The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1898-08-12
Are we % Have Europe Upon Us
Richmond Tfmes1

Richmond Tfmes>)
The proverb says that there is al
ways some fire where We sse a great
deal of smoke. Ever since we got into
this Spanish war there have been NUT
terings and announcements, coming
one after the other, that limited with
more or less positiveness OF a European
concert to interfere with US before the
business was finished and dictate TO us
what our course should be in this mat
ter or that as the conclusion neared.
The administration at Washington has
steadily negatived all these suggestions
and this policy on its part has un-
doubtedly held down what would have
been a very threatening storm II IL
had persued a different course. People
in consequence Of the ADMINISTRATORS
course. have very generally come to
discredit all talk OF foreign interfer-
ence, though The Times has always
believed there was much more in il
than the general public believed.
But a dispatch, and evidently an in
spired dispatch, sent out from Wash
ington on Sunday last. comes very
near being an admission by our
government that the subject OF inter
ference with us is now actually being
discussed by European cabinets with
- SNA'AS bial Alo VI
some sort is going to be agreed upon
This is a very serious and a very
startling statement, but is is all the
better that the people should know IL
at once. if anything of that sort is
really under consideration. II CONT
mental Europe is really going to at
tempt to coerce us we want 10 know
the fact that we may set about max
ing up our minds what we shall do
about it.
So far as The Times is concerned
its mind is made up. 1t is definitely
made up and nothing will have the
slightest tendency towards making il
change it. The Times says Mr.. Nc
kinley must notify Europe that If ii
attempt to interfere with us in the
slightest degree, it has got TO fight us,
even if it is all combined against us.
We want no trouble with the rest OF
the world, but we will fight all Of IL
before we will allow il TO dictate TO us
our Onduc shall be in any mat
ter whatever. We have ousted the
Spanish colonies from Spain by force
of our arms n we will determine for
ourselves what we will do with them.
The Times hopes most sincerely that
the United States will not annex any
of them, but if the people OF the Unit
ed States determine otherwise, then
we will annex them. whether conti-
mental Europe likes it or not. And If
continental Europe says we must fight
in that case. then we will fight.
1t would loOk at first sight like a
rotten one-sided affair for us TO tackle
all of continental Europe. But we are
not so sure it would be so. We are
capable of enormous eXertion if oc-
caSiOn calls upOn US to make it, and
neither ourselves nor the rest Of the
world has any idea of what we really
are capable of I'm an emergency. But
in addition to the enormous fleets and
armies that we can equip. We have in
our arsenal a weapon hat Europe may
well fear. We are a free democracy
and if Europe drives us to it we will
wade her rotten monarchieS with out
democratic tenetS.
Italy as we'll as Spain is ripe for rev.
O%lution, Austria is not far behind her,
the socialists are a great power in
Germany, and Russia lies fallOw for
the teacher of the rights of man. If
we are driven to fight all Europe, then
we must make the most of our oppor-
tunities n we must spread a demo-
cratic revolution from the shores of
the Mediterranean to those of the Bal
tic.
France, with very little more of a
true conception of liberty than the
Philippine islanders have, came near
spreading her revolution. 100 years
ago. over all continental Europe. Cen
eral enlightenment is greatly wider in
it's spread now than it was then and
the task Of the revolutionist is pro-
Do~rtionately easier now thar il was
then. England alone stands free md
solid n she is our friend. So, il Eu-
rope is ben upon forcing a quarrel
upon us she a better look well to
the bolts upon her back door before
h enters upon the task. The doors
are rickety and the bolts are very
rusty. If we must fight her our fight
will not be altogether with
muskets and swords. The schoolmas-
ter will WELD a most effective weapon
in the fight, and when the battle is
over it may turn out that his work
will be the best done in the strife.