The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1899-06-09


funds with which to meet the demands
OF the enormous army and navy, but
Tor physically sound, educated men
with which to fill out the broken ranks.
The European has not been inaptly
styled a mar with asoldier on his back.
And all for what? In Great BRIAN it
is called a spirited foreign policy
and its conservative opponent works
for the hetterment of his country I'M
der the appeiation of the little Eng
lander but the policy is nothing else
than imperialism in its most developed
form.
Great Britain encourages us in our
new enterprise and she is the only
European nation that does. Why
should she? If it were not for India
England would not fear Russia. A
fleet of powerful warships, belonging
to a friendly nation and in close prox-
unity to her majesty's fleet, would be
very advantageous to Great Britain in
her precarlous position in the Orient.
The following article appeared in a re
cent issue of the London Saturday Re
view:
Let us be frank and say outright
that we can expect mutual gain in ma.
terlal interests in the reapproachmcnt.
The Americans are making their bar
gain under the protecting naval
strength of England" But what can
be more plain as to England's position
and expectations than is contained in
a recent speech by Prime Minister Sal.
isbury, in which he said: "The ap.
pearance Of the American republic
among the factors, at all events, of Ash
attic and possibly Of European diplomacy
is Il grave, a serious event, which may
not conduce to the interest of peace,
though think in any event it is likely
to conduce to the interest of Great
Britain"
Although the American people are
allied to the English by race, yet was
not England n of the first of the
European powers to recognize the
southern confederacy, while Russia,
her present opponent, who has always
been on IA friendly footing with the
United States, maintained a fleet of
warshipS OIL our coast to preserve the
balance of power sh ould any foreign
nation intertere?:
A year and a half ago the American
people were heartily sympathizing
with the 'Philippine patriots" strug-
CLING for their long-cherished liberty.
Why ''barbarous rebels" now? Let us
be reasonable. 1t is an established
fact that tyranny breeds deceit and
deceit suspicion. For four centuries
the Overburdened, ignorant FI%lipinos
have been promised reforms by the
~treacherous Spaniard, yet very prom
Use was followed not by fultilment, but
by al act of v~illainy characteristic of
the Spanish. For 400 years have the
islanders resisted the terrible rule Of
Spain and braveiy fought for'freedom.
Abraham Lincoln said: mo mar was
ever created good enough to own anoth-
err yet the Filipinos were sold as so
much cattle with the islands to the
United States, and instead of using
some peaceful method in tanning these
petulant, doubling beings we are using
the same instruments which Spain used
unsuccessfully for so many years-the
rifle and the %bayonet. From August.
1891, to February of the present year
the Filipinos we're kept entirely in ig-
norance regarding the intentions of
the United States MS to the future
government of the islands, and, not
having any previous communications
with the United States, had the Filipi-
no any reason to believe the American
would fulfill his promises any different
than the Spanlard? To have expected
anything from them except the course
they took would have been exhibiting
so lamentable an ignorance by this
government as to wholly unfit it for
any future connections with a people
so alien.
But what must be his faith in the
American when, after reading Presi-
dent Mckinley's speech to congress
April IL, 1898, in which he spoke mot
of forcible annexation, because that is
not to be thought of, and under our
code of morality that would be criminal
aggression" he is told that he is to be
'benevolently assimilated and "the
supremacy of the United States must
and will be enforced throughout the
whole archipelago. Those who resist
accomplish nothing but their own
ruil.." In the first place what right
Dad Spain to the islands? Merely the
right of conquest. Was her right OF
possession to the islands more warrant
ed than was ours to the 4 merican con-
tinent because the Filipino was black,
while the American Indian was red?
Yet the conservative American ac-
knowledges the Indians claims, and at
this late day our government is MAX
ing partial amends for our past treat
ment of the ahorigines.
In the Philippines today our soldiers
are Drawing the says of a tropical sun
and fighting and dying in attempting
to make valid a long-contested title of
conquest. Still, were the present W.
rising suppressed history teaches us
that 1t will merely smolder and burst
forth again. The Dutch have been
trying many years to conquer the is
land Of Java, near the Philippine group,
and SO far it has cost the Dutch 300, 900
lives and the Task is not yet completed.
One merchant writes from Manila:
'Qf curse, we a either conquer or
extermlnate them. but the general
opinion among those in a position to
know is that it will take years to ac-
complish it."
Is a small brown man with q Malay soul
Worth a man from TENNESSEE?
With his six feet two and his eye Of blue
And his years OF thlrty-three?
is a Luzon chief in his breech-clout scant
Worth a MAI from Fargo town.
Or IA haWkAye lad he be God or bod