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GOODWIN'S WEEKLY 3 M &m& Goocfivms UJqqAIi I JS R. BRYAN is opposed to the proposed BJBmL war cainet on tne grounds that it E 1 m VjjjSJB would be a confession that the present JKm cabinet had broken down, and would ' WJBB thereby give much encouragement to SfMJB tne enemy- And besides, he seems to think that there is no need for a war cabinet anyway. Perhaps so, but we wonder if it ever occurs to oth ers, as it often does to us, how fearful our Democratic friends are of somebody doing something that might give aid and comfort to the enemy. This has become the stereotyped watchword of the adminis tration and all the big and little henchmen of the party in power, and they are working it to a frazzle. Which is all very well, at that, providing they are just as careful themselves not to give aid and comfort to the enemy as they expect others to be. So we are admonished not to criticize the administra tion, for that would be encouraging the enemy. And Congress must not inquire into the conduct of the war, because it might discover something wrong with our war machine, and that would give the en emy new hope. And now Mr. Bryan tells usthat to create a war cab inet, no matter how much it may be needed, is all wrong in that it would of itself be an admission that we haven't been going at the war right, and this in turn might reassure the Kaiser that he still has a chance to win out if he only will stick to it. What powerful logic is this ! It is worse than camouflage ; it simply means that our para mount policy is to fool the other fellow, even at the risk of fooling ourselves also. And so, according to the assurance of Mr. Bryan, we are to cover .up our shortcomings and go ahead playing the grand old American game of Bluff. That somebody is sure to call our hand before the game breaks up, and that, unless we do our best to improve our hand in the draw instead of standing pat on a bob-tailed flush, we are likely to look mighty foolish when the big showdown comes, has never en tered his head. To our way of thinking, this is the most preposterous policy that was ever forced upon the American people. It's only pos sible justification is that we have no chance to lose. If, perchance, this should happen, and Mr. Bryan has given the matter a thought, then we suppose that he will in due time propose some fantastic theory or other to meet the emergency; the probabilities being that he would have us believe that if we can't get out of the hole by honorable means, we can at least pay our losses with cheap or fiat money. But, seriously speaking, if Mr. Bryan were disposed to be honest with us and with himself, he might give us a very good reason why the proposed war cabinet will not work. We have guessed it al ready, but the former secretary of state could confirm it by merely recalling his own inglorious experience while he posed as the Presi dent's premier. We use the term "posed" advisedly, for that ade quately expresses Mr. Bryan's position in the cabinet, as it does that of all the other manikins numbered among those who now comprise the official family. And so it would be were Congress to succeed in creating a war cabinet against the President's wishes. In theory it would be a very fine arrangement, but Congress does not possess the power to name the President's appointees, and it most certainly does not possess the power to compel him to consult and take counsel with his subordinates. Mr. Bryan knows all this, but for some reason or other he fails to refer to it. To what strange state of affairs have we here in America progressed, when ever the great Commoner himself essays to preach the doctrine that "the king can do no wrong!" T. R. has not yet been put into jail. But this is a slow war any way, and there's lots of time. They may get around to Teddy before all the troops are transported. THE FALL OF JERICHO. H -itfLOWLY but surely General Allcnby is making his presence felt H jy in Palestine. It seems only a short time ago that Jerusalem H capitulated and now comes the news of the capture of Jericho. The H brilliant British commander is in full possession of the ancient city and H his troops are encamped all along the river Jordan. H There is something that makes a strange sentimental appeal to H one who contemplates the significance of this successful campaign in H the Holy Land. Just what this success at arms implies in a military H sense we leave to the strategists to debate and determine, but it goes H without discussion that this achievement will have a far-reaching H moral effect throughout all Christendom. One questions that there H will be much rejoicing in Berlin. Also it is likely that the Turks, who H are a superstitious people at best, will begin to wonder whether some- H body hasn't made a grave mistake in. claiming that God was on the H side of the Kaiser and his war lords. Certainly it must seem to the H slow-thinking Moslem that if the Almighty has cast his lot with Ger- H many and her allies, and is really taking a hand in the affair, then he H would not suffer his co-partners to be driven from pillar to post, nor H would he allow his ancient citadels to fall one afteivthe other into the H hands of the,advancing enemy. And so we have a sneaking suspicion H that the Kaiser's associates in the far east will soon begin to loose H faith in their partnership with the German Emperor and perhaps with H God himself. H The fall of Jericho before a modern army recalls that other con- H quest of the ancient city some thirty-three hundred years ago. Ac- cording to the Scriptures, the Almighty also had a hand in that affair, M but so far as we have been able to learn, there has never been any dis- M pute as to which side he was on. The children of Israel, having been jt released from bondage in Egypt, were on their way to Canaan. For M forty years they had wandered through the Wilderness with Moses as M their deliverer and leader. God was watching over them and guiding M them towards the promised land, but sometimes they entirely lost M faith in the undertaking. Even Moses himself became so fearful over M the outlook at times that it was not given to him to complete the journey. He died along the way and after his burial somewhere in M the land of Moab no man knows where the command of the expedi- M tion fell to Joshua. We are told that the new leader "was full of the H spirit of wisdom" and that "the children of Israel hearkened unto H him." And so it was that he proved himself a successful leader and M gained the glory of leading his people back to the land which the Lord had set apart for their especial inheritance. M We are told in the recent dispatches that General Allenby en- H countered all sorts of difficulties in his approach upon Jericho; that M the constant rains had covered the roads with a soapy surface which made them almost impassable. That may all be true but, even so, it H would seem that he had comparatively easy going when the obstacles H which beset Joshua are taken into consideration. The great leader of Israel had more than muddy roads to contend with ; he had to cross H the River Jordan and there were no bridges or boats available for H that purpose. He was perplexed for a time but, as we said before, God H was his ally, and so it was given to him to perform the marvelous feat H of commanding the waters of the Jordan to divide while the whole H tribe crossed over without even wetting the soles of their feet. Then came the siege of the city itself. Jericho was surrounded H by mighty walls, and was considered impregnable against all the H armies of that day. To attempt its capture by the ordinary means at H the disposal of the children of Israel would have been foolhardy. But H God again came to the rescue of Joshua and the two mapped out a H plan of conquest that was most remarkable. Under Divine directions, H Joshua led his army around the city once each day for six consecu- H