The Dalles daily chronicle. [volume] (The Dalles, Or.) 1890-1948, 1898-12-08
FORCING THE FIGHTING.

to force the fighting on the treaty OF
peace with Spain. There always has
been group of statesmen in the
eastern states opposed to the ex-
pansion of the United States west-
ward. Men of this type in the revolu
tionary era were opposed to the ex-
pedition of General Clark which
brought the Northwest, an empire in
extent, to the Union. The New Eng
land an:i-expansionists opposed
every proposition to control the ter
ritory west of the Mississippi, and
were willing to surrender Oregon to
England. They were opposed to es-
tablishlng states on our Pacific coast,
and some of them, like Senator Hale,
are now violently opposed to further
expansion or to the further develop
ment of trade on the Pacific.
Webster and some of his contempt
raries were indifferent as to Oregon
because they believed 1t never could
be brought into close relations with
the Union. To others the "great
American desert" was the bar TO
civilization pushing westward. When
the s'desert'' had been crossed and
occupied these faint hearts halted in
dismay before the Rocky mountains,
but the people moved on and founded
new states.
Recent hostility to expansion west
ward has been based on business in
terests. A few New England manu-
facturers imagine that if great in
Gustrlal communities are built up on
the Pacific coast, under the encourage
ment of The expansion policy that is
to extend American control into the
Pacific, the Atlantic states will suffer.
This is as fallacious an argument as
that advanced in opposition to rail
way building. But now every one
admits that if the railways had not
been built, the country, East and
West, North and South, would not
have been developed.
The building up of great trade
on the Pacific will! undoubtedly be
of immense advantage to the Pacific
states and to all the states of the
middle west. The latter are looking
for markets in both directions. But
it is mistake to suppose that the in
crease of American influence on the
Pacific will not benefit the Atlantic
states also. The Pacific trade as it
stands is of great value to the
Atlantic states. The construction Of
the Pacific railroads greatly increased
It's volume and value. The exten-
oEsion of American influence into the
Asiatic Pacific, the building up of q
great merchant marine on our west
eTn coast, the cutting of the Mica.
ragua canal, all features of the ex-
pansion policy, will still further in.
crease the value of Asiatic trade tC
the Atlantic states. Every step in
the expansion policy from 1888 dowr
to the present has been of advantage
to the Atlantic states. Eastern mer
like Seward and Blaine have beer
leaders in extending American in
fluence to the Pacific. Senator Hale
is now opposing the policy of Seward
and Blaine and the interests of hi.
own section.
But if the anti-cxpansionists are tc
make a fight on The annexation
clauses of the treaty of peace the
friends Of expansion must rally to the
support of the treaty. A dozen OF
more United States senators are t.
be elected within the next two
months. The successor to Turpie il
Indiana, to Allen in Nebraska, tC
Mitchell in Wisconsin, and the sue
cessors to Democrats in other state,
where senators are to be elected