St. Paul daily globe., 1893-03-06
AMONG THE REVIEWS.

The Forum: 1t would DO ascribing
to environment too little influence in
determining tho bent of a mans mind
to expect that one bred to the navy, ed
ucated in 1t. following it as an occupa-
ton. 10 regard other than with favor
any policy IN the execution of which
his profession would have play for its
qualities and powers. so when We open
the Forum to read It's first article by
Prof. Mahan. of the naval war college
mt Newport, on Hawaii and Our Future
Sea Power" 1t is an easy matter TO fore
cast the trend of his thought and the
tenor OF his article. Assuming that we
have inherited the English passion Of
expansion, which has not been 5ubdued
in the mixture of races which we have
undergone, and having spread from
ocean TO ocean, barred by an alien
race on the south and on the
north by kindred race whose rights
we arc bound 10 respect, the question
he regards as vital and pressing one
is: Where next? Hawaii is only an
incidental and comparatively insignifl-
cant point in the broad sweep OF thiS
question, but as a stepping stone across
the waters of the Pacific in the onward
march OF the tace which the professor
foresees, it is necessary point which
we should hasten To secure the abso-
lutte ownership of.
Being OF English origin we must
duplicate English action. As she has
established outlying points OF vantage
to her navy, so perforce must we. As
she has seized on territory to establish
colonies for her crowded population,
and reduced the natives to Su6jection,
SO must we. Belonging to profession
of war, he regards it as natural cOndi-
ton, and one OF frequent and necessary
occurrence. Naturally, he looks at every
object from the point of view OF its
availability for offense or defense. Ad-
nit his premises and it follows that the
Hawaiian incident" should be i'm
proved without regard to any questions
of equity or right.
English we are yet in spite of the
flood of other types; English in language
and i'll Our aspirations for individual
liberty. But we are as un-English As
possible in our conditions. We have
seventeen people to each square mile OF
our territory; Great Britain has over
800. We have over 100000 square
miles; she has but 10000. Her tradi-
tionS are of war on land and sea; ours
are of peace. She has spread by con-
quest; we by occupation. She is Within
striking distance of powers who yet be-
lieye that war is the chief glory OF ma
tions; we are secure in our isolation.
The necessity that compels the over
crowded hive to swarm off its colonies
is not ours. Conquest and colonization
are not our need, and are not our mis-
sion.
1t is when we regard our position, our
conditions, our own problems, looking
at them from the view point Of the cti-
zen, and not from that of the warrior,
that we can appreciate the insignti-
cance to us of Hawaii, and how imma-
terial it is to us whether it remains
under the native control or that OF some
foreign nation. We are secure in ouI
isolation. our strength and the uttel
needleSsness of any complication i'll ouI
foreign relations if we are what we
should ever be-juSt and honest The
Hawaiian incident of HarrisonS admin
iStration will drop now into the same
oblivion which enShrouds Grants AM
bilious scheme for the annexation OF
San Domingo which stirred the nation
twenty years ago.