The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1899-10-27


erosion Yes 'cfirlnal Is the word
| Have you ever heard OF any aggression
| more clearly criminal than thisF Ana IN
| his case there Us AN tlemsn. 81 peculiarly
repulsive meanness and ir'achery. PITY
4 The American who can behold this spec
| tacie without the pr0foundest 8ha me con-
| triton ana resentment Is u a wonder,
repeat. that the American people IN whose
name this has been done, should be troubled
In their Conscience
ITO Justify or rather 10 excuse. such
! things nothing but plea OF the EXTREMIST
necessity VIII avail. Did such necessity
\ exist? In "A sort OF helpless way the de-
Tenders OF this policy ask: What else could
\ the president have done under the cifcum-
| Stancts2 This question Is simply childish
| II he thought he could not order Commo-
dore Dewey away from Manila after the
4 execution OF the order TO destroy the span
FISH fleet he could have told tae people OF the
4 Philippine islands thar this was, on our
part a war. not OF conquest. but OF loera-
iion ana humanity. that We sympathized
/ with their desire for freedom and indeperd-
| tnct and that we would treat them as We
| had specifically promised 10 treat the u
hnn people ia furthering ne estaollsnmtht
I of an indcptn dent government. And this
task would have been much easier than N
the case OF Cuba. since, according 70 Al
/ miral Dewey's repeatedly emphatic tesi-
mony, thu Fi'ipnos were much betier nj
ted for such eovt rnmeni. our ing hious
postmaster n HNtlAl mas NoNh h' tiin' so
president could not have done that because
ne had no warrant for IL. since ne did not
know whether the American people would
wish TO keep the Philippine islands Bui
what vibrant then. had the pre- sident Tor
putting hy his benevolent assimilation or
der before The Filipincs he alternative
OF submission 70 our sovereignty or war?
Challenges Proof of sHvaGers.
81 am far from meaning TO picture the
Philippine islanders as paragcns Of virtue
and gentle conduct But challenge the
imperialsts 70 show me any instances OF
/ bloody disturbance or other saNag ~
among themselves sufficient to create any
necessity OF our armed interfere nee to re-
store order o. 10 save the m from anachN
/ ask ard demand an answer J. u not true
that. even IL there has been such disorder
is tendency, II would have required long
time for it 20 XIII one-tenth as many human
beings as We have killed and TO cause one
/ tenth as much devastation as we have
! caused by our assaults upon them? - II
/ not true that. Instead Of being obliged 20
restore order. have carried riot and
= death and desoiation into peaceful com
, munities whose only offense was not that
they did not maintain order and safety
within themselves but that they refused TO
: accept us as their rulers? And here T. the
rub
! I'm the vocabulary OF our imperalists
order means. above all. submission 10
\ their VIII Any other kind OF order be II
3 ever so peaceful and safe must be sup
= pressed with a bloody hand. This order
4 is the kind that has been demanded by thf
dcspOt since the world had history. ~
n ! language has already become dangerously
: familiar 10 us-a familiarity which cannot
= cease too soon.
From an these points OF view. therefore
the Philippine war was as unnece ssary IS u
IS unjust. 4 wanton. wicked ard aboml
nahie War-so 1t is called by untold thou
i sands OF American citize ms, and so il Is "a
heart felt 10 be. | have no doubt. 10y an i'm
., mcnse majority OF the American people
u Aye. as such u is cursed by many Of oui
= very soldiers whom our government order
y 20 shoot down innocent people And wh'
Will deny that this war would certairi,
= have been avoided had the president ri
maine true 70 the national pledge that ~
y war against Spain should be war OF lih
: Grafton and humanity, ard not Of conque 81
y And what have we now? After cigh
J. months slaughter and devastation, squan
= dered treasure and shame an indefinite
= prospect OF more and more slaughter
. devastation. squandered treasure an
shame
4 H. Manton KILLING HumRnes
]. what is the ultimate purpose of thi
policy To he perfectly fair, Will assum
. thar the true spirit OF American imperial
K, ism Is ~ presents not by the extremist
4, who want TO subjugate the Philippine Is
u anlers az any cost ard then expoit tn
/ EihllN 10 the hN~l advantage Oi the AAAl
q queror but by the more humane person
4. who say that we must establish cur soy
(. eregnty over tn IN to make them happy
=, to prepare them for self-aov rnment an
even recognize their right 20 complete in
4. dependence as soon as they show then
!, selves fit for It, Let me ask these wei
- meaning citizens simple question ~ yo
think that the American people may ult
j mately consent 10 the Independence {
i. those ISLANDERS matter of right an
\, good policy. why do you insist upon KILN
~ them now. You answer. Because the
4 refuse to recognize our sovereignty WI
IL DO they so refuse? Because they thin
~ themselves entitled 70 independence an
H are willing 20 fight and die for a. But
. YOU insist upon continuing TO shoot thei
H. down for this reason does not that mea
!. that you want to Kill them for demandin
~. the Identical thing which you yourse
~ think that YOU may ultimately find u Ju'
~ and proper 10 grant them2 Would ne
~ every drop o, blood shed In such a guilt
- sport cry 10 Heaven To Kill men in "a jul
4, war and IN obedience to impe rative niece
~, sity is one thing. To kill men for DE- man,
NJ Ing what you yourself may ultimately hay
IL to approve Is another. How can such xii
N ing adopted a policy be countenanced
IN a man OF conscience and humane feelings
~ And yet such killing, without useless pa
j ley. Is the policy proposed to US.
~ I'VE are told that We must trust Pres
N, dent Mckinley ard his advisers TO briT
% us out All right. should be glad TO
III able 70 80 So hut cannot forget that tn,
have got us In all wrong. And here We hay
a. TO consider point OF immense importa nc
. which | soemn'y urge upon the attenti.
,e- OF the American people. IL is one OF u
a. fundamental principles Of our system
n democratic government that only the co
~ gross has the power to declare war. VIII
~ does this signify? That declaration
H. war. the initiation Of an armed confli
n. between this nation and some other pow
" the most solemn and respon sible act a u
an ton can perform. involving II does u
no lives and fortunes OF an uncounted numb
4 Of human heings-shall not be az the iii
roi erection os the executive branch OF the 70
al eminent. but shall depend upon the autho
no IT'S OF the legislative eprcsenta tives OF Il
ae- people-in other words. that much
~ the machinery OF government may ma
such a thing possible, the deliberate W
Of the people constitutionaliy express
,,b shall determine the awful question OF pea
or war.
urnnrbt nm nv fhc BrcSfdenf