The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1898-07-30
JUST THE SQUARE THING

Wednesday our morning contempo-
rary said:
Our morning contemporary seems to
be Mortified at the idea of this country
retaining the Philippines Surely the
phantom of Imperialism is not dis
turbing its rest. 1t would hardly do to
leave the gallant insurgents who have
fought so CALAMITY for themselves
and for us--to the deadly hate of
Spain. And then, think of the brilliant
future of the commerce of the Pacific,
with its waters practically an Ameri-
can sea! An imperial crown of trade
and development is offered us just now
in the Pacific, compared with which the
''kingly crown thrice offered to Gaze
sar was but a bauble. And yet think
of the fate of the man who refused it,
We made some reply to that, using,
in part an article that appeared in our
contemporary May s, 1885, The last
paragraph of that article is in this Ian
guage:
By such an act we should have to
admit that the suspicious of Europe
were well founded we should awaken
the fears of Mexico and all Spanish
America, that at the first opportunity
We would interfere and absorb their
countries-in short, it would be a no.
tice that we had put aside a rule
which we have adhered to since the be-
ginning, and were now, a great mill
tary power, starting out for the con-
quest of just as much of this world as
we could subdue and retain. To do it,
too, would be to establish that the
plighted word of the president and
congress of the United States is worth
no more than a diplomatic promise
made by Great Britain or Russia or
Germany. No Philippines for US.
To that answer was made, I'm part, as
follows:
Have the facts in the case or the
character of the Filipinos been changed
in less than three months? If on May
May s, TO US the Philippines would
have been the biggest elephant ever
won in a rattle, or ever caught in a
jungle, why wouldn't they be now? If,
on May 8, we could not give them any
government without surrendering our
form and advertising to the world that
it is not sufficient for the handling of
savage or semi-savage tribes away
from the home base, can we do it now? ?,
Yes, we could send a commission and
a couple of warships; could organize q
little army and call it police force
and in that way whip the devil around
the stump DuI why SnOulQ we :.
Again, on what grounds could we
claim the right to do so except by low
ering ourselves to the level of Europe,
and claiming that the old, brutal law
of might still rules the world?"
Now our contemporary says we are
worried over it, and wants to know if
it is about to become an imperialist. 1t
also says there is no telling what it
may become, which is true, as shown
by its attitude towards the Philippines
on May and its attitude towards them
on July p. And no one else can tell
what it will become.
Our contemporary proceeds to talk
thus:
At the same time we greatly deplore
the ignorance which seems to pervade
the east in relation to the west. We are
sorry that our eastern friends can
never be made 10 comprehend that the
west coast is infinitely richer than the
east in all natural resources, and that
they cannot see the transparent fact
that the commerce of the Pacific is
soon to be as much greater than that
of the Atlantic, as it is greater in
area than the Atlantic. We are sorry
that they cannot appreciate the need
and the opportunity now presented, to
make the Pacific United States sea.
We are sorry that they cannot realize
that the anxiety Of Europe lest we OBJ
tain the Philippines is the fear on the
part of those nations that we will, as
we should, swiftly expand into the chief
commercial power on the great ocean,
They all know what they would do
were they in our position. and their
fear is that we, too. win see the oppor-
tunity and seize upon it. Their COM
fort is in the press OF the United States
that stands covering. crying out:
Don't ignore the advice of Washing
ton, don't branch out upon a policy
that will eliminate in imperialism" AS
though Washington ever shrank from
anything which promised to exalt ma
tive land, as though TO occupy what is
our own would steal away Our liberties.
The Oregon and Olympia and Monterey
are quite as good ships as Trough they
had been built in the cast Indeed they /
are symbols of the coast, and it is a
pity that the men in control in the east
cannot lift their eyes and comprehend |
their own country.
But what on earth has the Ignorance
which seems to pervade the east in re-
lation to the west" got 20 do with the
question whether or no the Philip !
pines shall be released or retained? |