The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1897-12-28

| at Alden and exchange some officers
and men, and then the Raleigh will
proceed to China.
| Senator Morgan of Alabama, a
member of the Foreign Relations Com
mittee, to-day gave The Call corre-
! spondent an interview concerning the
| significance of the attitude of Euro
| pean powers toward Chinese territory,
and the Importance to this Govern
ment of the steps they appear to be
| about taking. This subject in
volved the policy Of the United
| States in regard to the acquisition of
| foreign territory. Senator Morgan's
view was that the action of European
powers with relation to China was of
interest to this Government because of
the effect upon the readjustment of the
situation in China in restricting Ameri-
can commerce. In his opinion the
United States could have no concern in
the controlling influences in China, the
policy of this Government being averse
to meddling in European and Asiatic
countries that do not affect our treaty
rights.
MY view is that no sane American
expects we will ever establish any pos
sessions of the United States anywhere
on the Eastern hemisphere" said Sem
ator Morgan. Our plan of the acqui-
sition of territory-if we have any
plan-excludes the idea of colonial
tion and of conquest, unless a conquest
might become a proper indemnity for
a just and inevitable war. Any terri
tory that we might ever acquire within
the limit of the American geographical
system will come to US through their
adoption of our institutions, and will
be accepted by us from some necessity
that is so important we cannot avoid
the results,
"Our history in this respect is very
clear. In the case of San Domingo,
treaty of annexation was rejected for
no justifiable reasons except that we
were not compelled by the necessities
of the situation to acquire the islands.
We have rejected a similar overture
for acquisition from Honduras, and
for like reasons. We have declared that
no other European nation should ac-
quire the dominion of Cuba, but we
have retained our respect for the claims
of Spain in the midst of temptations,
perplexities and wrongs that would
have forced almost any other nation
to take Cuba in order to secure the
peace and safety of our own people. If
Cuba had been as near to England as
it. is to the United States, no one can
doubt it would have been a part of the
British Empire. Our nearest approach
to the policy of colonization was in Lii
IBERIA, to which we were driven in order
to make a home for slaves captured by
American ships when in transit across
the ocean to America. That policy was
founded on a necessity of our Govern
ment, and was justified by the highest
motives Of benevolence. Yet, having
planted that colony, we have religious
ly abstained from any interference with
its government, and have even refused
to prevent the aggressions Of other ma
tions upon those people. 1t is there
fore clear both in the theory and pfac-
tice that the United States never has
extended and never will extend it's
Jurisdiction beyond the sphere of the
American geographical system. What
ever we may find it necessary to do,
therefore, in respect to this new move
ment of European states to take pos
session of the Asiatic coast of the Pa
cific Ocean, the idea of occupying any
portion of that country with our flag
or extending the jurisdiction of the
United States over it is simply absurd.
The movement for the occupation of
the eastern coast of China and Korea,
following the occupation by Great
Britain and France of the southern
coast of Asia, must have some great
and emergent cause. That cause is not
merely the acquisition of territory, for
every nation concerned in this move
ment has already more territory than
it can govern and take care of with
proper regard to the welfare of the
people. l can find no reasonable solu-
ton of this problem except that the
western states Of Europe, including
Russia, intend to interpose a barrier at
the great commercial seaports between
the United States and the Orient for
the purpose of effectually intercepting
the trade of the 100000, 900 people who
have access to the Pacific Ocean on the
eastern hemisphere, sending it through
European ports and preventing it from
coming to us on direct lines across the
Pacific Ocean"
Mr.. Morgan further said the policy of