The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1899-07-21


lips an utterauce showing lack of faith
in the people, In the Republic, In coun-
try, In liberty, or In the future, let
them be silent now. l thank God that
IL have no other Christian virtue, |
have at least in the fullest measure
that which stands as the central figure
in the mighty group which the Apostle
says Is forever to abide--Hope. thank
God that as my eyes grow dim they
look out on fairer country, a better
people, brighter future.
/ have in my humble way, poor
enough l know, but 1T was my best, de-
Tended the character Of the American
people, their capacity for self govern
ment, the character OF the great legis-
lative bodies through which that gov
ernment Is exercised, whenever and by
whomsoever assailed. l do not dis
trust them now. But the
strongest frame may get NOR
tai sickness from one exposure;
the most vigorous health or life may be
destroyed by single drop OF poison,
and what poison is to the human frs sme
the abandonment of our great doctrine
OF liberty will! be to the Republic.
1t is not my purpose, OF course, to
discuss the general consideration
which affect any acquisition of SOW
erignty by the American people over
the Philippine islands, which has been
or may be proposed. | am speaking
today only OF the theory OF constitu-
tional Interpretation propounded by
the senator from Connecticut. II at
any time hereafter the senator shall
seek to put his theories into practice
by reducing to subsection distant peo-
pie, dwelling in the tropics, aliens in
blood, most OF them Moslem in faith,
incapable to speak or comprehend our
language, or to read or to write any
language, to whom the traditions and
the doctrines OF civil liberty are un-
known, it will be time to point out
what terrible results and penalties this
departure from our constitutional prin-
ciples will bring upon us.
| After all, | am old.fashioned enough
to think that our fathers, who won the
Revolution and who framed the Con
stitution, were the wisest builders ol
states the world has yet seen. l think
that they knew where to- seek for the
best lessons of experience and they
knew how to lay down the rules which
should be the best guides for their de-
scendants. They did not disdain to
study ancient history. They knew
what caused the downfall OF the mighty
Roman Republic. They read, as
Chatham said he did, the history OF the
freedom, OF the decay, and the enslave'
ment OF Greece. They knew to what
she owed her glory and to what she
owed her ruin. They learned from her
the doctrine that while there is little
else that democracy can not accom-
plish it can not rule over vassal states
or subject peoples without bringing In
the elements OF death into its own con
stitution. The Americans have been
aptly called the Greeks Of modern
times. The versatile, enterprising
adventurous Yankee has been likened
to the people of Athens, who were oi
the Ionian race, and the brave, con
stant,, ,inhexible men OF the South tc
the brave, constant, and intleXible
Sparta, whose people were Dorians.
There are two lessons our fathers
learned from the history of Greece
which they hoped their children would
remember-the danger of disunion and
domestic strife and an indulgence In
the greed and lust of empire, The
Greeks stood together against the pow
er of Persia as the American states
stood together against the tyranny o.
England. For US the danger of disun
ion has happily passed by. Our Athen
ians and our Spartans are bounded anG
welded together again, each lending tc
the other the strength of their stee
and the sharpness of their tempered
blade in an indissoluble Union. OuI
danger today is from the lust of empir e
1t is little remarkable that the temp
tation that besets us now lured ant
brought to ruin the Atheniau people
in ancient times. hope that we may
be able to resist and avert that danger
as we resisted and averted the peril o
disunion.
Senator Hoar spoke for his countr!
and warned the people Of our danger
from the lust of empire. For this hC
is branded by his party as the enemy o
his country, the penalty for which il
retirement from the United States sen
ate. Truly great and wonderful is th'
way of imperialism and militarism.