The record-union., 1895-12-28
A RAGING NEWSPAPER.

The New York Eevening Post, one Of
the very few journals opposing the
present assertion of the Monroe doc
trine, is wonderfully stirred up by the
expression in the Presidents special
message and Secretary Olney's letter
that the United States is practically
sovereign on this continent, and that
its fiat is law. But the President and
Secretary are right. For they did not
mean, nor is their language subject to
such Interpretation, that the United
States assumes to dictate to the States
of this hemisphere arbitrarily, but they
do mean that our interests are such
upon this continent that, in common
justice to our own, we have the right
TO and must protest against the extern
sion Of European monarchical institu-
tions in any of the States Of the Amer
lean continents.
The President never intended to be
understood as saying that we are SOW
ereign over Venezuela or Brazil or
Nicaragua, but that we are, in justice
to free institutions. bound to assert the
eign Governments from these lands
which would tend to crush out free
government or destroy the indepen-
dence of free States.
The Post" is abusively hystericaI in
its rage, and roars Justify against the
idea of the United States conserving
free government by assertion of it's
power to exclude monarchical forms
from the other States of the American
continents. But the people are with the
President and Mr. Olney in this mat
ter, and their judgment is not that of
impulse but of long growth, Of calm
thinking and of settled determination.
The Post" says that Venezuela is
separated from us by 1000 miles of
water and more than that of land. That
such a distance could not be traversed
by an army in any event. We have no
reason therefore to fear foothold by
Great Britain in Venezuela, when the
British have been established directly
upon our northern border ever since we
have had national existence, and yet we
have taken no harm from such proxim-
ity.
That is begging the question. Vene-
Zuela is republic; it appeals to US to
assert the doctrine that the American
territory of a free Government shall not
= In, fri d
ly and our own interests. which include
the conservation of free institutions, We
are bound TO respond affirmatively TO
the appeal. The British on our north
were there before we were nation.
That people is not asking for sympa-
thy, nor are they suffering from threat
to seize any part Of their soil under
boundary or any other claim.
But there are 10000 people living in
the Venezuelan disputed strip, declares
the POST" quietly and contentedly un-
der British jurisdiction, and we are
asked to aid in transferring them to
the Jurisdiction of an unstable and tur-
bulent Government without at all con-
sulting them. The reply to this plea is
that these people are not protesting
against the assertion of the Monroe
doctrine. They are not heard from as
objecting TO Venezuelan jurisdiction.
Besides, they are not, save very small
minority, English people, and the
tongue they speak is that of the people
of Venezuela, which State has at all
times asserted it's right to jurisdiction
over them, and they nave at no time,
as we understand it, entered any pro
test against such claim.
-1re Post" may indulge TO fullness in
assaults upon the President and Mr.. Oh
ney, and stigmatize them, as it now
does, as ''impudent," silly" insult
ing" and as international anarchists, -
but they reflect the sober judgment of
the American people in their express
sions concerning the application of the
Monroe doctrine to the Venezuelan
question.