"War Is Great," Speaker
Tells Boys of CCC Camp
Nashville, Nov. 11. ? Colouel C.
L. McGhee, World War officer,
told au Armistice Day crowd at a i
CCC dedicatory exercise today j
that "It is a great thing to get in
to war" and that it "Is a glorious 1
thing" for America's youth to
"lay down their lives, if necessary, j
in a foreign laud in deteuse of !
this country."
The Frauklinton officer, who
served as a Lleutenant-Colouel
with the 120th Infantry, 30tli Di
vision, in the war 21 years ago,
was the principal speaker at ex
ercises dedicating Camp Coolcy,
new CCC camp near here.
Exactly the opposite view was
expressed by Congressman liar
old D. Cooley, for whom the camp
was named. He asserted again
that "I shall never vote to send
your sons to war until I am ready
to shoulder a gun. and go with
them." He added he saw no rea
son for America entering the pres
ent European conflict.
Colonel McGhee, who was a
classmate at Virginia Military In
stitute of General George Mar
shall, Chief of Staff of the U. S. i
Army, asserted he saw no reason ?
why CCC enrollees who so wished
should not be allowed to Join the
ailled forces in the present war.
War, he declared, "broadens j
you," Besides, from Si national
standpoint, it banishes unemploy- !
ment. he declared. The United |
States was raised from a second- i
rate power to a world leader by
the World War, he said, and iu
addition gained a "corner" on the
world's gold supply.
Colonel McGhee advocates com
pulsory military training and a
large standing army In the United
States. Without military might,
he said, this country will never
be able, to command respect from
the totalitarian states. We have
depended too long on Great Bri
tain to look out for our Interests,
he added. Only through military
superiority will we gain and keep
our rlghful share of commerce,
the speaker said.
A. H. Veazy and William H.
Jenkins,, soil conservationists, al
so addressed the throng.
The following day the News
Observer had the following to say
editorially concerning the above
news story:
Paths of Glory
Two very interesting and very
different points of view were ex
pressed at Nashville on Armistice
Duy, when a new CCC Camp was
dedicated by Representative Har
old Cooley and former Colonel C.
L. McOhee, veteran of the World
War.
Colonel McGhee told the CCC
boys that "it is a great thing to
get into a war" and that it "is a
glorious thing" for America's
youth to "lay down their lives, if
necessary, in a foreign land in
defense of this country." War,
he declared, "broadens you." Be
sides. lie continued, from a na- 1
tional standpoint, it banishes un
employment. The United States
was raised from a second-rate ,
power to a world leader by the
World War, he said, and in addi- ?
tion gained a "corner" on the
world's gold supply. Without mil
itary might, he said, this country
will never be' able to command [
respect from the totalitarian stat- ,
es. We have depended on Great ,
Britain, the Colonel told the boys,
to look out for interests. Only j
through military w'" !
we gain and keep^^flj^ightful
share of commerce, htFuecla red.
Sensible men will be g!nd to !
have this open expression of the ]
glorification of war. There are |
other military men and ex-mili
tary men who share it though tew
are quite so ruthlessly frank about 1
the expression of It. And a good
many military men, who have Been '
at least as much war as Col. Mc- ,
Ghee, from Serman down have ex
pressed an entirely different feel- I
itig. Nevertheless the Colonel is
entitled to his love of war and
free to participate In it whenever
he wants to.
The country itself, however, is
safer in the hands of men who,
far from glorifying war to CCC
boys, take the position Congress
man Cooley took when he made a
flatfooted declaration of his feel- ;
lng following the Colonel's state
ment. Mr. Cooley said, "I (hall
never rote to send your sons to
war until I am ready to shoulder
a gun and go with them."
Such a promise is worth more
to the boys who would have to do
the dying In any war than all the
glorification of all the Colonels
and the former Colonels. Such
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W. E. COLLIER
Lonlsburg, N. V.
*
*
COl,. OLAl'DE I,. MrOHKK
paths of glory, as the Colonel de
scribed. lead where they have al
ways led ? and nowhere else.
COL. McGHEE'S
EXPLANATION
The following is Col. McGhee's
answer to the above articles and
explanation of his remarks:
The Editor.
