Evening bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1895-1912, 1898-05-23
FROM AN AMERICAN's STANDPOINT,


sending his warships against those
of Spain, has shown what his SOL
diers can do. And why has he
done it3 Is it because he "remem-
bers the Maine2" 1t seems 80, for,
though we are assured by the
newspapers that the present war
has been entered upon solely for
the purpose of assisting dis
tressed sister nation, still the bat
tie cry is "Remember the Maine!"
We meet it at every corner. 1t
looks at us from the lapels of the
coats worn by many of the men
we pass on the street, it glares at
US in big type, from the newspa-
pers; it has been set to music.
Aud if the boys in blue stop at
Honolulu, on their way to fight
what has been called "holy war;"
the first thing they will see, when
they arrive at the Pacific Mail
wharf, will be the talismanic
.yoris, "R4member the Name" in
a line of letters twenty four feet
long and wrought of colored
lights"
Is hat, then, what we fight forp
The Maine is now nothing but a
twisted mass of broken metal ly
ing at the bottom of the Bay of
Havana, and, though she was one
of the triumphs of modern
ingenuity, we seem to be
capable of winning battles with.
out her.
1t is not because we remember
the Maine" that we are waging
war against Spain. Though we
may strongly suspect that Spain
is responsible for her terrible
fate, we cannot be actually sure;
since the men who were sent by
President Mckinley to examine
the wreck reported that they were
unable to fix the responsibility
for the external explosion that
they found had caused the disast-
er. But even if it were proved
hevond a doubt that Spain is
guilty of the crime-and we all
know she is none too good-are
We justified in sending out our
warships and s'aughtering thou
sands of innocent men-men who
had no more to do with the TRACE
dy than you or [? MOTOR
though we were to exterminate
ii nitro Spanish ra.a, it would
not bring back one of the precious
fathers or brothers or husbands
or lovers who found death that
fateful night. Never since
the peerless Man of men
walked the shores of Cali
lee, has the man lived who
bad that power. The destruction
of the Maine probably fastened
the war, but 1 have too firm be
lief in the Christian humanitar-
ianism of my countrymen to believe
| IL was me cause.
The present war is waged for a
better purpose, and one more in
keeping with the civilization of
the 10Th century. 1t is to assist
those who live 80 near us we may
almost call them fellow country
men. They fight for liberty, and
prefer death to tyranny, and we,
who have inherited liberty because
our forefathers also preferred
death to tyranny, are helping
them, for though they are weak in
numbers they are strong in prin-
ciplp, and we are strong in num-
bers and strong in principle. 1t
is not that we may avenge the
thousands of Cubsns who have
been slowly tortured to death--or
more mercifully, because more
quickly, killed. No, it is the
battle of American humanitarian
ism against what Spain calls
Spanish honor, but what is
really Spanish pride-though
Spain has very little to
be proud of. There should be
something for pride to stand
upon, and what has Spainp What
country under heavens blue
dome has been guilty of crimes
as black as those which darken
her recordp From her earliest
days to the present time her his
tory is a long line of tales OF
cruelty and oppression; and in
Cuba's case she simply tried tc
wipe the Cuban race off the face