The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1899-07-12
The Nations New Birthday.


forces in Luzon, the acceptaL ce by the |
government of the stern fact of the ne
cessity for large reinforcements for
General Otis, and the somewhat apoch-
ryphal tales of that commanders and of
Dewey's WEAKNESS of purpose and
sickness of heart the Rev. Clay Nc
Cauley is writing from Toxic to the
American press. The cause OF this de-
preston of spirit is traced to the in
tensely national and highly patriotic
character of the oratory on the Fourth.
Without noteworthy exception the ora
tors strongly enforced the necessity
the patriotism, the obligation, the hu-
manity-of united and unyielding adj
herence to the policy and course of the
administration in the settlement Of the
issues of the war with Spain, and par
ticularly in the Philippines where its
policy encounters the most serious OPP
position, from the Aguinaldos at home
as we'll as around Manila.
Respecting the Fourth of July ad-
dresses it is further notable that not the
least stalwart support and encourage
ment came from Democrats, in oppo-
sition to the partisan and unpatriotic
attitude and utterances of the party's
spokesman and newspaper organs.
Justice John Woodward, of the New
York Supreme Court, spoke at Chau-
tauqua on "The New Era," saying that
the events of the past year mark the
Fourth as day of new birth, confront
ing the nation with new mission and
with duties from which it cannot escape.
Ex.Mayor Nathan Matthews, Jr., of
Boston, speaking in that city, strongly
sustained expansion of that kind thrust
upon the nation by recent events. One
of the most noteworthy of these
addresses was by st. Clair McKelway,
editor of the Brooklyn Eagle, repre-
senting all that was loyal and patriotic
in the best type of the War Democrat
term of very honorable distinction-of
generation ago. In the course of his
address, the subject of which was
National Transition" Mr.. McKelway
said
Unto our hands, as a trust the Philip
pines fell, at time when their acquisition
by any other country would have brought
about war almost worldwide in its area
and destructive of the balances of peace in
| two finanfa RI
Our national character was so moral and
our habitual policy was so peaceful that the
world recognizes our acquisition Of the
, Philippines and Of the Spanish West Indies
as felicitous fact for peace and for justice.
We have learned that we cannot stop grow
ing. We are learning that for growth the
exercise OF our powers is essential to their
health and strength. That exercise i'm
poses on us an increased area of rule 1t
requires OF us stronger navy and a larger
army; it demands of US a greatly aug
mented civil service. 1t involves no trans
formation Of our character, but vast ex-
tension OF our energies and a vast multiple
cation Of our responsibilities. We did not
go willingly forward. We cannot possibly
go backward. We have duties and we must
bravely face them.
"Our nation was never more benevolent,
never more tolerant, never more clement
never more DESTROYS Of justice than it is
now. There is consciousness Of real mis-
sionary work to be done, with the convic-
ton that it is going on in all OF our depen-
denotes where we are welcome. There is a
grave regret that we are resisted where we
are misunderstood. There is grave pur-
pose, on the overcoming Of that resistance,
to benefit those who contend against us and
to make them sorry that they contended
and glad that they were overcome. This
may be the task of years, but it will be per-
formed it may involve sacrifices, but they
will not be withheld. 1t may insure disap-
pointments, disasters, losses and mortifica-
tions, but they will be incentives, not de-
torrents Within the century now closing
the largest achievements accomplished by
nations or by men have come to the credit
OF the United States. To the century, in
the vestibule OF which we stand, we will
carry the heritage we have received from
our fathers. Our sons will take 1t from our
hands, and the hands and the inheritance
will be clean. The republic has nearly al
ways been peace; the republic has always
been liberty. That is fair assurance that
the republic will always be liberty. Liber-
ty can be bad for none and bad nowhere.
IL has its excesses but they are almost self
correcting by their very excess OF by regu-
lated law. Let US fear not the future"
Such uttersnces as these are exceed
ingly wholesome. They are highly re-
assuring, and they afford very patri-
otto tonic to body polite assaulted by
the malaria that rises in baleful exhal-
tations from the morasses of anti-impe-
rialism.
The Whole Trouble Due to the Antics.