The News & OBserver,
Raleigh. North Carolina.
Dear Sir:
'In view of your news story of
the 12th, your editorial of the j
13th, other editorials, and my fan
mail, .may I make my "Oratorical J
Declaration" at Nashville, North :
Carolina 011 the 11th clear to my !
many friends in Nprth Carolina. I
With only about twenty minutes |
notice and without preparation or I
any notes but with an opinion that
certain speeches in the Senate on
the Neutrality Act which I heard
over the radio were almost a re
ilectioA on those who served in
the A. E. P. and certainly harm
ful to the moitle and patriotism
of our youth. I used the following
thoughts and so far as I can re
member the following phraseolo- 1
sy:
Some days ago I was requested
to talk to you today about the
American Legion. I11 the Pream
ble to the Constitution of the
Aniericcan Legion it is asserted
that we associate ourselves to
gether "To preserve the memor
ies and incidents of our associa
tion in the great war."
"This is Armistice Day. the
list anniversary of the conclus- j
ion of the World War. It is very |
ritting that our first thought 1
should be a tribute to our dead.
Long ago a Komau. Horace, wrote
'Dulce et Decorum est pro Katria
.VIorl.' "It is sweet and glorious
to die for one's country." Nathan
Hale, and American hero, before
his execution as a spy said, "My
only regret is that I have but one
life to lay down for my country." |
It is a glorious thing for an Am
erican young man to lay down hU
life, if necessary, in a foreign
land in defense of his country. It
is a great privilege to get into a
war and serve when our country
calls, whether In our native land
or at any spot on earth the I lilt
ed States send you. . .
No man can take from tlie Am
erican Legion the knowledge that
we served our country unselfishly
in her time of need. Those who
returned from the World War felt
that the war had been a great ex
perience; that their self denials;
their associations; had given
theiu a finer appreciation of hu
manity and better qualified them
to take up the duties of civil life
again. Dr. Sankey L. Blanton,
noted Baptist Minister, in an Ar
mistice Day address entitled
"What I learned from the War"
told the following incident: "In
iny outfit there waB a red headed,
freckle faced teamster, the most
profane, vulgar person I had ever
known. 1 often thought he was
good for nothing but cannon fod
der. One morning my outfit was
ordered to advance and as we
came into a clearing we were
shelled rather heavily and a num- ?
her woundedvOne young man had I
his face partially blown away. I j
"called the teamster and told him I
to take the young man to the first
aid station. As he started the
warning "Gas" was called. I saw
that profane, vulgar, * vile n)an
whom 1 thought was good only
for cannon fodder lay the young
man tenderly on the ground and
place upon the mutilated face his
own gas mask while he breathed
in the gas and died." Never
again, said Dr. Blanton, will 1 i
despise a human being War j
broadens a man. There is no
place for the selfish man, the >
snob, the egotist in your country s |
service. The "buddy" spirit is
the spirit of the true soldier. i
I went into the war a good.
Southerner, with much of the an-!
imosity and bitterness taught me j
when a boy in the 90s by a '"oth
er who was a girl in the Civil j
War. During the days following j
the Armistice when I saw in the
villages and cities of France the
Star Spangled Banner displayed
with the Union Jack of Great
Britain and the Tri-Color of
France there came a price in the
flag of my country 1 had never
experienced. . . I came home a
good American.
Before the World War the
United States was a fine place to j
invest British a*?d European cap
ital They had about filteen llll- |
lions of dollars invested here.
When our crops were harvested
lliey paid us"*a reasonable pi ice
for any surplus on account. Lon
don dominated world commerce; I
the pound sterling was the med- |
i u in of exchange for all nations.
As the war progressed their in- 1
vestments in this country were li
quidated and exchanged for sup- :
plies. When this was e*h*u?ted~
they sent us their-gold. In 191 <
we went Into the war and we
opened for our allies a charge ac- I
count, we sold them supplies on
lime to the amount of ten more
billions There was not a person
in the United States who did not ,
profit materially by this tremen
dous business. Before the World
War the United States was a sec
ond rate power, not to be consid
ered in an armed conflict. Ger
many insulted us with impunity
for they said it was impossible
for the United Statgs___to send
more than one division to Fralice.
