Bfl"9?ww"'?r "
The Commoner
DECEMBER, 1915
NAVY LEAGUE PROPOSES DEBATE
The Navy League asked Mr. Bryan to debate
the question of preparedness, and suggested a
man to represent their side. Below will bo found
Mr. Bryan's replyt
"Calumet Place, Washington, D. C. Col.
Robert M. Thompson, President Navy League,
Washington, D. C. My Dear Sir: I am just in
receipt of your favor of November 5th, and beg
to say that I appreciate your invitation and
heartily agree with you as to the desirability of
a discussion of the policy of preparedness, and
although my plans have been formed for a pro
longed stay in the south, I am willing to inter
rupt my proposed rest long enough to discuss
the subject of preparedness if your league will
state its position, giving the amount of prepared
ness it thinks necessary, and then secure either
ex-President Taft or ex-President Roosevelt to
represent its side.
"These gentlemen, having occupied the pres
idency, might not feel justified in debating with
one who has not held that high office, but as I
have three times received more votes for the
presidency than either of them received when
they were last candidates? they might be willing
to consider me in their class. I would not care
to consider a debate with anyone less represent
ative than they.
"If a debate is arranged, I think five places
would be sufficient, and that they ought to be so
selected as to give the country as well as the city
an opportunity to supply an audience. I would
suggest one in the eastern part of the north, one
in the middle north, one in the far west, one in
the south and one in the southwest, say in
Texas.
"Very truly yours,
W. J. BRYAN
THE SERMON IN THE MIRE
Mr. Roosevelt in the New York Evening Mail
says:
"The first and most vital need of this country
is the military preparedness necessary in order
that this nation shall be safe internationally,
that we shall be able to protect our own coasts,
to protect tlig isthmian canal, Alaska and the
islands wliere 'the "American flag floats. IN THE
END THERE IS JUST ONE WAY FOR A DEM
OCRATIC COUNTRY TO MEET ITS OBLIGA
TIONS IN THIS MATTER, AND THAT IS BY
UNIVERSAL, MILITARY TRAINING."
Here we have it; .make a soldier out of every
man. Turn the attention of ALL our boys from
the victories of peace to the victories of war;
make it their duty to learn the savage scienco
of man-killing, This is the sermon in the mire
which our blood-thirsty ex-president would sub
stitute for th.e sermon on the mount, and some
of our "eye lor an eye and tooth for a tooth"
preachers like Lyman Abbott will shout, amen.
If there ever was a time when ministers owed
it to their master to offer the Gospel of Christ
as a cure for the war fever, they ought to hear
the call now Tlie song of "Peace on earth, good
will to men" rose above the tumult of a war
period when Rome "from her seven hills" ruled
the world. The Nazarene pointed mankind to a
new way, and increasing numbers have accepted
his invitation. Now we are asked to turn back
to repudiate all that He ever taught, and adopt
the false philosophy that permanent peace can
be built on force and fear. Every church should
speak out against this proposed return to bar
barism. W. J. BRYAN.
The Wall Street Journal declares its one de
sire to be to have people "who do the real work
of the country to consider the expediency of a
radical change at Washington to remove the
shackles from trade, finance and transporta
tion." Big business can never give up its dream
of running the government once more through
some subservient republican.
Extra copies of The
Commoner will be supplied
in bundles by mail at 2 1 -2c
each if they are desired for
free distribution.
LaFollette Scores Interested "Patriots"
000000000000000000000000000000(S
0
iwHHwiuis I'lCOFITS IN MANUFACTURE OV MUNITIONS
Purchaso
Prico from
. , Privato
Article pirmfl
3.8-inch Common Shrapnel $ 17.50
31-second Combination Fuse... 7.00
3-inch Finished Shrapnol Case ' 3.0 0
Gun Carriages for 3-inch llifles 3,398.82
Caissons 1,744.10
Order Ammunition 2,879,904.00
Cost of Profit
Manufacture for the
at Govern- Patriots
ment plant
$, 7.94 $ 9.5S
2.92 4.08
1.75 1.31
2, 510. GO 888.22
1,128. C7 015.43
1,900,064.00 979,840.00
&
0
0
0
0
0
0
00000000000000 0a
If a man dares to intimate that he is unwill
ing to swallow the whole program for prepared
ness, a big army, a big navy, big contracts for
munitions of war, that man is a fool or a cow
ard or a traitor.
Who are the real patriots of the country?
They are the glorious group of multimillion
aires who are making such enormous profits out
of the European war, as were never before real
ized in the same brief period since time began.
They are the Morgans, the Rockefellers, the
Schwabs, the Garys, the du Fonts, and their pro
totypes, who are back of the thirty-eight corpor
ations most benefited by war orders, the stocks
of which have increased more than a thousand
million dollars above their highest market valuo
before the war.
