New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1898-09-05
GOVERNMENT FOR DEPENDENCIES.

Tie problem of government for Porto Rico
tho Hawaiian Islands or any other non contigu-
Gus territory which may belong To the United
States is considered by some as If they Ind never
read the Constitution. That provides article
". Section -: The Congress shall have power
"to dispose Of and make all nccdful rules and
''rcgulationS respecting the territory and other
'propcrty belonging 10 the United States" The
notion that any territory must have some form
of self-covcrnmcnt Is settled ny Article ". Sec
lion A. The Congress shall guarantee to every
State in the Union "A republican form Of gov
! ''ernmcnt" The government Of States must he
republican In form, the government OF any
other territory Of the United States shall bc
that which Congress plcases 10 provide. Prop
crfy taken from an enemy during war necessa
rily has NJ the outset military government only.
which will remain Just aS long as Congress re-
trains from providing other government by
'ncc1ful rules and regulations" All laws found
IN the Revised Statutes under THE Territories, ="
or subsequently enacted, refer 10 the organized
political divisions called TERRITORIES, and have
no reference whatever to any part of the earth's
surface for which Congress has not by law pro-
vidcd government as an organized Territory
These citations cannot be too often repca ted
because they form the bedrock upon which all
constitutional action regarding property ac-
uulred by conquest or annexation must rest. II
any property be acquired by treaty the pro-
visions of the treaty become under the Consti
tuition, part of the supreme law Of tho land"
1t follows that If the United States should by
, treaty with Spain consent 10 hole any island
under its direct government for n term Of years
before turning over the control TO the mn iority
of the Inhabitants Congress would be bound by
that provision From suggestions made il seems
not unlikely that Spain may desire to stipulate
that Cuba shall be so held for n time, in order
TO protect Spanish residents from Cuban vim
dictivenpss II Is conceivable that the United
States may consent. But in the absence Of
any treaty stipulation Congress will have power
to make whatever rules and regulations 1t
pleases for military government or any other.
purely military authority Is necessarily that
Of the Commander in Chief, but may he exer-
cised through n single officer, called Governor
General or otherwise. or through n commission
or board Of officers. The creation OF n commits
sion 10 exercise executive power I'm each Of the
dependencies has been suggested, and has 10
recommend II the fact that the error possible 10
every individual may be restricted by requiring
the concurrence Of several. But the power OF
swift decision and unwaverng resolution should
be secured for the Executive in all matters left
within his discretion. while in others there
might be q safeguard given by the concurrence
Of many.
When Congress sees At to act It ought to aim
first Of all TO create in each dependency a gov.
eminent absolutely free from the influence Of
party politics in the United States. This is
not impossible. as some suppose. To that
end governing board in each dependency
might be created by appointment. with consent
Of the Senate not removable except for cause.
| 70 hold once for tssms 20 arranged that only