The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1898-04-16

VI
Spain freed Cuba to-day we would
have offered up 266 American sailors
! upon the altar OF her freedom. War
must come or Cuba must be free. No
other answer will be accepted by our
people. The ono of a nation must be
inviolable. Defended, preserved. held
sacred, "a nation lives on. The loss of
il. trading of IL. the abandonment of IL,
makes a nation die. This is why. In
this hour. good men. loving peace. see
now way under heaven how war can be
avoided. Ii is fitting that we pledge
ourselves in advance before the nations
of the world that our hands are clean
and our cause just: that the war is a
war i'm the interest OF humanity, war
for the suffering and oppressed.
Personally. I regret that there can
not be found in Cuba n government we
can recognize. i wish we could. For
there is undeniable danger In these days
OF syndicates and commercialism that
men who play upon human life as they
do on loans and chattels for the adj
vancement of selfish interests will seek
to glut their greed here.
Erect and Ds fant.
I'm the eyes of every man in Europe
we must be free from Interior move
ments." he went on. 'if we are to pre-
serve their respect and our own. There
Is nothing nobler at the end OF the
nineteenth century than a nation erect
and defiant standing for human lib
erty. No concert of Europe can choke
our utterances or turn US from u
resolution. As a free people we can
hear. but we must not heed. i do not
believe IL. 1t is a poor statement To
follow after 1000 years OF the teaching
of Christ. Spain has drained her re-
sources of men and money. III we had
sent "a million Of men and spent a bill
lion of money this country would not
be so depleted as she Is. And yet we
are asked TO whet our appetites for war
upon her. 1t would he like a man kick
ing a cripple. fearing that the crutch
might hurt, n afterwards asking for
the plaudits of the crowd. We nave
heard many people say that the Spani-
ards are towards. 1t is not true. From
the days of Alva and Pizarro to the
days of Weyler, they have been brutal
i'm their conduct, but they have been
courageous and brave. and when we
enter upon this war we do not want TO
befool ourselves or the youth OF the
land with the idea hat we are to meet
towards or cowardice. This war upon
which we are entering can bring us no
material gain. 1t will result in the loss
sweep our ships from the sea,
and we will cav thousands
of our young men dead from
fevers and disease I'm the tropics. All
this must be counted upon i'm advance,
and we have counted IL. i believe the
day of Cuban freedom has come, but
when we have achieved the victory,
there will be no territory to indemnify
us for our sacrifices, a we do not
want territory. There will be no money
to indemnify us. because Spain Is bank
rupt. We must find our supreme salts
faction for our blood and treasure in
| relieving the cry of suffering and the
80. 90 humanity This vyar pnnat no
fought because. i'm the eye OF the
world. We stand as the sentinel of lib
erty on the Western hemisphere n
because IL we fail to listen to the voice
of the suffering and downtrodden. we
will be untrue to the principles upon
which the government is founded. as
upon a rock"
A wave of applause swept owe the
| galleries as MIR. Wolcott concluded. and
this demonstration almost resulted in
the clearing of the galleries.
Mr.. Cockrell of Missouri demanded
that this be done. but various senators
on the floor i~nterposed. among them
Mr.. Hoar of Massachusetts. who called
attention to the fact that the most
fragrant violation of the rule inhibiting
such demonstrations had been encour-
aged by the example of senators on the
foor.
At this point Mr.. Morgan of Alabama
gave NOTICE tnat ne Nouiu HloNt W lay
all amendments on the table.
AS Mr.. Spooner was recognized. the
scene i'm the chamber was "A notable
one. The throng of auditors. both I'm
the galleries n on the floor. had
greatly increased. and among them
were many of national fame and prom
inence, including members of the SUI
preme court.
Mr.. Spooner was the next speaker.
He also thought we were on the thresh-
old of war. He deprecated the re-
Elections upon the character of the pres
!dent. Mr.. Spooner said IL there We're
any Spanish bondholders i'm the United
States he did not know II. but he did
know hat the president was incapable
Of being influenced by such a thought.
Mr.. Spooner said he desired the free
dom n Independence of Cuba. but he
wanted all u exhausted to pre-
vent war. Mr.. Spooner commended the
presidents bearing i'm the emergency,
saying that outside OF Spain there was
not a newspaper of consequence that
did not applaud his course This meant
much. for II meant the sympathy of
foreign countries. because when the
struggle begins no one can tell where II
will end. or who will be involved.
Mr.. Spooner approved the spirit. tone
and language OF the message. The
president was not called upon TO treat
the Maine disaster with passionate
words. We know now, he said. that
all the delays Were justified by the cir
cumstances. n that We had not here
tofore been prepared for war. MIR
Spooner commended that IL was an i'm
possibility that our guns should bt
trained upon Gomez.
Mr.. Spooner also declared that the
presidents message was not written In
the hope of securing party advantage
He reprobated the demand for war. He
said the pension roll of $40, 000. 900 and
thousands of crippled veterans of tbs
civil war were eloquent protests against
war and OF support of the president In
his efforts To secure peace with honor
MI. Spooner pronounced the foreign re
lations committee resolution illogica
and untenable. IF the Cuban peopl,
were quite free and Independent. as th'
resolution declared. why We're we to e
there"
Mr.. Spooner having spoken OF th'
a