Chicago eagle. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1889-19??, 1898-02-26
DON'T ANNEX HAWAM

DON'T ANNEX HAWAiL
A Washington dispatch dated Feb. -
says: WashingtOn's birthday was eel.
cbrnted in the House, after n motion
VI Mr.. Bailey Dem, Tcxas) to adjourn
had been voted down. with vast deal
Of political speechmaking, and Il wns
also signalixed by the firing Of the FIRST
gun In opposition to Hawaiian annexa.
ton. Mr.. johnson, I'M Indiana Republi.
can. delivered a speech that electrified
the House and the galleries In denun.
citation Of what he termed I'm attempt
to cut loose from the traditional policy
Of the United States and enter upon a
scheme Of colonization that had proved
the ruin Of empires and Of nations.
Mr.. johnson In opening referred to
the contest now on In the Senate over
Hawaiian annexation and said the
friends and supporters Of the treaty.
both inside and outside Of the Senate,
were turning heaven and earth 70 NO.
cure It's adoption and that President
Mckinley was laborlng TO change the
convictions of Senatorial opponents Of
the measure. lie discussed the recent
visit Of President Dole and suggested
that the Hawaiian nation. unlike the
United states, had everything to gain
and nothing to lose.
II am opposed to the annexation Of
Havana" he continued. because be-
licve tho people Of Hawaii are opposed
to II. am not to bc confused by this
special plea that the real sentiment Of
the people Of the Sandwich Islands In
only to l,c obtained from the views Of
those who assumed to govern them"
Whether the present government Of
Hawaii was de factO or dc jurc
government. he declared that II misrcp.
resented the people Of Hawaii, whose
rights II was ready to prefer away.
"When II was charged In 1903, ut the
time when the republic succeeded the
monarchy, that the revolution was aid.
cti by the Interpolation Of American
/ citizens, ! did not believe IL was true"
said Mr.. johnson, "and I denied II Wig
| Or0usly ut the time. hut the pcrsistt ncy
with which this treaty Of annexation IL
being pressed gives color to the accuse.
tlon then made, aud which l then 10
! earnestly denounced"
We had passed the Chinese exclusion
act; now It was proposed to annex ter.
rit0ry which contained large Chinese
population. He did not favor the hold.
Ing Of territory under the shadow Of
tho American flag. a colonial policy
might be adapted to the natiops Of an'
| tiquity, but It would not do for free
country which derived its power from
the consent Of the governed. 1t would
he unwise and sh0rtsighted, he said, II
we should cut loose from all the tradi'
lions of the past and rashly embark
on the unknown sen Of territorial ag'
reimbursement. We had confined our
expansion to contiguous territory In
| the acquisition Of Florida, Louisiana
| aud Texas. In 1853, under FillmOre's
presidency, we had been wise, enough
aud sensible enough to reject these very
islands. We had also rejected the prof
for Of the mob Of 1t. Thomas, ana un'
der the administration of Gen. Grant
Congress had voted down proposition
to purchase San Domingo. Only once
had we departed from our rule--in the
purchase Of Alaska from Russia-and
only the future could determine whetl'
or that had been u wise move.
Possession of eXtraneOus territory
meant a constant source Of irritation
The history Of the world proved this
1t was urged that the Sandwich Islands
were the key to the Pacific. Its strate'
| gle Importance was emphasized, ~ II
guns mounted there could command
the Nicaragua canal ana the Pacific
coast thousands Of miles away. The
annexation Of Hawaii would establish
n had precedent, which we would ie
urged to follow at an early day. The
appetite grew by what II fed upon. To,
day the cry was "Give us Hawaii!'
tomorrow 1t would be "Giye US Cuba!'
and the next day "Give us Samoa"
These appeals would all he justified
by the pleasant sophistries which ap'
pealed to our vanity and cupidity, un'
I'll ut last we would find ourselves IRE
| trievably committed to policy unnec'
essary to the material happiness OF our
people, hurrying along q path which
was strewn with the wreck of empires
and Of nations. lie did not deny, he
said, that the acquisition Of foreign ter,
ritory had added to the prosperity Of
nations. But history showed II to have
been ultimately u source of weakness.
Cupidity bred oppression, 1t piled M
taxes, II stirred up strife, 1t shed human
blood, It was the first step toward dis
memberment.
LET us not he known and execratetl
| az the b0istering DULLES Of the western
hemisphere. Our country Is all power
full. The world comedies our strength
While am proud OF our navy, some
dimes think that the powerful battle