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Show "Wt [403w 187 186 securing for China such agreements with the great nations? mum if a larger navy is necessary to command respect among other nations. how is it that we did grow, did dev lop, did become the land of the free and the home of the oppre' ‘d, even without a bigr navy? How is it that our beloved country had attained such Commanding eminence even before we began to construct our big navy? Commerce and industry are. taxed heavily to meet the very large expenses of maintainingr the large armies and navies and should plead for saner methods of maintaining: the pace of the world. through the less expensive and more effective methods of diplomacy, of arbitration. or referring to The Hague tribunal cases that fail to be adjusted through the ordinary methods of diplomacy. Some of you will recall the "arrangement" between Great llritain and the United States entered into in 1817 whereby all naval vessels on the lakes borderingr Canada and the United States were at once dismantled; whereby each government was limited to maintainingY four vessels of not over one hundred tons burden, each vessel to carry one eighteen pound cannon; also whereby no other vessels of war were allowed to be constructed or other \‘e -ls to be armed on the Great Lakes. This arrange ment has now been in force ninety-two years, has been effective in enforcing the laws. and has saved the two nations millions upon millions of dollars which would have been expended had each maintained big navies on the large inland seas. I took the trouble to go to our state library and lOok up that treaty. and it might be interestingY in these days when so many of our naval friends are dependingr upon these immense Dreadnouehts and immense armies for effect to study the ninety- two years of the effects of this 1817 brief arrangement. That is what we practical men want, and we want to get them through the simplest methods. Now. probably the or six hundred years ago it might have taken Sonoo men to start the machinery in one of our great expo» sitions which today is started by some little child touching an electrical button. lint the effect of starting machinery is greater and more satisfactory by the little child touching that little elec- after effects and if our friends who are clamoringr for a large navy are after effects, then let them remember the simplicity, the brevity, the effectiveness of this, what is called "an arrangement." /\s I say, l took the liberty of copying this "arrangement" from the United States Statutes, Foreign Treaties, Volume 8, from 1789 to 1845, and it is contained on that piece of paper: There is some difference between the size of that piece and the \lZC of a Dreadnought. There is some difference between the cost of that piece of paper and the cost of a Dreadnought, and vet this little agreement whereby the two nations, Great Britain on the one hand and the United States on the other hand, in 1817 agreed to dismantle all the war vessels on our Great Lakes. also Lake Champlain. and to substitute therefor these four ves- sels-these four vessels of not over one hundred tons burden, and thev were not allowed to carry a cannon of over eighteen pounds. Now, l had raised the question of whether this was. still in effect, so I wrote to the Secretary of State, and l have the letter from the Secretary of State here in reply. lle say ‘ "ln reply to the query made in your letter of the [till instant I have to inform you that the arrangement (it is ealledt reached in the year 1817 between the United States and (ireat lh‘itain relative to the limitation of the naval force to be maintaiiml by the two navies on the Great Lakes of .\merica, appears to be in full force and effect at the present time." There is a period of ninety~two years that that small document has had the effect of limiting the vessels of war upon our llreat Lakes to tour. There is another limitation that is men‘ tioned in that, and that is that no war vessels shall be constructed upon the Great Lakes and that,no vessels shall be armed except these four. ‘ This brief arrangement of 1817 might serve as a model tor an "arrangement" between the. nations bordering the Atlantic wherebv thev would agree to i‘etlttce their respective navtes to the size of ia moderate police force. said ve~sels to patrol the .\tl:tnt1c, with the object of seeing that the treaties were observed and _ obeved. the ot shortwestern the make ates S United the ' Canada and trical button than it would have been if 50,000 men had attempted Portugal North Atlantic; Norway, lingland, brancx‘. Spain and to start that machinery by the force of their muscles. make the eastern shore'of the North .\ll.‘tlllll‘ Uri-an. lf we are Three o1 |