Kansas City journal. [volume] (Kansas City, Mo.) 1897-1928, 1898-06-12
GAINED BY OUR WARS.
We Were Winners In All the strvx-
gles in Which We Have Been
Engaged.


By the first war, Of course-the war
which began in ITS and ended with the
treaty Of peace with England in 17S3-the
United States gained Independence. place
/ among the nations, and an opportunity to
try the experiment Of self government
then only an experiment anywhere-on q
larger scale and under better conditions
than had been possible before that time.
The quasi war which the United States
had with France on the ocean in 179S, and
in which. in a short time. two French
frigates and many French privateers were
captured and others were defeated and
escaped. showed. in the words Of President
John John Adams that we are not degraded
Of fear and sense of inferiority." It ended
French insults to American Ambassadors
and the american government. and won for
that country accorded any great nation Of
Europe.
,s s uned gates foushs II e SsnSal1 saa N
pirates-of Morocco, Algeria, Tunis and
Tripoli-instead Of paying tribute to them.
IN and IN and ts
conceded that the American plan was better
than the European by ultimately following
These little wars-with France and the
Barbary pirates-are skipped by most Of the
American historians, but they raised the
spect. and should be read and remembered
by all Americans.
se ss se 3, s war snet q the United
ridiculed by some Of the historians because
the dspredations on American commerce
British service, and the instigation by Brit
tsh agents of attacks by the Indians on our
frontiers-were not mentioned in the treaty
settled nothing. they said. They are mis-.
taken. The war helped the United States
IN many ways Its brilliant victories ON the
the seas won the worlds admiration: II
went far toward breaking down local preju.
ated healthy national Sentiment throuas,- ano ere
United States loose from ali connection
The war Of 1863 with Mexico. couDied
with Texas annexation, which was the
chief cause of the war, added more than
tory: gave US the richest gold field fcali- 9esi-
formal which the world has known, round-
ed out symmetrically in the Southwest the
viso and California admission Controversies
which It Precipitated. 1t hastened the aboii-
sHeqr sasn Of sayssS through the conflict which
One more war. that Of 1876. completes
the list of conflicts In which the country
has been ENGAGED except that which is
stroyed the secession doctrine. It did this
IN two ways-by overthrowing 1t in battle
ana oy the decision OF the supreme court
in the case of Texas versus White, growing
out OF the war, in which the secession ordi-
nances of the eleven states of the Confed-
eracy were declared to be null and void
and the government was proclaimed to be
"an indestructible union of indestructible
states" 1t destroyed slavery. made the
country free in fact as well as in theory.
removed the sectional barrier between the
North and South, started the South on its
career OF social and material advancement,
and Settled the controversy between Hamil-
ton, Marshall and Webster on the one side
the other. by deciding, as the three first
named contended. that this government
was q nation and not q league of states.