Show it high time we talked on Limitation 9 0 no longer ago than 1890 men who today are in their kearly early thir ties were babies then the united states was building battleships that cost from two to three million dol lars apiece and was grumbling aud ably at the enormous cost today our best dread are costing upwards of forty millions apiece and we do not seem to think much of it besides we ne are spending ten times as much or tour four hundred mil lions every year tor for maintenance depreciation and extensions on our naval investment which not only does not return us anything in the way of dividends but which actually causes us worry lest some other na tion shall spend so much more as to make our showing by comparison futile and insecure there have been periods and they were glorious days in our national history when the american public could build a whole navy tor for an amount of money about equal to the cost of a modern 16 inch gun a navy too that was not regarded as obsolete and food tor for the scra scrap pheap heap within two or three years but was serviceable as a fighting agency as long as it could float progress we have certainly made but whether it has always alays been in a sane and commendable direction may well be the subject of argument extravagance in individual habits of life has evidently been more than reflected in governmental affairs regardless of cost and frequently regardless of the needs of the occa slon ston everybody seems bent upon sot dot only keeping up with but surpassing somebody else in lavishness of out lay and display that competition which is said to be the life of trade Is found to be in many respects the toe foe of economy and the death of neighborly good feeling surely in the matter of naval armaments the world in recent ears has entered upon a mad and jealous and ruinous race the end of which unless a check Is applied must be disaster to all engaged it as Is now con tended a 25 airplane can drop a 4 bomb on a 40 su ou per dreadnought dread naught and knock it into a cocked hat or send it to davy jones locker it Is high time we were revising our ideas of money ering on big ships and a un restrain ed armament construction generally |