The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1898-12-01
OUR WASHINGTON LETTER.
WASHINGTON, D. c., Nov. % 1898

except that portion dealing with the
treaty of peace. Spain has accepted
our terms, and it is expected that the
treaty will be signed in time to enable
the President to get as many of its de-
tails as it is deemed expedient to make
public in his message.
There is no uneasiness in admins
tration circles about the ratification
of the treaty of peace by the Senate,
although several republican Senators
and a number of democratic Sena-
tors are talking against ratification.
The only thing that the opposition
can do is to delay ratification by pre-
venting a vote at the coming session.
If would be better, of course. that the
treaty should be promptly ratified,
but inasmuch as we shall have every
thing in our own hands, and as there
is no intention to govern the newly
acquired territory in any other way
than by military rule, for at least
year, the delay will make no material
difference, even if it extends to the
end OF the coming session of Congress.
The President can easily call an eX-
ira session of the Senate, which will
bestrongly republican after the fourth
of next March, to ratifv the treaty.
and he can be sure that it will be
speedily done.
President Mckinley finds it difficult
to repress q smile when some promi-
nent caller begins to tell him the rea-
sons-the same old reasons that he
has heard thousand times-why the
U. S. should not take thePhilippines.
The President never contradicted
them. On the contrary he expresses
the heartiest agreement with num-
Der Of these reasons. After his anti
expansion callers have exhausted
their reasons and arguments, the
President usually says something like
this: "Some of your reasons are eX-
cellent, but there is one giaring weak
ness in your position; you do not pro
vide a satisfactory way in which the
Philippines may be disposed Of
Everybody admits that we could not
with justice, not to mention human
ity, turn the islands over to Spain
again; the natives are in no condition
to maintaina an independent govern
ment. Now, if the u. S. doesn't take
control OF them, please give me your
opinion Of what ought TO be done with
them, bearing in mind that an at
tempt to transfer them to any Euro
pean nation, other than Spain, which
is out OF the question, would almost
certainly precjpitate q great war"
Up to this time none Of the anti-eE-
pansionists have suggested q satisfac
tory way for us to escape the respon-
sibility Of Philippine control, and only
few Of them have made the attempt
The Z. S. Consul at Edinburgh says
in report to the Department ofState
american madeag agricultural machin-
cry is widely used on the farms Of
Scotland. Most kinds Of machinery
for farm purposes, manufactured in
the q. S., have long been preferred
by farmers here, on account Of price,
quality and design The man who
would have predicted twenty years
ago that we should be selling large
quantities of farming implements in
any portion of the British Empire,
would have been considered a fit sub
ject for an insane asylum. There is
no telling to what extent our trade
will grow in the next twenty years, if
the wise policy, which has always
been a feature Of Republican Nation
al administrations, shall be continued
without interruption. Nothing is
likely to stop the expansion of our
foreign commerce in every direction,
owing to the improbability that the
democrats will be in Il position to sad
die any more disastrous tariff expert
ments on the country for long time.
Notwithstanding reports to the CON
trary, there was no significance in
the ordering of Maj. Gen. NJ. G. But
Ter, one of our Military Commission
ers at Havana, to Washington, fur
ther than that the President and Sec
rotary Alger desired to have the bene-
fit of the knowledge acquired by Gen.
Butler during his stay in Cuba, while
arranging the necessary orders for
carrying out the military occupation
of the island. After comforting with
the President and Secretary Alger,
Gen. Butler will be ordered back to
Havana.
Those democrats who jumped to
the conclusion that the announce
ment that this government would
maintain the ''open door" policy in
the commerce of the Philippines
meant that there was to be free
i