The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1898-03-26
HOW UNCLE SAM BEHAVES
WHEN HIS BLOOD IS UP
A History of the Wars in Which This Coun-
try Has Been Involved Since 1t Won
Its tslndependence-Only Once Was ~
War Formally Declared.
From the Chicago Times.Herald.

considered necessary to provoke that
final appeal, the arbitrament of arms?
From the heglnning-th is, from the
declaration of indcpendence-to the
present time our country has engaged
in five way. They We're the revolu-
tionary war; the war against the Bar
barry pirates on the south shore of the
Mediterranean Sea, the war of 1912, the
Mexican war and the civil war. Three
Were waced on our own soil primarily,
though our ships had their share of
fighting. Two were ESSENTIALLY wars of
INVASION That is, we sought the cne-
my in his own country. These were the
war with the Rarbary states and the
war with Mexico. And in every case
the beginning was different The form
of final announcement was in each case
practically the same, but as the incit
ins circumstances are never twice alike,
SO the preliminary details differ.
The war Of 1872 was the only one in
" Which this country really took the ini-
tiativc, and declared war before a like
dec Claration had been made by the hos
tile nation. But even in that case war
had really existed TOR years. \ con-
Gition absolutely intolerable tn the
scrse Of the American people had pre-
vailed between this country and Eng
land practically ever since the close
of the revolutionary war. Particularly
after the Engish engaged in the war
with France in 1908 up TO the declara-
tion ard formal beginning of the con-
ili"t in 1912 attacks by British vessels
an American vessels, battles between
ships Of greater or less magnitude. and
collisions of forces On land had been
Of almost continuous occurrence.
ANNOYED BY ENGLAND.
Not IN American ship left these
shores for trading abroad but il must
run tn" gantlet of Engldnd's fleet scat
tered everywhere on the high seas
watching every port. whether Of friend,
enemy or neutral. Naturally merchant
men could not carry defensive armament
sufficient to protect them from the at
tacks OF English frigates. and scarcely
a month went by in all those nine years
frora 1905 tc 1912 when an American
ship was rot captured. Sometimes the
captor went no farther than to board
the merchant shin and take from it
such of the crew as might be claimed
for British subjects. Sometimes-and
this was the case in unnumbcred in
stances--the ship and cargo were claim
ed as lawful IriZc of war. and were
sent under escort to q port Of Great
Britain.
The truth is, England did not regard
the United tates as very much of q ma
tion. If in this present year of grace
a British captain, oncountering on the
high seas n vessel flying the American
flag, should fire round shot across her
bows, go On board ana demand a list
of the crew, the whole country would
flame into anger in moment. And if
n Briti%l captain in New York harbor
should capture a pilot boat. fire at fish
ing vessels and challenge the batteries,
no administration at Washington could
stand for one Gay unless an explicit
demand for atisfaction-Swift, ample
and cOmplete-were flashed to the court
Of ST. James. And if a British war
vessel, meeting an American ship off
Hampton Roads should pour broad
sides into her, disable her. board her.
then send her adrift-as the Leopard
did to the Chesapcake-war would come
so quick that rot even the yellow jour-
mails could keep up with it.
BECAUSE OF NAPOLEON.
ltb SUM tnlIlSS were Ol tHP most
common occurrence in the nine years
preceding the declaration of war in
1872. One might add that even the con-
clusion of that war did not see Eng
land recede from the claimed right to
repeat the experiments. But she had
found America a stronger nation than
she had thought, and had thereafter
every consideration for a foe that could
hn
not at war with Napoleon, and one
great reason for fighting a nation
which would not fight him was forever
gone.
From the beginning England had
claimed and exercised dominion over
the sea. No other naval power was so
strong. And because her fighting ships
were so numerous and so powerful, her
merchant ships could go to the ends
or the earth and return unmoested.
And through commerce the nation was
great. She claimed that her citizens
could not eXpatriate themselves. They
were part Of her organism. The sail
ors were particularly important part
1t was, in English minds, no fair de-
Tense that an English sailor had be-
come a citizen of another country, re-
nouncing his allegiance to the King of
England. And as the sailors who de-
serted from the crowded naval and
merchant fleets commonly came to
America, where wages We're high, where
the language was their own, the right
of search" was exercised more fire.
quently against this nation than any
other She claimed her men wherever
she found them. She always had done
so. And she never was forced by war
or cajoled by diplomacy into abandon
ing that claim.
COULD ONLY PROTEST.
The United States could not then. as
II can now, guarantee to it's newly
naturalized citizens an immunity from
capture and return TO the mother coun-
try. We were not strong enough. We
could but protest. And that was not
effective. SO until 1915 our ships were
stopped on the high seas and searched
for runaway English sailors.
That was an affront which Ameri-
cans could not tamely brook We Of
fered asylum, citizenship, the franchise
to men from all other nations. And
we suffered keenly when the visible
proof was repeatedly advanced that we
could not make good our promises.
But what was more severe was the
fact that while taking their own men
the English too often took men who
were Americans by birth. They some
times returned them after many months
perhaps years--of protest and nego-