The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1898-01-25
AMERICAN INTERESTS IN CHINA

The situation in China has attracted
a great deal of attention in the press
of the United States, and literary jour
nails like the Public Opinion and the
Literary Digest give copious extracts
upon the point. The various CONNER
cial journals especially give space TO
the discussion of the matter. They
point out that the population increas
es one and one-half million yearly,
and that the expansion is not in the
direction of agriculture, but towards
increased mining and manufacturing
production, and prophesy that in tif-
teen years from now "nO nation and
possibly no two nations will have an
extent of population dependent upon
the manufacturing industries equal
to that of the United States"
In view of this fact the seizure of
certain points in China must be look
ed upon with grave fears by the Unit
ed States. If the United States can
get a market for its productions
among the teeming millions of Asia all
will be well in the future. But if the
action of the European powers means
the establishment of buffer, as it
were, between the United States COM
merce and China, it means the ruin of
much promising manufacture and 4
widespread distress among certain
sections of the population. In a speech
made the other night at the Sharp
shooters banquet, Professor Hosmer
pointed out that it was not that there
was over production in the United
States, but that they were under
marketed The full attention of the
government of the country has to be
given to the fostering of trade rela-
tions.
Now the moment that nation has
attained this position, she must adopt
a strong foreign policy, or she will be
simply shouldered out of the way. The
policy of non-interference which was
preached by the fathers of the Repub-
lie was all very well for an agricultu-
raj population of three millions. The
United States now have population
of seventy millions and the increase
of that population gravitating into
manufactures. The fathers of the Re-
public would today change their
minds, and say that nation with
such trade interests must protect and
push those interests in all the mar
kets of the world, and that the time
had passed for the policy of non-in-
reference.
And then unitedly these commercial
papers agree that the Hawaiian ques-
ton assumes a new interest "and is
lifted to greater Importance by these
sudden developments in the East. The
great interest that the United States
has in gaining possession of the Ha-
waiian Islands as the commercial and
stragetic key of the Pacific is at last
being realized. 1t is an argument that
tionists for years past, but much of
it has fallen upon deaf ears. The pos
sibility, however. of the European
powers getting possession of the prin-
cipal Chinese ports and shutting out
American competition by means of
high tariff, while their own goods go
in free of duty, has supplied an object
lesson which has aroused the vigilance
of those engaged in commerce to the
very utmost.
This argument is now being used,
undoubtedly, in the Senate, and it will
be a powerful one in bringing in wa
yerers to the ranks of annexation 1t
appeals to two powerful factors in the
human mind. 1t appeals to patriotism
and it appeals to the love of gain. In
some the one is stronger than the 9th
er, but the combination becomes a
very powerful incentive indeed. and
will have done much to help the an
neXation cause.