Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1898-11-29
ouR WHITE ELEPHANT,

] v have finally fixed matters up with
Spain, or, rather, forced our conditions
| one by one down her threat, whether
she objected or not. 1t will strike
most people, by the way, that the for
| maiity of peace negotiations" was
rather a useless farce and waste of
! time, since it has been from the be-
+; ginning avowedly our purpose, so
| stated repeatedly by our commission
! ers to those of Spain, to enforce to the
letter every one of our conditions
previously named, accepting neither
suggestion nor amendment from
Spcin's representatives Evidently
time would have been saved by skip
ping these negotiations" entirely and
simply at once presenting an ultima
tum for Spafn's acceptance or rejec-
ton, for that is exactly what it has
amounted to in the end. But of course,
that would have looked too brutal -
and if there is anything our pious adj
ministration has great regard for it is
appearances In the negotiations just
closed we have apparently acted in the
eyes of the world the Christian and
civilized part of considerably consult
ing and advising with our humbled and
beaten foe, although, really, we have
treated with her, in spirit and letter,
with all the lustful greed and over
bearing brutality of Roman con-
queror of Neros day. STILL what's the
difference, SO long as the thing has
LOOKED all right and we have got
ten from our helpless foe all that Wall
street wanted-which was all she had!
Spain had nothing to do but sign the
American conditions. This she has
done and now we possess absolutely
besides the lesser islands and stations
picked up on the way, the entire Phil
ippine archipelago, variously estimated
at from 200 to 1,40G islands on the
border Of the China sea- peopled with
millions of savages, some of them
strange and uncouth races of people
known only to ventursome travellers
and students of anthrCpology. All of
these are now brought under the Stars
and Stripes-the raw material of
American citizenship! With this in
exhaustible supply to draw upon Meth
er we nor our ancestors to the very
end of time will be WITHOUT a race
question and intermittent race wars.
And who knows that some time not so
very"far distant in the dim and misty
future a partisan and INSCRIPTIONS
administration, seeking hidIHtdln
itself in nowor against the better judg-
ment and will of the whites, may give
into the hands of these half civilized
races THE BALLOT! The thing has
been done. Why might it not be done
again? Who would put such thing
past the breed of politicians we now
have?-and alas, the breed seems to
be still degenerating.
The time for speculation on the flu
ture, however, has passed. The deed
has been done we have bought our
white elephant for $2O,0o0,00O of the
peoples good money and we must put
I'D with it and try to lick into Ameri-
can shape these alien, half-naked
hordes that come into the union on its
back, as best we may.
And to this end we must carefully
fold up that apparently out-of-date
article the Constitution of the United
States lay it away on the top shelf in
Uncle Sans lumber garrett and roll up
our sleeves to our new and absorbing
task of running colonial governments
by the carpet-b bag and bayonet method,
after the imperial style of monarchial
and military Europe.
Verify, Uncle Sam is about to en-
ter upon strange ways and although it
is with many misgivings, he will not
shirk the task-needlessly imposed as
it is-but will do his duty honestly,
trusting to God the result.