The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1898-07-08
hLlNLEESr nESrINI :

laUY VIII! receive ne aIiehIlou'
MANIFEST DESTINY
Never before in the history of this
eouutry was our national Holiday
ceietrat,L wifh su"h enthusiasm Is
on last Monday, and lever since July
4th, l11G, had There Ueeu suHi SU' u
reason Tor rejoicing. From the ear
hest editions Of the morning Papers to
the latest bulletin at night the Aneri-
can people read one long story OF the
splendid successes of their arms OH
land and sea, and the doubts and mis-
givings of the day before were swept
away as we learned of the complete
investment of Santiago by Skaters
forces, the complete destruction OF
Cervera's fleet by Commodore Schley
and his brave sailors and the safe ar
rival of the reinforcements sent to
Dewey at Manila with the title deeds
of fine coaling station picked up on
the way. There was plenty OF news
and all of it was good-that is to the
American people as nation.
But there was sadder side to the
picture which was not obtrusively
thrust forward amid the general re-
jOicing-a sound of mourning in
minor key which was temporarily
drowned in the din of noisy iubilation.
In thousands of homes throughout
our land there was dread lest son,
husband or brother was among the
ranks of the slain lying down there
in stark rows amid the fostering jun
gles of Cuba or else sick or wounded,
toiling painfully along the rough trail
to the rear, there to suffer, to thirst
and perhaps to die. In many, tco
many, of those homes the dread will
become a certainty when the over
worked officers have time to make up
the lists of the fallen. Thus. even
victory has its sting.
The real, though unavowed, object
of this war was to avenge the Maine.
Vengeance has been taken tenfold, the
power of Spain has been broken and
in the views of all sensible persons
she should now sue for peace. God
grant that she may do SO soon, for
aside from the anguish which must
fall upon individuals in our country,
aside from the cost in blood and treas
ure which prolongation of the
struggle must cost both sides, the war
has opened up possibilities which
may one day result in plunging US in
TO the same difficulties as now beset
Spain.
When war was first declared we
venture to say that no one at the head
of our government had ever dreamed
Of making it a war of conquest. The
declared object was the relief of the
starving reconcentradOs principally
at Matapzds and Havana, and the
expulsion Of the Spanish from the Is
land of Cuba, without any thought of
acquisition of territory, except, per
maps, the vaguely formed idea that,
like Texas, the Queen OF the Antilles
would, rs a free commonwealth, in a
few years be modestly requesting adj
mission to our sisterhOod of States.
Such thing would seem probable
and it would be in line with Ameri.
can precedents and institutions.
But what a change has suddenly
come over the spirit of our dream. 1t
must be an opium dream, surely, for
how else except by the baneful effect
of some toxic drug could the minds OF
so many plain, sensible American citi-
zens become daZzled with visions OF
conquest, of plumber, of power, of EN-
pire. Dewey was sent to fight a fleet
which threatened the safe homecom-
ing of his squadron, he succeeded
gloriously, nothing was there in the
way of his safe and speedy voyage to
the West Indies to assist in carrying
bread and meat to starving Cuba, but
Immediately the cry goes up keep
the Philippines, take Porto Rico, take
the Canaries, take every outlying foot
of ground over which the Spanish
flag now floats, annex Hawaii, and
found a mighty empire with chain
of coaling stations around the world -"
Verify, it is midsummer madness.
Has the story of our own breaking
away from the mother country been
so soon forgotten? Have the lessons
of Greece and Rome, the great repub-
lies of antiquity been taught in vain?
10 our people overlook the fact that
by annexing the rebellious islands of
Spain we voluntarily enter into the
same difficulties which beseC Spain
and have brought her to the verge of
dissolution: 1t must be SO. "Oh!
reason, thou art fled to british
beasts"
There has been no good reason as
signed for the annexation Of Hawaii
and the Philippines; there are many
weighty objections to be urged against
it. The Monroe Doctrine, which
states that the soil of America is no
longer proper place for European in
tluence, by It's converse, maans that
we must not NEEDLE with the compli-
Gated ard grssping politics of Europe
and Asia, where the air is heavy with
danger and where terrible confla.
grafton must occur soon and may oc-
eur at any time. When that day
comes, happy will be the people which
have no possessions on the Eastern
hemisphere: which has followed the
maxim of Jefferson: Peace and hon
est friendship with all nations, en-
taIgIing alliances with none" The
idea that we should hold captured is
lands ~ indemnity Tor our war ex-
pen 81 is absuri, for instead of bring
!:,.; Us any income they would be a
large aHd constant eXspeEse. If they
were brought into the union they
would yield us less than as foreign
territory, for then importations from
them would come in duty free. A
standing army of at least 100, 900 men
would be necessary to police them
and protect them, and we would need
Onies would be unable to pay the
bills for these, the cost would fall upon
the American farmer ard laborer.
Most important of all, the idea of all
empire-a strong central government
holding captured territory, ruling it