The Bennington banner. [volume] (Bennington, Vt.) 1858-1894, 1892-05-06
A "REMNANr OF CoLoNIALIsM +,

theodore Roosevelt is nothing If not
a thorough-going American. His entire
career in literature and politics bears
conspicuous testimony to this fact To
a man of his virile personality 1t is as
natural to be patriotic as to breathe.
There was the ring of fervid patriotism
in every line of his admirable address
before the Republican Club of Massa-
chusetts, and he has given the dry bones
of the Tory element among us shaking
which they will remember for many a
day. Mr.. Roosevelt is student of histo-
ry. There is something wonderfully
graphic in his description of the faction
which makes business of disparaging
and deriding America, and in every dis
pute between this and foreign country
invariably takes the position that the
foreigner is right and that we are wrong.
Mr.. Roosevelt calls this petty and alto
gether contemplate faction ''the sur
viving remnant of colonialism." 1t is
an interesting historical parallel which
is suggested by his remark.
We have always had this spirit of CO.
lonialism in this country. 1t is a neces.
sary sequence of our youth as a nation,
and of the provincial relations we suS-
tanned toward Europe in early history
When the holder and stronger forces in
the colonies threw off the yoke of Brit
ain, at the opening of the Revolution,
there was an element of colonialism
which strenuOuSly resisted the thought
of independence. The Tories, whose
measures and vindictiveness vexed the
patriotic soul of Washington, were the
prototypes of the men who have been
snarling in some of our Mugwump jour
,,,l, al, h. A
istration in the Chilean controversy and
the Behring Sea dispute. Though the
Tories of the Revolution were mostly
men of small and narrow ideas, they
were constantly processing superior
breadth and liberality and laying claim
to monopoly of the intellect and vir-
tue of America. Their successors have
been doing precisely the same thing.
The old Tories used to denounce the
rough, hasty and high-handed conduct
of the patriots, but history records that
the most merciless and cruel deeds done
in the whole war were committed by
these ex-patriated Americans. So now,
our Tories are continually railing about
the bitterness of A American partisanship,
but it is noticeable that the most savage
and dishonOrable methods which char
aterize modern politics are, as Mr..
Roosevelt says, those of our denationa-
liked press and politicians. Even the
London Saturday Rerie,o never uttered
such coarse abuse in the height of the
seal quarrel as some of our journals
hurled at PI esident Harrison and his
Secretary of State.
But there is the consolation that this
denationalized or Tory faction is steadi-
lily diminishing in this country. 1t is
now only remnant indeed. The
rapid advance of the American people in
everything which goes to make up not
only material but intellectual and moral
greatness is fatal to the spirit of cOlOni-
alism. 1t was noted in our recent for
eign controversies that the great body of
the people, Democrats as well as Repub-
licans, were thoroughly loyal to the Ma
tiOnal Administration. There had never,
probably, been such complete unanimity
before in the history of the Republic.
This unanimity will go on increasing.
Patriotism will overcome colonialism
and drive the last vestige of it from the
land. This is the memorable logic of
events, and it will be as futile for ouI
handful of surviving Tories to try to ar.
rest the growth of national unity as to
stop the planets in their orbits and turn
back the solar system in its course
Boston Journal.