Life — May 25, 1916 — page 18: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

MAY 25,1916 Py ‘* While there is Life there's Hope" VOL. 67 Neo. 1752 d by LIFE PUBLISHING COMPANY J. A. Murcuett, Pres't. 17 West Thirty-first Stre A. Miter, Sec’y and Treas. few York: English Offices, Rolls House, Breams Bldgs., London, E. C. WHAT may have been the senti- ments of “the % peculiar —re- C) ligious sect known as ‘Christian Israelites’ and where it flourished and who belonged to it, Lire does not know, but Joseph Stretch of Freeport has written to the World to say that John Wroe was a member of it, and prophesied sixty years ago the European war about on the lines now proceeding, “to finish about 1917 Also that at that time our country “will suddenly be set upon by a heathen nation” and greatly humbled in the early battles, though successful in the end. Mr. Stre’ -h has good con- fidence in this prophecy and looks to see us “at war with both Mexico and Japan in less than three months, perhaps in six weeks (from May 8th).” Prophecies are interesting, though, for ourselves, we don’t dare to Jean very hard on them, even when they are printed in a reliable newspaper like the IVorld, but it is a pleasure, and per- haps a duty, to commend this one to Chairman Hay of the Miiitary Com- mittee of the House, who said (also on May 8th) that the President had been able to keep us out of war so far, and would probably be able to continue to do so. As between Mr. Wroe’s prophecy en- dorsed by Mr. Stretch, and Mr. Hay’s prophecy endorsed all too long by the House, there may not be much choice ; but we shall all rest much easier if the House will bet on Mr. Wroe and Mr. Stretch, and not on Mr. Hay. If the House thought we were likely to he in a war with a heathen nation within a short time, and suffer some hu- miliating preliminary defeats, it would doubtless exert itself much more than it has for the last month to get a lot of likely young soldiers in process of training, We cannot hold with Mr. Stretch in his opinion that we are going to be involved with Japan. Mr. Wroe said “a heathen nation,” and Germany seems heathen enough for all practical purposes. Mr. Stretch’s selections of Japan is a mere exercise of uninspired carnal judgment. But when he sug- gests that Mexico and the heathen power are going to jump on us sud- denly and that “Texas will be the Belgium of this continent,” we do wish Mr. Hay and Congress would back that view. Texas, as it is, is a good enough Belgium, and getting more so with every fresh edition of the newspaper. We don’t begin to have troops enough to handle the Mexican job, which is liable to take any turn any minute. We may be in a state of war with Germany any day at four o'clock, or before breakfast or after dinner, and just what that would mean we do not know. But we see the coasts stripped of regu- lar troops, the few there are, to guard the Texas border; we have seen, actu- ally, the coast artillery going off to the Rio Grande, and as late as May 13th we read in the paper that, after thr weeks of conference, the House was still haggling hard; that the 'Fordite congressmen from the Middle We: were against much army, and that the prospect was that the Senate provision for 250,000 real soldiers would he cut down to a minimum of 17: We know at this writing that the conference did better than that, agree- ing upon a regular army of 206,000, capable of being expanded in time of need, by order of the President, to 234,000 men. Senator Chamberlain calls the conference measure “an ex- cellent bill,” and his opinion is to be respected. The volunteer reserve army that the Senate bill called for is lost, but the National Guard is to be fed- eralized, and if recruited to its ma: mum strength of S00 men to a Congressional district, will provide a reserve army of 425,000 men. This reserve is, of course, at present three-fourths paper. How much, if anything, it will amount to cannot be estimated. The best qualified judges seem not to be sanguine of the pros- pect of making a dependable defense of the National Guard, but a new spirit in the country may accomplish the im- possible, even in that. For the country does seem now to have waked up to the need of military preparation. Mr. Root feels “sure that war is coming to this country”; Colonel Roosevelt confidently expects the deluge as a con- sequence of Mr. Wilson's sins; but the most significant evidence so far offered of the people’s mood was the parade in New York on May 13th wherein 150,000 persons marched to record their conviction that we need to look alive in military and naval matters and do it right off, and several million people looked on at them and approved and applauded. Do it, gentlemen of Congress; do it adequately, do it effectively, and do it now. It is awfully late at best to he doing it. The Mexican situation speaks for itself; the other complication may become vociferous any moment. If we have to try to conduct military opera- tions with untrained, unseasoned troops it will be very costly in life and health. If we can’t act betimes, we should act as soon after as possible. Do it now, gentlemen HE Trish much, country. crazy executions have caused distress of mind in this The Irish rebellion was break, timed to the hour of comicbooks.com