Jasper County Democrat, Volume 19, Number 97, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 3 March 1917 — OUR MANY WARS [ARTICLE]

OUR MANY WARS

“A century is a short period in the life of a nation,” writes General Upton in bis classic history of “The Military Policy of the United States,” “but its history may convey many valuable lessons as the result of the system which we cherish as dur own invention; thus the War Qf the Revolution lasted i seven years,' the war of 1812 three years, the Florida war seven years, the Mexican war two years, and the Rebellion four, years, not to mention the almost incessant Indian wars of this period. In other* words, since the publication of the Declaration of Independence to this time these figures show that for every three years of peace we have had one year of actual .war.” This is, on the face of it, a much worse record than Prussia showed from 1871 to 19-14. It doesn’t, of course, follow tnat the

United States is a militaristic power and that Prussia is a peaceful one, but these facts do bolster up the contention that military weakness in a nation is an invitation . to military aggression; that a weak and unready army is less likely, other things being equal, to maintain the peace than a stronger one would be, under a democratic system of government; that peaceful intentions are no guaranty of peacein a wicked world. * # " . It will be interesting to follow the discussions of the program for modernizing the American army. It will 'be better for congress and the nation if this discussion bears some relation to the facts in oui experience and in the experience of other countries.—Collier’s Weekly.