense activities and those
going on in the State. The National
Council has at its command the coun-
try's greatest experts. 1t has even
sent observers to Europe The infor-
nation thus accumulated is sifted
edited and printed in booklets for the
use of the States and municipalities
throughout the nation.
For instance, the national commit
tee on fire-fighting is issuing a book
leet on how to prevent and combat
fires arising from incendiary bombs
sabotage, explosions and chemicals
This booklet will be sent out all oven
the country and each locality will APP
ply its information and suggestions to
local needs. Baltimore, with it's air
plane manufacturing, ship building
and other defense activities, may use
almost the whole book, other towns
may need very little of it.
This is an example of the valuable
information coming out of the ma
tional organization in all fields. Mary
lands Defense Council is pouring in
formation into the melting pot as
well.
For example, request came
through for a survey Of idle plant
capacity and industry. The Council re-
quested the Baltimore Association OF
Commerce, the State Planning Board
the Enoch Pratt Library and others
to work it up. The survey was soon ir
Federal hands and no doubt resulted
in defense contracts to Maryland. Oul
Maryland Council is headed by re,
sourceful people.
But Marylanders have always beer
resourceful. When the Revolution
broke out we had no American Navy
But little thing like that didn't STOP
them. Marylanders turned nearly
three hundred of their own vessels
into armed privateers and sailed out
to tackle the mistress of the seas
Their exploits ranked the British fol-
decades.
When the Barbary pirates began tC
pick off American prizes, the frigate
Constellation was launched at Balti
more in 1897 and raced to the Medi
terranean to give those pirates {
beating they never forgot. And who
has not gloried in the heroism of thai
great Marylander, Stephen Decatur
who rowed right into the Tripolitar
harbor and blew up the imprisoned
Philadelphia under the very eyes Of
her captors.
The Maryland built Constellation
fought our war with the French al
most single handedly, defeating LIN
surgente on February 9, 1899, and Ii
Vengeance on February 2, 1900.
Then the British started acting VI
again. In November, 1911, the State
Legislature resolved y that thu
independence established by the aiC
and valor of our fathers, will no
tamely be yielded by their sons; thu
same spirit which led the Maryland
regulars to battle still exists in tn,