Page:American Boy's Life of William McKinley.djvu/271

Rh fact, business in this country was hardly affected from the opening to the closing of the war, while throughout Spain everything was completely upset.

There was but one thing which President McKinley had to protect himself against during the beginning of the war, and that was the great army of cranks who wished to interview him with a view to protecting our coast, or bringing quick annihilation to the enemy. One man wished to manufacture war balloons carrying a regular battery of guns; another wished to send out balloons carrying oil which should be dropped, while ablaze, on the decks of the enemy's ships, or inside the enemy's forts; another wished to manufacture poisonous bullets and shells, totally unaware that the use of such is against the law of civilized nations; another wished to use powerful drugs in bombshells, which, when they exploded, would put the enemy to sleep; another wanted to supply the soldiers and sailors with suits of clothing which he promised to make bullet-proof; another wished to supply our fighters with food in highly concentrated form, so that several