The record-union., 1898-04-09
VOICE OF THE PRESS.
FROM EDITORIAL
EXPRESSION.
State and Coast Opinions on Sub
jects Of Living News
Interest.

San Jose Mercury: The New York
Legislature has passed a good roads
bill, which provides that the State
shall pay 80 per cent. of the cost and
the county the other half. There will
be another attempt made at the COM
ing California Legislature to secure
legislation requiring counties which al
ready have good roads to assist il
building roads for counties which nage
not had the enterprise to build them
themselves, and of course If Santa Cla-
ra County objects to this sort of thing
it will be denounced as an obstruction
ist
SALE OF A SHIP.
Santa Barbara Press: When the Bra
lillian flag came down and the stars and
stripes went up over a cruiser at
Gravesend, England, it was said to be
the first time that a warship had been
transferred by one nation to another in
a harbor Of third Power. That such
a transaction should be possible, and
that it should be accomplished with eX-
pressions of friendship between buyer
and seller and with the good will Of
England is but one Indication of how
the sentiment of the world regards the
attitude of the United States and Spain.
THE HIGHER LAW
Stockton Independent: One Of the
most striking changes of public senti-
rlent within a generation is the appar-
emily general recognition of a higher
law than the Constitution of the United
States. When the oldtime Abolition
lists appealed to that higher law in
hot, 1c fA, al,A
lition of slavery, it was made ground
of reproach to them and was attrib-
uted to all who opposed the extension of
the peculiar institution" as an evidence
OF disloyalty. Now, when the Consti-
tuition is pleaded as a bar 20 interven-
tion i'm Cuba, humanity is pleaded as
the higher law to warrant it. Upon
that higher law must the Intervention
be made, if Spain does not grant what
this Government demands. 1t is not
the purpose here to decry this recog
milton. of the higher law. Nations like
individuals, are sometimes constrained
to depart from the letter of enacted
law when humanity calls or public
safety demands a resort to measures
that are eXtra-constitutional. The
power that makes can anmake or
amend constitutions. but only in cases
of dire necessity or the most urgent
demands of humanity should solemn
enactments be disregarded, and then
only when there is no time to make
these enactments meet the necessities
of the case.
HAY PRICES.
Santa Ana Blade: Even should we
have very little more rain the outlook
for a fairly cheap hay supply is not SO
serious. as in many localities the crop
will be a fair one at least, and rains
in April even will make enough fod-
der to supply the local demand Should
these expectations not be verified,
however, the present price of from $14
to SIG ton should not long prevail.
as we are assured on competent au-
thority that hay can be brought in
here from Oregon and sold ct profit
at $40 a ton This figure may be too
low. but one thing is certain, hay can
be laid down at a profit at a much low
er figure than that asked for the local
product.
TWO KINDS OF WAR
Tulare Register: We are not averse
to war when there is warrant for it,
but revenge should never be its pur-
pose If Spain should disavow the de-
struction of the Maine, seek out the
criminals responsible for her destruc-
ton. convict them and have them shot
indemnify our country for loss of the
vessel and the families of our marines
for the loss of their breadwinners (the
only reparation possible), there would
be no cause to go to war with Spain
over the Maine disaster. The only prob
able provocation for war with Spain
will be her refusal to relinquish Cuba
and her continuance of the exterrnina-
ton policy in dealing with the Cuban
people. It is manifest that Spain can
not govern Cuba; that her continuing
to attempt the subjugation of that ISL
and will be to perpetuate the horrors
that have made her name infamous. to
destroy American interests in Cuba
and keep the American nation in a
constant state of fermentation. It is
becomes necessary in order to free Gu
ba, in order to put stop to Spanish
atrocities in that island. to go to war
with Spain, then let war come, cost
what it will in life and treasure. A
war for liberty, war for human rights,
a war for the sake of humanity. a
war to let the nations of the earth
know that the United States respects
itself and will defend itself against
foreign aggression-such a war would
be honorable, rational and patriotic.