The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1886-07-27
AS STATES GROW OLD.

One Of the leading features OF the po-
litical history of nations is that the
policy OF every Government must be en-
tirely changed, or at least radically mod
flied, after the first periods OF organized
existence This is so true in the develop
ment of nations that historians seldom
cite precedents outside of the period of
national life of which they are treating.
Comparisons between periods of national
existence are often made, and the proba
BILE future OF a nation is foreshadowed;
but the political evolutions of the past
cannot Justly be made criterions for the
industrial or political policy Of the pres
ent.
During the first, or establishing period
of States existence, before the internal
development OF the nation has rooted
itself, the Government generally relies
upon war policy, either offensive or
defensive. The result is that when a
people begin developing their material
resources and building up their COM
merce there is an imperative demand
for a new and more comprehensive po-
litical policy. The questions of the in
ternal revenue, the tariff, and the civil
service call for investigation and solu-
ton. But after the general policy OF the
Government is established and the first
period of national development and adj
vancement has taken place, other diff
culties arise, which affect the present
welfare and future existence of the Com
monwealth.
Conservatism has by this time be-
come political factor under which POI
litical abuses have grown up, and th9
natural result is the formation OF a POI
litical party pledged to reform; but such
a party soon drifts, through the force Of
a political idea, into the opposite ex-
treme of radicalism. Trite as these OBJ
servations appear, they are always neces-
sary when considering the phases of any
political period in order to trace the true
relations of existing parties. Between
these two political extremes always
agricultural development, which marks
the real state OF the nations progress.
This is a great, but unorganized party in
the political sense, yet it is the party
which represents the ''bone and
sinew" and the "corn and wine"
of the land. 1t possesses the Midas
touch which turns all into gold, but
lacks the disability which made the gift
of Midas curse. This party which I'M
derlies the equation of national wealth,
holds the balance OF political power
when crises arise, because it represents
the nations credit.
While conservatism deplores the pres
ent and radicalism prates of an imprac-
ticable future, both the present and the
future are practically and faithfully
worked out by this patriotic and hard
toiling element of true progress, repre-
senting the food supply and bank &C
count of the nation. 1t is to this sus-
tanning class of the commonwealth that
the political factions of a Government
must always appeal when they cannot
agree on a division of the spoils. 1t is
this element that sits in judgment
upon the claims of both conservatism
and radicalism. 1t is, in fact, this ele-
ment that dictates changes and modif-
cations OF a peoples policy as States
grow old.
The dawn of commercial prosperity
and agricultural development always
brings out the strength of conservatism
against a more comprehensive political
policy for the advancing nation. Con-
servatism relies upon presidents estab-
lished in the good old days -" radical
ism advocates the tearing down OF the
past in order to substitute an untried
theory. In the mean time the unor-
gained, but progressive party of devel-
opment has hedged both parties with
every day, practical exigencies, which
carry the nation, together with political
factions, into an advanced period OF po-
litical existence. Exceptions occur and
revolutions are the result, but history
attests that the general tendency of ma
tons is to this end, despite the foreign
wars OF rulers and internal political dis
putes