Evening star., 1898-06-13
NEEDED FOR DEFENSE
Mr.. Newlands' Argument for
Hawaiian Annexation.
EXPANSION is NOT THE QUESTION
But Protection and Perfection of
What We Have.
THIS COUNTRY'S GROWTH

During the course of the debate on the
proposed annexation of Hawaii, Mr.. New
lands of Nevada, author of the annexation
resolution under consideration, spoke at
length in the House of Representatives
this afternoon: Mr.. Newlands- in opening
said that he would not discuss the question
of constitutional power that had been rails
ed. He would assume that a country which,
in one hundred years, had increased its
territory to five times its former area. had
not done SO without constitutional and
legal right. He would assume that the ac
QUESTION of territory was right belonging
to sovereignty; that the country which
could acquire Florida and the adjacent
islands, Louisiana and the great Missis-
sippi and Missouri valleys by purchase,
Texas by annexation New Mexico and up
per California by conquest and Alaska by
PURCHASE could also acquire Hawaii by
gift. freely accepted by the enactment of
its lawmaking power: that the country
which could acquire continental territory
cculd acquire fnsular territory: that the
country which could acquire Alaska, sep
arated 2,9O3 miles from us by land. could
acquire Hawaii, separated from 1000
miles by sea: that the country which could
acquire the nearest islands to Florida could
acquire the nearest islands to California.
The question one of policy ana eX
pediency, not of power.
Mr.. Newlands said that the annexa ton
of Hawaii would, unfortunately, in The
minds of many be considered in connecti )n
with the Philippine question. The Ha-
waiian question was not one of colonial ex-
pansion, but simply of territorial defense
but, unfortunately, many who are opposed
to an imperial policy, while recognizing the
Importance of Hawaii a defense to the
Pacific coast against foreign attack, feared
that Hawaiian annexation might be re-
garded as the commencement of general
colonial expansion.
How Our Country Has Grown.
Mr.. Newlands showed that the thirteen
original states comprised only S27, 600
square miles, while our present territory
including Alaska, included 100000 square
miles. In other words, our present area
was nearly five times al great as when our
republic was established. Was 1t merely
lust OF territory, or was it accident,
it the conviction that our boundary on the
south should be the Gulf of Mexico and the
Rlo Grande. on the east the Atlantic, on the
west the Pacific and on the north the ST.
Lawrence and the great lakes, or possibly
the polar sea, that led to this enlarge
ment of territory?
There was no need of additional terri
tory to meet the requirements of popula-
ton. The entire population of TODAY could
be put into the thirteen original states
without overcrowding them. Part of the
territory was acquired by war, part by ne
gotiation and purchase, but it must be con-
ceded that the central idea was to rectfy
our boundaries to enlarge our western
frontiers and to separate us by vast oceans
lakes, CULTS and rivers from possible enc
mics whose proximity would occasion the
establishment and maintenance of large
military establishments as a means of de-
fense
Insulnr Expansion.
Mr.. Newlands called attention to the fact
that while these acquisitions We're conti-
mental, and, with the exception of Alaska
contiguous, the very purpose of territorial
defense necessarily involved the peaceful
acquisition of islands adjacent to our coast
which could be made the base of naval or
military attack, and which in the posses
sion of strong powers would constitute a
constant menace to our coast. Had our
forefathers contemplated our vast terri
torial expansion since achieved they would
doubtless have regarded the acquisition of
the Bahamas and West Indies as impor-
tant. They would have realized that these
islands would have controlled access to the
Gulf of Mexico and bar the way to the
1sthmfan canal some time to be built by
this country, and they would have felt that
the possession of these islands by the great
powers of England France and Spain was
as hazardous to our peaceful isolation an
to our commercial supremacy as the occu-
patton of contiguous continental territory.
Could they have foreseen the growth of
naval power they would have realized that
foreign aggression would take the form
not so much of invasion by military force
but of naval attack on our merchant marine
and coast cities, and that such attack would
be imperative without convenient coaling
stations.
Our country was a great commercial
union of states. Such union promoted in
terstate commerce, did away with standing
armies, necessary to Independent states
gave relief from militarism and increased
the productive power Of the nation. The
very policy which embraced the acquisition
Of contiguous continental territory should
also embrace the acquisition of adjacent
islands whose annexation would increase
the distance between us and possible foes
The Islands In the Atlantic We're so numer-
Gus as to make the task of their acquisition
at present impossible, and besides the ne
cessity of such adjacent islands was dimin-
1Shed by the nearneSS of the European
coast This was demonstrated by the re-
cent operations of the Spanish fleet from
the Cape de Verde and Canary Islands as a
base, movement which created alarm and
apprehension along our entire coast and
demonstrated the efficiency in war of a
hostile naval station 800 miles from our
coast This movement also demonstrated
that an attacking fleet or navy can be less
than defensive navy with long coast
line to protect No pen could picture the
result had Spain been first-class naval
power, with the Canary Islands, Porto Rico
and Cuba as base of supplies and of at
tack.
Mr.. Newlands then described our posi-
ton on the Pacific ocean, with a coast line
Including Alaska, double that of the Allan
tic coast. We were there likely to be con-
fronted with the great powers of Europe,
who were intent upon the division of China
and whose navies would be concentrated
there, each of them superior TO our own
The contests of the future would be over
the commerce of the Pacific ocean
Islands of the Pacific.
The United States, said Mr. Newlands
was in possession of the Aleutian Islands,
stretching out from Alaska north and west
of Hawaii. Between these islands and the
tropics, distance of about 5000 miles, and
between San Francisco and Hong Kong,
a distance of nearly 1000 miles, were the
Hawaiian Islands, 1900 miles from San
Francisco and 1900 from Hong Kong pos
sessing a limited soil of great fertility, an
unsurpassed climate, small population
and Incompatible harbor called Pearl
harbor. This harbor, said Mr.. Newlands,
was nine miles from Honolulu, and was
capable of being so fortified, at small
expense. as to defy the navies of the world
even without the aid of a supporting navy.
1t was equal to the harbor of Santiago de
Cuba in its defensive capacity, and supe-
rior in that 1t was large enough to ac-
commodate the navies of the world. 1t
was the only harbor on the islands capable
80 lof> .~1., H..