Admiral Dewey 159 



weighed for a moment against the failure to pre 

 pare in the other. But only a limited number of 

 men have the moral courage to make these prepara 

 tions, because there is always risk to the individual 

 making them. Laws and regulations must be 

 stretched when an emergency arises, and yet there 

 is always some danger to the person who stretches 

 them; and, moreover, in time of sudden need, some 

 indispensable article can very possibly only be ob 

 tained at an altogether exorbitant price. If war 

 comes, and the article, whether it be a cargo of coal, 

 or a collier, or an auxiliary naval vessel, proves its 

 usefulness, no complaint is ever made. But if the war 

 does not come, then some small demagogue, some 

 cheap economist, or some undersized superior who is 

 afraid of taking the responsibility himself, may 

 blame the man who bought the article and say that 

 he exceeded his authority; that he showed more 

 zeal than discretion in not waiting for a few days, 

 etc. These are the risks which must be taken, and 

 the men who take them should be singled out for 

 reward and for duty. Admiral Dewey's whole ac 

 tion in connection with the question of coal-supply 

 for our fleet during the Chilean scare marked him 

 as one of these men. 



No one who has not some knowledge of the army 

 and navy will appreciate how much this means. It is 

 necessary to have a complete system of checks upon 



