New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1898-06-06
COLONIES AND THE CONSTITUTION

MANY of the arguments and conclusions or
Senator Morgan In his North American Re-
view, article on What Shall We DO with the
CONQUERED islands," are entirely sound. and are
TO be commended TO popular acceptance 10
one statement, however exception must De
taken: the more so because II expresses fall
lacy by no means singular To Senator Morgan.
but common to many people In public ana III
private life. "A colonial policy" he says.
(which discriminatcs between the rights OF
"colonlsts and those of the people who enjoy
full citizenship in the United States would be
"repugnant TO the principles Of our National
"Constitution.
On the contrary II would be and It Is In exact
accord with the principles Of that Constitution
and with the practice OF the Government ever
since the Union was formed and the Constl'u-
ton adopted. The Constitution gives the rights
Of full citizenship TO those only who are citizens
of States But at the time when the Constitu-
tion was adopted there We're people subject 10
the Government who were not citizens oil STATES
and who did not therefore enjoy such rights;
and that has been the case ever since, and Is the
case to-day The Constitution was not adopted
until 1889 But IN 1883 the Confederation had
acquired the territory lying between the Allie
ghanies and the Mississippi What was the
status of the settlers therein! They were not
citizens OF any Of the thirteen States. They
did not become such citizens when the Constitu-
ton was adopted IN 1883 Those In Kentucky
did not enjoy full rights Of citizenship until
1902, those Of Tennessee until 1916 and those OF
Ohio until 1902 Down to those dates, In their
cases. our policy did discriminate between the
rights of colonists and those Of the people who
enjoyed full citizenship In the United States
Ii has so Disseminated ever since. IT does TO-
day In the cases Of New-Meylco and Arizona
and Oklahoma and Alaska. The people OF those
Territories are coonsts. They are subject to
the laws Of the Inlted States. civil and mill
tary But they do not enjoy the rights OF full
citizenship. They send Delegates to Congress.
but those Delegates cannot vote. They have no
representation In the Senate They have no rep
resentatIor in the Electoral College and no voice
in the choice Of President and VicePresident
That is not "repugnant to the principles Of
our National Constitution" 1t Is an essential
feature Of our constitutional system. II has
prevailed unbroken, for Il hundred and nine
years There Is no reason why ii should not
prevail for a hundred and nine or nine hundred
and nine years longer. In most cases, after
years Of preparation. the colonies, or Terrific
/
ries have become States, and their settlers have
been received into full citizenship Kentucky
was thus received In three years. Tennessee in
seven, Ohio in thirteen. Wisconsin had to walt
ffty-nine. Montana was kept In the colonial
condition for elghtythree years. New-Mexico
and Arizona have been mere colonies for fifty
two years, and are likely to remain so for some
wears to come Alaska has been a colony. with
avan LOGS rights than these others for thirty
one years and no one expects 10 live to see 1t
become anything more.
Why should not the same rule that has been
applied to these colonies for more than cen
fury be applied to Porto Rico and the Philip
pines, and any other lands we may legitmately
acquire? Certainly they have no natural rights
superior to those Of Ohio and Nebraska. Of Ar-
IONA and Alaska. The treatment given TO the
one must satisfy the other. And the same pol
icy that has been for more than . century uni