| Show GENERA L HUGH S washington D 0 WAR possibilities in a friendly debate with major george fielding eliot on war possibilities bili bil ties ittes two of tho the principal schools of so called thought were seen in pretty clear profile on a few basic guesses there was waa complete agreement that this country to la in no danger of invasion in the measurably future that germany will not be successful in an invasion of england this year and that her chance ot of doing it later will probably doe decline line that there la Is no prospect that england will loso lose her mastery of the ocean this year so much seems to be a pretty gen en oral constenius con consensus senius of opinion among fairly well informed students of 0 the P problems of war as they affect us beyond that there is disagreement major eliot who to Is one of the most painstaking of our military critics Is also one of the leaders of those who feel that it Is to our interest to keep the war as far away from our shores as possible ila he quotes the authorities to the general effect that the real line of defense of a great sea power Is the coastline of its possible enemies between the two nations as he correctly says Is control of ever every Y dominating point on all the oceans england itself gibraltar suez aden singapore corregidor capetown the falkland islands panama honduras hawaii and all the great american bases on both coasts coupled with the superiority of the two fleets he thinks no land power can at length prevail to all this he adds and his adver sarles agree that england alone could never retake on land the german conquests in northern europe that it could be done if at all only with witha a now A EF of millions which he does not favor and that russia Is no great threat on the german east cast flank to anost most of that the opposing argument Is OK but how Is the war then to be won by britain his premises leave only the one answer a and nd he makes it frankly economic strangulation of europe by a british blockade and battering of germany from the air naval frustration of japan in asia and the indies the opponents say economic strangulation unaccompanied by military attack never yet won a war A combination of both did beat our confederacy and whip germany in 1918 in both cases it was a long slow process in this case biti without out constant military pressure requiring of any enemy the consumption of tremendous quantities of scant supplies it would bo be interminable and extremely doubtful of result furthermore ther more since we are undertaking to finance this worldwide world wide military naval and economic strategy and to become not only the arsenal but the larder banker guardian and good neighbor to half a world it would work our economic ruin it Is another great experiment noble in motive but it takes in too much territory bry for even our resources if we perfect our own defenses and shorten our lines our naval military and air strength will be multiplied in comparison with a strategy of buttering them thin so across the whole globe we can become impregnable halt half a planet is enough for one nation to undertake to finance and defend the difference in cost Is tens of billions the difference in risk of war and disaster is immeasurable aid britain yes up to two very definite limits that it does not weaken our own defense that it does not involve us in a worldwide world wide war the cause of which we cant control the eliot argument does both there are two proposals you pays your mone yand you takes your choice CONVOY SHIPS TO BRITAIN we are going to convoy ships carrying crying aid to britain there is not much doubt that a provision in the lease lend bill prohibiting the president from using american armed forces on the high seas to protect american property would be an un constitutional congressional interfere Int erfer once ence with his constitutional power as commander in chiet chief of the armed forces except for some psycho logical popular effect it would be useless null and void just now popular opinion Is so much against convoys which would be a direct venture into war that it probably would not be attempted at present but a 0 most skillful job has been done of leading popular opinion closer and closer to war and also of so timing action as not to offend it it is easy to see how a change to favor convoys could occur some time later in the year year our industrial mobilization will begin to disgorge vast quantities of supplies the british demand for them will be great the lease lend bill will be a I 1 law a w a and nd there will be no financial or other hindrance to sending them also hillers Hit lers major effort to blockade britain on and under the sea will be at its peak and cargo sink ings will multiply then we shall hear are we just building ships a and nd 6 supplies up p 11 es tor for hitler to sink A ton of supplies on the docks of liverpool can help win this war |
