Evening star., 1895-05-28

Canada as whole: the second round would
be IN favor of the only portions OF that
country which we wanted,but could neither
take nor hold, and the conclusion of the
matter unless we prepare beforehand,
would be our throwing up the Canadian
sponge. together with an indemnity, be-
fore which the mlliards of France would
be a flea bite. our proudest harbors being
occupied until paid up. These are the
painful words of truth and seberness.
But We may be told that Great Britain
that that Will be the invariable pratice in
future, and, so far from war. there is to be
an alliance between the two countries. 1t
is all a delusion and an Anglomaniac snare.
AS to the alliance" English journals
openly state what it amounts to: If this
country is attacked the British fleet is to
protect us; If England is attacked the
United States will give that moral sup
port" which the Venezuelans. among other
examples, becoming well acquainted
with. When Great Britain has soft
thing" the case doesn't admit of arbltra-
ton. and it would appear that if 1t were
condescended to, no commissioner from an
American state need apply. Let US glance.
moreover, at the two Instances when ar
bitratlon was accepted, for they are both
instructive. First, at the close of the re-
bellion, We demanded damages for Anglo
confederate captures; but, as We had just
passed through great war, had contracted
an immense debt, had begun to disband the
army and disperse the navy, were met
by refusal and Englishmen had the i'm
pertinence to call the incident CLOSED.
But mark! Within six years we had had
breathing spell; we had already begun to
pay off our war debt; our enormous army,
flushed with victory, and our navy. power
full for that time could have been reassem-
bled or duplicated; our blood was UP in
thinking of four years OF injury and insult;
we reopened the question and were drifting
toward war; of course Great Britain agreed
to arbitration under those circumstances;
with wholesome recollection of 1II6 and
1872 she dared not refuse satisfaction. 1t
is pity We did not ourselves assess the
amount of the fine" and collect the sdebt'
after the approved fashion of the bold
Briton of eoday when he administers affairs
on the American continent, for at that time
we could have expelled him completely
from this hemisphere. Second, when We
thought that. having purchased Alaska, its
belongings. including the seals of Bering
sea, We're ours, we We're met by Canadian
poachers. If we had had an adequate fleet
they would not have displayed their tricks
and manners; having no fleet or defenseS
we submitted to arbitration, and Great
Britain, never having asserted any rights
there, and having nothing to lose but pretty
sure of gaining something, consented. The
humiiating result is we'll known: First,
having no rights she afterward took the
lions share; beginning with some policing
and little poaching she has come to es-
sentially no policing and all the poaching
she wants and in due time we will be as
sessed damages for trying to defend our
own seals-all because England has the
guns and ships, and we have none that she
need respect. Practically wherein lies the
difference between the case of Venezuela
and the case of the United States?
Perhaps if l have succeeded in wounding
the self-esteem and shaking the self-con-
fidence of Young America it may be asked:
why make public statements of our utter
helplessness?" First, the facts are already
known where they will do most harm;
when our natural and hereditary enemy
feels that the time is come, it will only be
matter of certain underings In bureaus
of intelligence, reaching toward certain
pigeon-holes, which contain all the Informal
ton necessary to make a successful at
tack upon any point of our coast; the po-
sition of every gun in every fort and the
size of those on every ship are known to
every enemy, and known more fully than
to the average American. Second, the only
hope of bettering matters is to submit
them to the public common sense.
CASSANDROS.