The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-05-30

In human history. While the countries
of the old world had abolished slavery
one after another, that institution was
growing to enormous proportions in the
South.
The conflict is over; hundreds of
thousands of lives and millions Of
property swallowed in the maelstrom Of
war. But the chains are stricken from
the limbs Of millions Of human beings.
The Union still lives. No longer can
the nations Of the earth point to our
flag as it floats in the harbors of the
world, an emblem of freedom, and call
it Haunting lie.
Have not the soldiers of the Union
vastly increased our obligations to the
republic? Should we prove unfaithful
to these obligations, how would the
memory of our slain soldiers rebuke isl
The events of the last few weeks have
wonderfully revived our memories of
war and made us realize more wildly
what 1t means. During the last few
weeks the nation has been rebaptiZed
with martial enthusiasm. Once again
the recruiting stations are opened and
loved ones are going out from our
homes to face the hazards of war in
the name Of justice and humanity. The
tears have been falling again, the
words of farewell have been spoken,
and loving arms have released those
dearer to them than life. 1t may be
that they will return to us in few
weeks or months, at most; it may be
that we shall not see them for many
years. Perhaps we shall not see them
again until we pass to them through
the valley of death. But they go I'M
der the flag and for the flag; that flag
which has been and is to be the en-
blem of freedom and humanity.
We can scarcely expect to be under
fTA1 6x-H oh
motives pressing US into this war. Ma
tons dominated habitually by the mill
tary spirit, nations whose policy for
national ACKNOWLEDGMENT has been for
centuries the acquisition of larger ter
ritories, and especially that nation
which for three centuries has been
steadily writing her infamy and dam
nation in the cruel and extortionate
treatment of her colonial possessions,
cannot understand our motives in this
war. Spain cannot understand a ma
ton that goes to war in the spirit of
the sincerest chivalry that ever ami
mated knight of old. Her savage cru
city has become an unbearable offense
to Christendom. When the Turks were
slaughtering the defenseless Armeni-
ans, we loudly demanded that in the
name of humanity some of the power
full neighbors of Turkey in Europe
should put an end to the insane and
bloody fury of the Turk What should
we do when the intolerable expressions
of Spain had driven her colony here
beside us into revolt. and who. unable
to suppress the revolt, which was the
inevitable result of her tyranny, was
deliberately annihilating by uncivilized
modes of warfare hundreds of thou
sands Of the non-combatant population?
If it is right to fight in ones own de-
tense, 1t is holier still to take up arms
in defense of the innocent and the help
less who are being ruthlessly trampled
out of existence. 1t was not that the
American people wanted the Pearl of
the Antilles. They were not looking
with covetous eyes to the Philippine
Islands. They wanted an end put to
barbarities and expressions at our very
doors. The history Of Spain and of her
people gave no assurance that she
could govern colonies without destroy
ing them.