They are the dollar-scarred heroes who or
ganized the Navy league of the United States!
The high purpose of this noble organization
is to boom big appropriations for a "sufficient
number of superdreadnaughts" of the new win
ter design, the contracts for which must be
signed up before the style changes; also stand
ard armor plate, all blowholes of which are war
ranted to be carefully puttied up before deliv
ery; also other munitions of war with latent de
fects guaranteed to remain latent until after ac
ceptnnco bv the government.
God bless the Navy league of the United
States! How we thrill at the roll-call of those
present when it was organized:
J. Pierpont Morgan; Thomas W. Lamont
(Morgan); William H. Porter (Morgan); Henry
P. Davidson (Morgan); Charles Steele (Mor
pari); Paul D. Cravath (Westinghouso Electric);
Elbert H. Gary (United States Steel); Harry P.
Whitney (Guaranty Trust Company Agent At
las Powder Company and Hercules Powder
Company); S. H. P. Pell (International Nicklo
Company); Cornelius Vanderbilt (Lackawanna
Steel Company); Ogden L. Mills (Lackawanna
Steel Company'; Frederick R. Coudert (National
Surety Company); Francis L. Hine (Bankers
Trust Company); Daniel G. Read (Guarantee
Trust Company agent Atlas Powder Company,
Hercules Powder Company, etc.); Frank A.
Vanderlip (President National City Bank
Standard Oil) ; L. L. Clark (American Locomo
tive Company European war orders!); Percy
Rockefeller (sufficiently Identified).
Shades of Lincoln! What a band of patriots
with their business connections covering every
financial and industrial center in the United
States' Owning newspapers, periodicals, and
magazines, and controlling through business re
gions the editorial good will of many other,
thev will be able to render powerful but disin
terested aid in the great propaganda for pre
paredness which is now flooding the country at
hiKh tide as congress is about to meet!
At present these patriots are devoting their
neat talents to the making of public opinion
Sr a bte standing army and a big navy. This
f most immediately necessary. They have been
inSiVg their manufacturing establishment!.
SSi bnlldlnS many new plants to supply the urc-
eSt needs ogfe Allies at 800 per cent profit
But even the preparedness suckers of the conn-
7 ?71 , -ufiiv see that there will come a day
try can readily see na
2 frnUcaf drswith which to buy higa
tXSSV the newly
constructed American plants running day and
night, and their groat stock Issues soaring stead
ily higher, wo shall sorely need good fat govern
ment contracts with Uncle Sam.
Hence the uecessity of preparing for prepared
ness! f
We have some mean, small, sordid, unpatri
otic people in this country so discourteous as to
suggest that the government could savo large
sums of money building the battleships in our
own ship-yards and manufacturing powder and
shrapnel and guns in governmont-owned and op
crated arsenals and plants. But such people
should bo suppressed. Thoy are never satisfied
a disloyal, low down lot of malcontents.
There is too much of this sort of thing already.
These insurgent, rebellious meddlers have al
ready gotten the government into tho undigni
fied position of interfering with tho private busi
ness and tho prosperity of patriots.
Tho government arsenal at Philadelphia la
today making a 3.8-inch common shrapnol at a
cost of only $7.94, while at tho same time it Is
paying private firms for tho identical shrapnel
exactly $17.00. Tho government makes a 31
second combination fuse for $2.92, For this
same fuse it pays tho privato mul'cr Just $7.00.
The government makes a 3-Inch finished shrap
nel case at a cost of only $1.76. It pays tha
privato manufacturing concern $3.06 for tht
same article. Tho government makes a gun
carriage for a 3-Inch rifled field gun at exactly
$2, 510. GO. It pays tho private manufacturer
$3,398.82 for the same gun carriage. The gov
ernment has manufactured caissons for $1,128.
G7, and it has paid privato concerns $1,744.10
for tho same caisson. Tho government filled
one of Its own orders for ammunition at its own
arsenal which cost $1,900,004. It saved on this
order $979,840, for it would have cost exactly
$2,879,904 If filled by private manufacturers.
This is an outrageous showing. It is a rank
and dangerous Interference with tho private
rights of tho "best people." I state It In tabular
form that it may shame the venal advocates of
government-ownership.
Of course the government can build tits bat
tleships and manufacture its munitions of war
in government-owned and operated shipyards
and plants much better and more economically
than it can hire it done by the Patriots.
But what of that! The government has plenty
of money or can get it out of tho peoplo. We
need real Simon-pure-patriots like Morgan and
Schwab, and Gary even if they do come high.
Robert M. LaFollette, In XaFollette's Maga
zine, .j
If The Commoner is
doing you a service by op
rosing militarism, you could
e of service to yourself
and to your neighbors by
extending The Commoner s
circulation in your neighborhood.
j