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Show THE CITIZEN 6 U. S. BATTLE FLEET SHOULD BE IN THE PACIFIC Pacific. No doubt, they feel fairly confident that they would be When Japan grew restless and reckless a dozen years ago talking of war upon the United States we had a president who silenced able to seize and hold the Philippines and the Hawaiian islands the chauvenists of Nippon by sending our navy to pay them a visit for a long time before our full naval power could be brought into of courtesy. It was a courtesy that peculiarly appealed to the oriental play against them. it was And of Chinese in a it had etiquette. tang imignation. It . a trifle like the pleasantry of a Chinese executioner who playfully GREAT BRITAIN RULES THE LEAGUE runs his finger along the edge of his axe and winks at his victim. It was. in line with the policy of speaking softly and carrying What the league means to Great Britain is indicated by recent a big stick, Nor could the Japanese take it amiss, for it was they, transformations in Europe. not we, who were ballyhooing about war. The defeat of Venizelos and the decision of the new Greek govOnce more the ballyhoo of war is heard in Nippon. The Japanof recalling Constantine ese hold great debates to decide whether it is possible to. restrain ernment to hold a plebiscite on the question The London govthemselves any longer from closing in deadly combat with the to the throne had aroused Great Britain to action. is unalterably opposed to offensive and insulting Americans. And the vote which keeps them ernment has told Premier Rhallis that it the return of the exiled king and has politely intimated to him that the from urging the imperial and divine government to seize the Philipher After which territories granted to Greece after the war will be taken from pines and foment a revolt in Hawaii is about fifty-fiftd and dart fire at us out if Constantine is permitted to ascend the throne. the little brown warriors sit Inasmuch as the Venizelists have refused to take part in the of their almond eyes. restoration of To send the battle fleet around the world at this time would plebiscite the vote is almost certain to result in the if Great Britain keeps her word the new and not be effective. It would be like a twice-tol- d tale, somewhat stale Constantine. And so quickly and not very profitable. But there is something that can be done greater Greece will be deprived of the possessions which transformed her into an empire and she will awake to heartrending by way o7 warning and permanent security. The battle fleet can disillusion like the vegrant in one of Shakespeares prologues who be sent to the Pacific coast and kept there. It is no longer necesit for a night and a day and then found himself once more sary to keep it in the Atlantic and it is against one of the first kinged rules of naval strategy to keep part of it in one ocean and part a creature of the dust. What is to become of Article X of the League of Nations if in another. Great Britain is to welch on its contract to preserve the territories A high ranking officer of the navy department was quoted and the political independence of the member nations? If one of the Pacific the made coast as the to that promise saying recently is to grant territory and take, it away states and the west in 1913 that if the navy should be expanded to powerful signatories permitted at will what becomes of the sacred compact? a strength warranting a fleet in the Pacific, such a fleet would be again Sentiment in the United States has been hostile to Constantine. supplied, has been kept. He was a dagger in the back of the entente in the gloomiest period We do not recall the circumstances of the promise, but quite of the war. He was for the kaiser and kaiserism. He longed for obviously it was the promise of a politician and not of a strategist. of the Teutonic ideal of might. He was out of sympathy the It was a promise to commit a blunder which would have been un- withtriumph the ideals of liberty as they were understood in free America. Mahan. forgivable in the eyes of such a master strategist as Admiral But he thought he .was right and evidently his people believed in It is conceivable that a country rich beyond historic parallel him. Obviously they trust him more today than they trust the might have two navies two fully manned and equipped navies, strong nations which, through the league, and sometimes in defiance one for the Atlantic and one for the Pacific. If we had a navy in of the league, assume to control the destinies of the world. the Pacific fully capable of meeting any emergency, and also a navy Another incident shows that Great Britain is determined to use in the Atlantic, the admirals rule against dividing naval strength the league to embarass nations that interfere with her plans. Lord would not be violated. But no nation, except possibly Great Britain, Robert Cecil proposes that the league proceed to punish Poland and has had naval strength of such colossal proportions. Lithuania for engaging in war after they had agreed to submit their divide At all events, our naval strength is not such that we can differences to the league. The suggestion would be reasonable, pesufour battle fleet between the Atlantic and the Pacific and have rhaps, if the league had functioned in other cases calling for action ficient power to meet any emergency in either ocean. The battle by it under the terms of the compact. is needed it fleet, threfore, should be stationed in the ocean where Great Britain deserted Poland last summer; France stood by her the found for could a be time Nor than the present most. better and helped her to win a great victory over the Bolsheviki. Then concentration of our naval power on the west coast. It would comFrance backed General Wrangel and lost. Great Britain wants to pel the expansion and better equipment of our bases and would give a us control of the Pacific. And the moral effect would be excellent. trade with the Bolsheviki and she does not desire Poland to be eek? If an emergency in the Pacific should come suddenly we prostrong state. To maintain the balance of power in Europe she could bably would learn to our dismay that the Pacific bases were not friendly relations with Russia and would be glad if Poland on sufficiently ample for our navy. We probably would be told that be eliminated as a buffer between Russia and Germany. Frame, the ships could not be maintained in the Pacific until extensive the other hand, feels that her vital interests require her to maintain preparations were made. In a word, we probably would be told the a powerful Poland. The London government sees a chance to weaken Poland old story of unpreparedness for war. Does any one think that Japan would be talking seriously of accomplish the result under the guise of a perfectly just enforcement! I of the terms of the covenant. war if she knew that we were prepared? Optimists tranquily preIt was inevitable that a league controlled by the strong j. vcr? I dict that, in a fight with us, the navy of Japan would not last as the! long as the navy which Admiral Rojcsvensky of Russia sailed to would be used as Great Britain seeks to use it to aggrandize complete and swift disaster in the China sea fifteen years ago. But powerful and make the weak weaker; and, more objectionable the Japanese probably arc aware that our big navy would be unable to brush the league aside when it gets in the way of the ambit son rl I to function at it? maximum because of inadequate bases in the the vengeance of any of the controlling powers. y. cross-legge- -- -- O |