The age-herald., 1898-07-24

| peace in the war with Spain. are the lond- | est in demanding that the settlement shall 1 be without the aid or consent of any oth- l CT nation on earthl And in doing this | they rely not on the invincibility of our army and navy. but upon the fact which they assert that this is the richest nation | on earth. y.- sA The Richest Nation on Earth Listen what the Times-Herald of Chicago | says in a recent editorial. You remember l that it was that paper that lead the van il hellttling this country in 1896. See what 1 is says! a EaeEass. sss fa,-L l~zsszzsEsg' '.The United States is the wealthiest na- ton in the world. This is a fact that is often repeated, but because of the natural disposition of the American people tq be- little themselves, which has arisen by a kind of reaction from the old disposition to brag and buster, 1t seems to have been forgotten
 The editoial then proceeds to back up this statement by quoting the English statistician Mulhall, of whom the Mont gomery Advertiser, in quoting the same figures, speaks as 'tthe most authoritative statistician in the world. who bases his calculations on the most reliable reports, which figures show that the United States Is one-fourth again as rich as England, nearly twice rich as France, more than
 
 more wealth than Russia, Austria, Italy and Spain together. And yet these papers, all those who fought the democratic na- tiona ticket in 1896, claim that this great country, now conceded to be the richest in the world, inhabited by a people un- equaled the face of the earth, cannot adopt and maintain it's own financial sys- tenn.
 Real Basis of Credit
 in, xuh in the cry for the appeal of the Sherman law claimed that the credit of the nation depended upon the gold reserve in the na- tional treasury; whereas, they now admit, as we contended all the time, that the re- sources of the nation are the real basis Of national credit. You all recollect how 1t was claimed that If the little pile of vel low metal hid away in the dark, damp vaults at Washington was drfI'n out, and they threatened that it would be drawn out, if they did not have their way, that the credit of the government would take wings and fly away to some more genial country where there were no democrats, and where the gold reserve was duly wor- shipped. Yet, listen what they say now. cad aagin from the editorial in the Chicago Times-Herald: "The United States is the wealthiest nation in the world When the earnings of the people are taken into con- sderation-and that is the real security behind public debt-the lead of the United States is even greater
 The Colonial Policy
 But, having settled the terms Of peace without the interference by other nations, and without their aid or consent, vex1ng questions will arise to be settled in this country y-regarding the islands that are, or rather were, the colonies of Spain. One of our distinguished speakers said in Fourth of July oration, "I am for taking what we please, and keeping what we want' I agree with him. to the extent or. taking what we please of that which ac- tually belongs to Spain, and of keeping what we really want. But the question is, do we want, for instance, the Philip pine Islands as a permanent acqulsluoh, GOO miles from our shores, in the other hemisphere, inhabited by people as d1f- ferent from ourselves in color, in custom, in habits, in religion as night is from day, when we can secure the much-talked or coaling station and trade relation without annexing these far away islands cum onore? Would not the annexation or the Philippines mean an abandonment or the ,NIauroes doctrine? Would it not mean that necessarily We~t~onldI have to nakG6, - the future, in the broils of European na- tions, whose rulers, from behind their for tifications, glare and frown and scowl at one another year after year, while their common people are ground down under an unbearable law of taxation to main- tain their vast military systems Would it not mean great standing army in this country, a realization of the dreams Of the advocates of strong centralized govern- ment a constant menace to our boasted liberties?
 Labor Against It
 The laboring masses of this country know what it means, and the labor organization in the nation are against the proposed new policy of our government, advocated by some, which contemplates the large stand ing army, and government of people with out consent and taxation without represen- tation-in other words, colonial system pure and simple.
 Was 1t not taxation without representa- tion that our revolutionary fathers shed their blood resisting? Can it be that we have forgotten the early history of our re- public? Are we unmindful of our immor- tai declaration of independence? Are we to ignore the principles that are the very foundation of our government? Are the advocates of centralized power to have what they want at any price?
 Senator Pettus Quoted
 In order to maintain the dignity and honor of this nation, there is no necessity for large standing army. I will read what Senator Pettus says on the subject in recent speech in the United States senate, which his secretary very kindly sent me:
 volunteer republic, and can always pro- duce as many soldiers as its necessities re- quire, and without any large standing arrny.'
 When war was declared against Spain, we only had 26,OO0 soldiers. Now we have