The age-herald., 1898-05-15
WHY NOT ENLARGE
 OUR POSSESSIONS ]?
JAY DURHAM.


 It Is evident that public opinion has un-
 dergone most decided change upon the subject of acquiring territory by this gov ernment since the great naval victory by Admiral Dewey at Manila Some of the | closest friends of the administration during the excitement approaching the declaration 1 of war, which has passed Into history as one of the great epochs of the nations ex- l istence, expressed a most decided desire at 1 that time for annexation in the event those | islands should be invaded by the American army and possession taken. Senator Ellins l of West Virginia, one of the 'peace-at- y-big-priee" senators, was perhaps more
 pronounced in favor of annexation than any 1 other of MT. McIlinley's political advisors,
 though he opposed war, preferring to get 1 on the Spanish bond side of the issue.
 
 l Since the Philippine islands have come practically into the possession of the gov- ernment of tho United States by conquest
 a desire to hold the islands and make them | colonies of the United States has become
 most pronounced by nearly all of the public men. It Is true that it has been the policy I of the United States government from the | time of it's formation not to extend its | possessions beyond the water-.ine. When Alaska was purchased by the United States | from Russia there was then given an im- l petus to the idea of extension of territory | There is quite a broad body of water be- | tween the United States boundary and the | Alaskan coast. It was argued at the time | of the Alaskan purchase that the acquisi- l ton of that territory might with propriety lead to the possession of additional terri l tory of any or many of the islands in the seas.
 Tn 1893, immediately following the revolu- l ton in Hawaii, when the emissaries of the new republic came to Washington to ask annexation from President Harrison the | scheme was generally favored by all lead- ing republicans, although it was by no | means confined to members of that party alone. There were many democrats then, as now, favorable to the annexation of those islands. As is well known, Senator Morgan Of Alabama has been conspicuous in his advocacy of annexation ever since he first heard of the dethronement of the queen and the establishment of republican form of government there. He has done per- haps more than all other senators to stim- ulate public opinion on that question, in his own party.
 It is indeed remarkable how few men in public life who are supposed to possess qualities of statesmanship, appear to pene- trate the possibility of the future The time has now come when the United States must call into question all it's necessities. So long as there prevailed extreme peace Between this government and all other na- tions of the world, few men in public life gave little if any heed to the future or what it might bring forth. Within the past fifteen years there has been any num- Der of men in both the senate and the house who opposed every proposition for | building a navy or the providing of | coaling stations anywhere. Senator Cock rell is perhaps the best representative of | this class of so-caled statesmen. Senator l Cockrell went to the senate in 1874, and has. consistently from that time opposed nearly all naval appropriations The coun- | try now appreciates the value of navy | and having a coaling-s station at some point l in the Pacific ocean, In less than three | days after the declaration of war against l Spain, England said that coal should be a 1 contraband of war. All other nations have l followed and the result is that the Amer- can navy cannot. procure a pound Of coal | at the present time in any port of the world 1 except an American one. To fight battle | within 600 miles of the Chinese coast places | the American navy at a great disadvantage | when it's nearest point as base of naval | supplies is at San Francisco or some other | port on the California coast--a distance of | nearly seven thousand miles from the scene | of action. Hawaii lies about midway be- tween San Francisco and the Philippines. What would be more beneficial in a naval | sense at the present time than the posses | sion of the Hawaiian islands, if only to
 be used as point from which to procure l coal and other needed supplies?
 | The policies of all governments change with time. It is doubted if the founders | of this government gave any thought to l the extension of the thirteen colonies at | the time of the declaration of independence. l They never dreamed of the wisdom of the | Louisiana purchase, that part of the l United States purchased from Spain, or | even the annexation of what is now the | state of Texas. As the people have pro- 1 gressed in the development of mind so has l the government advanced in the enlarge> l ment of it's possessions. What might have been very wise and conservative govern
 mental policy even fifty years ago is not
 necessarily one in keeping with the present
 progres of the age or the conditions of the
 time. The United States has long since come
 to the point where it is regarded as one of
 the great nations of the world. Its foreign policy has always been conservative, no
 matter what political party may have been
 in power. Upon these questions there has been but little difference between the two