The Plattsburg Movement; A Chapter of America's Participation in the World War

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1921 edition. ... puted. It remains to be seen whether they have the will so to organize that power as to be ready for an emergency in advance. In 1913, a time which now seems to belong to the remote past, General Wood said, "Undeveloped military resources are just about as useful in time of war as an undeveloped gold mine in Alaska in a panic on Wall Street. . . . Modern wars come quickly, and when they come upon us, whoever our antagonist may be, he will take advantage of the fact that we are never ready." l Assuming that this fact justifies precautionary measures, what shall they be? Construing the Plattsburg Movement in its broader aspects, what lessons may be learned from it and how may they be applied to the question of future policy? In very general terms, it is clear that owing both to the democratic character of American institutions, and also to the nation-wide scale on which modern warfare is conducted, military preparation implies the support and participation of the people at large. There can be no such sharp line as was once drawn between military and civilian agencies. The national defense must rely not so much on the creation of a professional personnel, or of a specialized group of war-making activities, as on a comprehensive organization by which peaceful citizens and civilian pursuits may be diverted to the uses of war when an emergency arises. The nation must, in short, be essentially peaceful, but at the same time resourceful enough to meet the contingency of war with a maximum of effectiveness and a minimum of waste and delay. This requires that there shall be threads of connection and plans of mobilization by which the industrial, transportation and educational agencies of the country can act in concert, and be convertible if...