The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1899-03-09
The First Republic in the Far East.
BY FRANK W. GOWEN.
PAPER NO. IL.

| I4aIflh 49, IL.
We are the greatest and most powerful
nation in the world, and since the founda-
ton of our government and the days of
Washington we have proven ourselves the
best home -colonizers the world has ever
SEEN Tell me, then, that this great ma
| ton, which has civilized savage tribes on
its own continent and laid four great rail-
way lines across the Rocky Mountains;
and, as Speaker Reed we'll said in an adj
dress some time ago, ''has driven the
American desert off the map and off the
| face of the earth'-is not abundantly
able to open the highway to civil and reli-
gious liberty and progress in the far east.
| say, then, that the great question which
confronts us to-day is simply this: We
must lift the Philippines out of ignorance
and barbarsm and restore throughout
| those islands order, peace, security and
righteous laws. If Aguinaldo could do
this, President Mckinley and every loyal
American citizen would gladly welcome
such an authority; but it is an absurd idea
W litlIih lIldt StCt Il lldSS Ol tllll-ClflIlZSU
and savage tribes would be competent to
govern themselves. While l admit that
every Intelligent man has Il right to his
| views on any question before the people,
and desire to accord due respect to the
opinion of those with whom | may differ,
| still ! must say chat have little patience
with the arguments advanced by the anti
Imperialists, and am quite certain that
they will have little effect on the thought
full citizens of Maine. The reckless as
sault of General Aguinaldo and his tribes
on the powerful fleets and army Of our
| government in the early morning hours of
February 9TH is sufficient evidence of
their inability to practice that self re
stralnt 50 necessary for the peace and
i prosperity of the archipelago in which
they live All honor to the brave soldiers
who fought SO skifully aud courageous
| ly for the flag of freedom in the swamps
| about Manila.
| Twas Freedom $ birthday in the Philippines
! And Freedoms morn was ushered IN
| By the cannon's roar, re-echoed
| By the distant hills.
The Philadelphia Press, which | CON
slider one of the abest papers in the
| United States, speaks of government
in the Philippines in a recent issue as fol-
lows:
| "Alone, this region will never rise to
the dignity of self-rue or the security of
self government. Civilization and order
must come to them as the gift of a strong
er race. For the United States no Amer
lean desired this burden, but this country
must neither shun nor seek this world
wide duty of great and civilized power.
| But it enters upon it with a different pur-
pose and spirit. From the start, the
United States is determined that its sole
mission in the Philippines shall be to Gre
ate peace, order and self-rule, and that
when this task is completed, and as fast
as it is completed the United States will
withdraw its direct authority, maintain
| ing its protecting sovereignty as a means
of self government in the Philippines,
and not for its own sake
| We hear in these days good deal about
''the traditional policy of the United
States,' and the anti lmperialis is declare
that it is against acquisition of territory,
and especially territory populated by
such people as those of the Philippines
are known to be, and also that our consti-
tuition stands in the way. Now what are
the facts? | claim that there is not a line
in our constitution that forbids expansion
of territory; for a recent decision of the
Circuit Court of Appeals declared that
! g., +I,n
constitution" but are under the unlimit
| ed control of Congress. | also claim that
the true traditional policy of this govern
ment has been the policy of expansion.
| Let anyone read the history of our nation
carefully and see if | am not correct in
| this statement. Vice President W. j.
MEG ee of the National Geographic Society
says of expansion: ''This career of terrific
rial expansion in the half century from
the Louisiana purchase to the Gadsden
purchase, forms the most strik ing chapter
in national development afforded by the
history of the world.''
Still, every one of our new and en-
larged policies of extension has been
vigorously opposed by some of our states
men. In 1903 Hon. Josiah Quincy of
Massachusetts opposed the Louisiana pur-
chase, which included the present States
of Louisiana. Arkansas. Missouri, Iowa,
Kansas, Nebraska, Tie western part of
Minnesota, the northern part of Colorado,
Dakota, Wyoming and Montana, and the
Indian territory, and said ''that the con-