Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1898-11-02
"EXPASSION."

| speaking OF expansion, nothing has
expanded so steadily from a thing OF
I smallness as the administrations Phil
lpplne policy. 1t is pretty we'll estab-
lished, not to say acknowledged, that
the administration has really had no
settled policy regarding the Philip
pines until within the past few days.
At first all that was wanted in those
antipodean islands was a coaling sta
| ton. Then Manila and it's surround
ing territory were added as necessary.
| Then the administration policy eX-
banded still further, and it was given
out from Washington that the entire
island of Luzon was needed by Uncle
Sam. Now Mr.. Mckinley has finally
come out and declared that the whole
Philippine archipelago is the least
that Uncle Sam can get along with!
This is the extreme limit to which
the expansion" policy can go, for
there is nothing more in sight.
What we are going to do with these
myriad islands of the antipodes with
their ten millions of strange and
savage people, how we are to govern
them under our system of popular
government, our "expansionists" leave
US to guess.
Suffice it that President Mckinley
has decided to keep the whole archi-
pelago down to the smallest barren
one day to be admitted as a sovereign
State, or States, of the American
Union! Not only does Mr. Mckinley
purpose to saddle this incubus upon
the American people, but he has agreed
to pay Spain certain indemnity for
expenditures in the Philippines.
Expansion" as it is called and as
it represents the aspirations of our
large-ideaed spectators in politics,
who absolutely dominate the admin
istration, could go no farther.
A more un-American, dangerous de-
parture than this from our time-hon-
ored American principles Of govern
ment it would be difficult to conceive.
What is there to be gained by this
wholesale annexation of islands on the
other side of the earth? Much for the
wealthy, speculative few who will get
in ION the ground floor" by means of
concessions and franchises ad libitum,
but what is to be gained for the people
the everyday, plain American tax
naver? Nothing! Nothing, but more
taxes! or the ol~-A-~e these islands
we already have the bulk and wuul"
continue to have it in any event. 10
assume their government means 10
saddle a frightful incubus upon the
American people and terrible, never
ending burden on the American tax
payer. The savages of the philippines
can be governed only by military
force. and as there are ten millions OF
these savage or semi savage 1nhapl-
tants, we may roughly estimate the
size of the army necessary to keep con-
stantly standing in those possessions
alone, to say nothing of that we would
have to keep in our other possessions
and at home in order to be prepared
to meet foreign complications, whlch
would always be imminent; and the
expense of maintaining such armies
NAV be seen by glance at the annual
budgets of England, Germany, France
and Russia.
How do the American people relish
the idea of abandoning our present wise
methods of government on the Monroe
Doctrine plan, requiring a merely
nominal standing army, and branching
out on the imperial European plan,
which has ground the people OF the
Old World into the dust and practical
ly reduced it's laboring classes to
slavery?
American labor is already near
enough to the level of the "pauper
labor" of Europe in the matter OF earn
ings and burdens without having the
| incubus of imperialism added to com
plete the similarity of condition at
| home and abroad.
| How do the American people relish
| the outlook? How long will our cher
| ished American institutions, our free
| government of, by and for the people
last at the rate we are drifting under
| the guidance of the present school OF
| selfish and un-American politicians
now recklessly swinging the helm OF
the ship of state?