Recently appointed by President Wilson to be Custodian of Enemy Property. In performing this task he will have charge of more than one billion dollars' worth of property of Germans and Austrians in this country (including the many interned German ships), much of which will be converted to Government use during the war A distinguished engineer and member of the reorganized Aircraft Board, whose technical skill and practical experience in the manufacture of highly finished mechanical devices are now being applied to the problem of rapid construction of airplanes for the Army and Navy MR. PAUL S. REINSCH American Minister at Peking, who has helped to preserve the independence of China and the policy of the Open Door, Under whose supervision the Second Liberty Loan was made a tremendous success (See "The March of Events" The Responsibility is on the Adminis T tration HE tremendous success of the second Liberty Loan settles in most encouraging fashion a point that has caused anxiety to many Americans and raised hopes in the bosoms of our trans-Atlantic enemies. That was the extent to which the everyday American citizen endorsed the war. The failure of this loan would have been a great encouragement to Germany. Even a lukewarm success would have been hailed as an evidence of disintegration in this country. But we all know now that the war is a popular war in the United States; not popular in the sense that Americans hail with joy the prospect of an exhausting and bloody struggle, but in the sense that they accept it as an inescapable duty and are determined to support it with all the resources and men we command. To grasp the success of the loan in its complete significance we must appraise it in connection with the extra session of Congress. Despite the tactics of an exceedingly small minority, this body supported the war in most patriotic fashion. It complied with practically every request submitted by the executive departments. It voted money by the billions for strengthening all the elements with which we wage war. Just consider one fact: From the establishment of the United States Government under George Washington up to March, 1917, the total cost of maintaining the American Government aggregated $26,000,000,000. This included the cost of the War of 1812, the Mexican War, the Civil War, pensions, great public works-everything, indeed, that necessitated a Congressional appropriation. From March until the adjournment in October Congress voted $21,000,000,000. That is, Congress appropriated, in this seven months, almost as much money as it had appropriated in the whole 128 years of the Nation's history. The readiness with which Congress voted these huge appropriations certainly implied an endorsement of the great enterprise in which the country has engaged. II It really takes three national instrumentalities to conduct a victorious war. These are the people, their elected representatives, and the Executive. All three forces must unqualifiedly fight together, if the best results are to be obtained. If one weakens, or works half-heartedly and ineffectively, the success of the whole enterprise may be put in jeopardy. We know definitely now that one hundred millions of Americans are determined to see this thing through. We know that Congress whole-heartedly supports this determination. They will furnish the Administration all the money, all the men, and all the moral support it may need. The most outstanding result of the Liberty Loan is that it places fairly upon the Administration the responsibility of conducting this war with the utmost vigilance. The actual conduct of military operations lies in the hands of the Administration. If the United States fail at this time, its failure will not be caused by the absence of popular support. It can be caused only by the fact that those entrusted with the executive power have not measured up to their responsibilities. Mr. Wilson, in his recent reply to the Pope, has outlined our national purpose with an eloquence and a high moral enthusiasm that have echoed around the world. The support which the President and his associates have now received from the American masses will strengthen their determination to make this splendid message the abiding rule of our national life. From now on there should be only a single motive governing the executive departments. That motive is the most earnest prosecution of the war. We should bear in mind that the American people of all classes and of all political and religious faiths are bound together by one mighty resolve. We are fighting for nothing less than our national life. It is a time when there are no Republicans and no Democrats, no anti-Administration men and no pro-Administration men. Only one motive can now inspire any appointments to important posts-that of getting the most efficient men for the jobs. Personal preferences and political loyalties are considerations that should have no influence upon the Administration. If any members of the present Cabinet are not the best men in the country for the particular work in question, these men should go. All the other nations have had to meet this issue. Joffre proved the great support of France in her hour of agony because he ruthlessly dismissed generals who had proved incompetent, and appointed their successors purely on the grounds of merit. England has dismissed most cabinet officers Iwith whom she started war and has found |