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Show MRU INDICTED 11V A FIUKXD Vice Presldont Marshall In a recent nddress at Washington, In which he discussed the present war, said: "We did not prepare. We thought there was no danger. And In one year there comes upon us an outlay of extraordinary expense, which might have been provented had wo exercised foresight and courage, cour-age, little by little, to get ready. It is futile, however, to hold post mortems. Tho past Is the dead and the eternal past. This war must bo fought and it must be financed in order to bo fought." What Mr. Marshall says regarding the necessity of financing and fighting Is all very true, and we heartily agree with him. Wo certainly turn back and we shall go grimly on to the bitter end. However, ho Is hardly felicitous when ho assumes as-sumes that tho mistake of President Wilson in falling fall-ing to prepare the nation for a struggle he knew to be inevitable, has been forgotten or forgiven. Our people nre remembering well enough that at tho time when tho Washington administration should have been working feverishly to put the country on a war basis It lolled back and piously prated of a pride too great to fight. They have not forgotten how that prize bounder, Josephus Daniels, deliberately held up n year and a half tho awarding of contracts for battle ships and their auxiliaries ordered by congress, his amazing delay not only crippling our navy but resulting re-sulting In an added cost of many millions to tho country. For before Danlols awarded the contracts, tho contractors' prlcos had practically doubled and the federal treasury was bitterly sting. Thero are scores of other Incidents fully as discreditable dis-creditable and while, as Mr. Marshall says, tho past Is gone beyond recall, we nre not forgetting that a largo amount of our expenso and delay could have been and should have been avoided. And we nre not forgetting where tho responsibility lies either. Fort Wnyno News. |