On Armistice Day 1918 we had
demonstrated to the world our
ability to mobilize ah army of
five millions in eighteen months.
We had sent two million three
thousand miles from home and
maintained them in a foreign
land under combat conditions;
the greatest military achievement
in the history of mankind. It is
I true they were untrained and bHt
i for ttye exhausted condition of the,
| German army our losses would
j liave been very great, but they
were the deciding factor in the
I conflict. The American Soldier
i did his part.
It was not the fault of those
; who served that the United States
j get nothing from the World War
I but unpaid debts. was the fault
of those who refused to follow
President Wilson into the League
of Nations and the World Court
and do our part in maintaining
peace in the world. It was the j
fault of those who failed to re
cognize that we had changed from
a debtor to a creditor nation to 1
the extent of twenty-five billions
of dollars and that we were hold
ing practically all of the worlds
supply of gold; that New York
dominated world commerce and
the American dollar was the med
ium of exchange. We came out of |
the World War potentially the
greatest nation on earth with a 1
duty not only to ourselves' but to
all mankind. The situation called
for a new economic adjustment j
throughout the world. The nation
holding the gold of the world has
a fearful responsibility. In 1920
the foes of Woodrow Wilson as
sumed control of our government.
We disbanded our army, sunk uuu.
navy, gave our merchant marine I
to Henry Ford, and hoarded our |
gold. The world vision faded and j
the exploitation of agriculture, |
the South and West was resumed.
We refused to trade wiili other
nations even in payment of debts
and built our tariff walls higher |
and higher. Our policy of isola
tion brought us in ten years to
economic collapse the greatest de
pression in our history. Our
banks closed, fifteen millions of
people out of employment, sur
plus farm commodities piled up,
almost valueless. In addition it
contributed to the growth of the
aggressor nations who sought des
perately to remedy their econom
ic condition. If I am wrong I lien
many of our greatest statesmen
from Woodrow Wilson to this day
have been wrong.
In 1931 President Hoover call
ed upon the Red Cross to receive
contributions and feed the unem-'
ployed. If at that lime we had
adopted a policy of compulsory
military service and had main
tained an adequate reserve cprps
we would now be able to mobilize -
a force of around ten million with
all branches of the service thor
oughly trained and equipped for
an emergency. Such training and
the teaching of a vocation would
have been of invaluable service to
our young men who ifave gone out
of high schools and colleges un
able to find work. Many might
have been saved from crime. The
accumulation of materials and
equipment for an army of teu
million would probably have solv
ed our unemployment problem.
Some day the war In Europe will
end and there will be a peace con
ference. The victor will determine
'Ills sphere of influence with littlo
thought for the vanquished. If
the United States is strong we can
ask to sit at the peace table for
the protection of our economic
interests, the happiness of gener
ations to come. An army of teu
million will be a force any nation
on earth will have to respect and
about the only thing some nations
do respect."
Several of my friends who were
present at Nashville tell me that,
like myself, they were amazed at
the construction put upon my re
marks by the reporter for the
News & Observer. I certainly had
no Intention of glorifying war.
At the age of sixty, one is some
what indisposed to glorify any
thing. If paying tribute to the
American Legion and asking for
preparedness is glorifying war
then I am guilty. If. however, we
should be forced into any of the
wars now going 011 in Kurope and
Asia I hope that we will do so
with trained soldiers who know
how to safeguard their lives; un
der the command of officers who
likewise have been trained in the
handling of large units; with a
service of supply that will func
tion efficiently and with the very
sincere hope that the entire con
flict will be fought in a foreign
land.
Very truly.
CLAUDE L. McGHEK.
NOTICE
I am now working for Cran
ford's Beauty Salon in Kalelgh,
N. C.. Odd Fellow Rldg., where
I will be glad to see my Louls
burg customers and ffiends wh?n
in Raleigh.
11-24-lt NO LIE HARPER.
THIS WHISKEY IS
4 YEARS
OLD
OlJ)
ttl/JY'IXH
"Mucky smear
bourbon mZT
$ 1.95 QT. SI. 00 PT.
'William JamrunD & Co., Inc., N. Y. ]
? AT ?
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