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The Commoner.
Vol. 2, No. 2$.
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The above pioturo presents tho ohild of Q. "W. Preston, of the Detroit Journal, and the child's dog. The picture is copyrighted by Jamcg
Arthur, photographer, of Detroit, Mioh., and published by his permission.
War Vs. Agriculture-.
We offer you as food for reflection
two-Items in the work of the United
States congress which has just ended
its session.
For the army and navy branches of
the government devoted to," killing
congress , appropriated the sum of
$180,075,273.
For the department of agriculture,
that branch of the government devoted
to feeding the population, congress
appropriated $5,208,900.
The business of Soldiering is, of
course, important and honorable.
In order to avoid sudden death wo
must be prepared at all times to in
flict sudden death on others,
Wo have things that other nations
want and are willing to flght for,
Therefore wo must have plenty of sol
diors, sailors and weapons to use.
But if' wo need soldiers well
equipped, wo need farmers well
equipped, surely.
If wo need an abundant harvest of
Filipinos and others who oppose our
national growth, wo need an abund
ant harvest of foodstuffs also.
If we need to wipo out treason
among the deadly Moros, wo need also
to wipe out the more deadly Canadian
thistle at home. t
The enormous war and navy appro
priations are intended mainly to doal
with a situation in our eastern islands.
Financially, we devoto to this problem
moro than thirty times as much atten
tion as to the problem of Improving
agriculture throughout the whole na
tion. Think what could bo done for the
farmers and all other inhabitant of
this country if tho nation could spend
on national development what it
spends so readily and so cheerfully on
war.
That sum of money would give us
the isthmian canal .and leave a vast
sum over.
It would reclaim, millions of acres
of arid lands and ''supply homes for
tens of millions, of people, besides
benefiting the climate of this country
wonderfully.
Government railroads, a govern
ment telegraph system endless na
tional possibilities are bound up in
that sum of one hundred and eichtv
millions. I
But there is no such sum except for
war.
The future historian endeavoring to
form an estimate of our degree of
civilization will attach great import
ance to those two items In our na
tional budget. He will conclude that
underneath all our alleged refinement
tho fighting man ruled supreme.
One hundred and eighty millions for
the department that kills men.
Five millions for the department
that feeds men.
Wo have a long way to travel on
tho road -to civilization, kind friends.
For seven hours one day recently
the state of New York was without an
executive head, Governor Odell and
Senator Ellsworth) president pro tem.,
being in the west, Lieutenant Gov
ernor, Woodruff in Europe and Speak
er Nixon in Ohio
The "Rookie's" Question. "
As Lieut. Gen. Nelson A Miles stood
reviewing tho Memorial Day parade in
New York, a reporter whose impres
sions of the man had been gained at
banquets whore .the commander of
the army wore evening dress, was so
struck by the imposing appearance of
the general as to venture a remark
as to how his uniform changed'hini
from a dapper elderly gentleman to a
formidable warrior.
"Which illustrates," replied the gen
eral, "that if clothes do not make the
man, tho uniform goes -a long way to
ward making the officer.
"And this reminds me," ho added, '
"of an experience out west, "when I
was a colonel. I had put a lot of re
cruits in their first uniforms, and told
them that I expected every one ot
them to honor his uniform by behav
ing like a major general. . .-
"An who'd do tli' flghttn', thin?'
inquired one of the recruits, who haft
not yet learned to .listen to his mi
periors In silence," Exchange.
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