The record-union., 1898-07-21

| ate time and at its appropriate place.
1t has come to US in the irresistible
| logic of past history and future prog
| reSS.
| POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY.
| The political geography of the world
| has resulted from national conflict.
| War has been waged to outline national
boundaries and to maintain national ju-
| risdiction over the territory acquired.
| The topography of the country over
which national jurisdiction has been
| extended has played an important part
| in national defense, and, therefore, in
I the determination of national boun-
carries.
| But, aside from the military or STRAIT
| egic value which attaches to portions
Of adjacent territory, there are COM
| mercial considerations influencing the
desire Of the nation for territorial ag
grandiZement. AT the close of the war
for independence the United States had
no territory on the Gulf of Mexico, and
none west of the Mississippi. The At
lantic seacoast had its southern limit at
the mouth Of ST Mary's River. Unity of
| commercial interest, which urges and
| enforces political annexation, created
| both political and commercial neces-
| sity for the acquisition of the MissiS-
| sippi Valley and the outlet of that great
| artery of commerce to the Gulf of Mex
| leo. The personal ambitions and pecu-
mary necessities Of Napoleon and the
complicated exigeneieS of European
| politics had withdrawn the attention of
| European Powers from country so re-
| mote as our own, thus affording a for
/ tuitous opportunity for our territorial
expansion in this direction
| The United States, in 1903, acquired
the province of Louisiana from Napo-
| leon, and by this wise act Of statesman
| ship averted a war for its acquisition
By this purchase the United States ac-
| auired the Gulf coast line between the
| Sabine and the west bank Of the Mis-
sissippi River. This acquisition empha-
sized the commercial and political ne
cessity for the further acquisition of
East and West Florida
| OUR RELATIONS WITH SPAIN.
| The diplomatic relations between
/ Spain and the United States began in
| 1892 during the administration Of Pres
| ident Washington, and resulted in the
treaty Of 1895. The leading feature Of
| the treaty related to the responsibility
Of Spain for the conduct of the Indians
/ within the territory claimed and owned
| by that nation.
These treaty obligations were not OBJ
served, and an equal disregard was
| shown by Spain for her treaty obliga-
tions relating to the Gulf piracy prac-
| ticed by the buccaneers, who found
| shelter, notably in the harbor Of Car
/ denas, on the northwest of Cuba From
1893 TO 1923 the relations of the two
countries We're strained to the verge Of
war.
The citizens of the United States had
sustained injuries emitting them TO in
demnity to the amount of S50OO,009,
and the purchase price for East and
| West Florida was paid on the part of
the United States by assuming these
liabilities. Thus the purchase price of
the Floridas was paid to citizens of the
United States.
| CONTIGUOUS TERRITORY INDIS-
PENSABLE.
| A retrospect Of these events with the
| map Of the country before us justifies
the theory that contiguous territory is
| sometimes Indispensable to the terri
torial and political integrity of a ma
ton. The commercial and industrial
expansion of the United States de-
manded the acquisition Of the Missis-
sippi Valley and the Florida Peninsula;
| and the commercial and industrial con-
siderations were strongly reinforced by
the military and strategic necessities
Of the situation. The reasons which
| were deemed sufficient for the acquis-
tion Of Louisiana and the F'loridas were
equally applicable to the Republic of
Texas and prevailed in the annexation
Of that republic, by which the Govern
ment Of the United States acquired
100000 square miles. The same com
mercial, industrial and political consid-
erations which enforced these territor-
ial acquisitions became in their turn
applicable to the territory acquired in
1S4S by the treaty of Guadalupe Hidal-
go, comprising GOO coo square miles and
embraced within the States Of Califor-
MIA, Nevada, Utah, about one-third Of
the Territory of New Mexico and por-
tions of the States OF Colorado and
Wyoming. Typographical considera-
tions, however, accounted for the Gads-
den purchase Of $4,000 square miles in
| 1868. This purchase had reference to
the construction of lines of railways
/ connecting the Gulf and Pacific ports
on American soil. The original inten-
ton, however. of the negotiation was
the requirement of the outlet of the
Colorado River in the Gulf of Califor-
MIA. When the treaty was signed, 1t
was the prevalent belief that this in
tention had been fulfilled, but when the
territory described In the treaty was
delineated on the may 1t was discovered
that the Mexican diplomats and nego-
tiators had used their superior knowl-
1 edge Of the geography of the territory
subject to negotiation to excellent ad-
vantage.
NATURAL EXPANSION OF THE
DOMAIN.
The fortuitous circumstances which
enabled US to acquire the province Of
louisiana without the expense of war
have already been referred to, but we
acquired the F'loridas at the narrow
hazard of conflict. and acquired Texas
and the Pacific Coast States and Terri
tories as the actual result OF war.
Up to this point in our history the
policies underlying each instance Of
territorial acquisition appears to have
J run on parallel lines. Each of these
acquisitions related to contiguous terri
tory and extended by natural expan-
sion Of the national domain. The desir-
ability of these acquisitions was con-
Cured in by all the leading statesmen
/ in every period of our history. The
policy OF territorial expansion was re-
; garded not only as justihable, but in