The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-11-30

lonial Government" and try to draw
lessons from the six great colonizing
nations. w. Alleyne Ireland, in the
Atlantic Monthly, reviews the expert
ences Of these nations, starting out
with the statement that Spain and
Portugal must serve as warnings; that
Germany has had but fourteen years
experience In tropical colonization, and
that the most important lessons must
be learned from France, Holland and
Great Britain
The author begins with France, and,
quoting Henry Norman's Peoples and
Politics of the Far East" he draws
this picture: I'm 1890 the population
Of French Cochin-China was 100000,
Of whom only 1000 were French. OF
these 1000 1000 were government off,
Gals, whose salaries amounted to ST.
10000. In the same year $4,000 was
devoted to public works. and the sin
gular thing about the appropriation
was that the whole of it was paid out
to officials of the department, and not
a cents worth Of work was done! The
cost Of the Tongkng colony to French
taxpayers has been $24 900 a day, and
476,OO0000 francs. During the same
period the mother country had sold
to Tongking so 1000, 900 francs worth Of
French goods" Strange to say, France
is more fortunate in the West indies
fact which Mr.. Ireland should ex-
plain, IN view Of his later assertion
that the Malays are much more re-
sourceful and much easier to govern
that the people Of the West Indies.
The Dutch are held up as a brilliant
example of a successful colonizing ma
ton. and their success is attributed to
their plantation policy" Java is run
like a great plantation, and every
able-bodied man is compelled to labor
so many hours a day. 1t is not quite
clear whether the writer would rec
ommend such policy to this liberty
born country or not He does make
the fiat declaration, however, that
ANY attempt to govern the tropical
possessions Of the United States on
democratic principles is doomed to GER
tain failure. 1t has been clearly
shown" he says, that without forced
labor, or at least some form of in
dentured labor, large industries can
not De uSNelOpSu III ITOplCdl COlOulSS.
Finally, after stating that France, in
her ambition to compete in the East
with her rivals, had to maintain there
an army Of $4,000 men to keep down
350,000 natives, Mr.. Ireland turns to
Great Britain and argues her success,
but makes this significant admission:
ut is doubtful whether even any Of
England's tropical possessions, loyal as
they undoubtedly are, would prove a
source Of strength in time Of war"
The logical inference to be drawn
from Mr.. Ireland's article Is that au-
tocratic government will alone assure
us success in the tropics-that is,
government Numerically opposed to
the fundamental principles Of the
United States. But it must be remem-
bered that an autocratic government
cannot be maintained without large
standing army; that army, to be trust
worthy. must be largely American, and
yet the same men who grant this and
still argue for imperialism will tell us,
with a sweet Inconsistencies of its
meaning, that the white man can
never be acclimatized in the tropics.
Only natives can prosper there"
1t might be we'll to explain to the
mothers and fathers throughout the
land the source and destiny Of this
standing army.