Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1899-02-23
The Brutal Truth.
EDITOR ABERDEEN HERALD:

EDITOR ABERDEEN HERALD:
No better title could be given to the
article in your last issue, taken from the
Argonant, than the one you gave-"The
Brutal Truth"
The argnonant has torn off the mask
Of Imperialism and expansion. The true
patriot-the man who has the real well
fare Of his country at heart-has at times
since the expansion craze struck some of
our statesmen, (?) realized that 'Benev.
client assimilations," "Manifest destiny"
"Our manifest duty" ETC., were only Il
mask Of despotism, but it Was an anexa-
ZIONIST who voluntarily tore OF the mask
and beheld in all its hideousness, the
distorted face Of the tyrant.
There is no doubt that the Argonant
voices the sentiments of every imperial
lst who is capable of thinking. when it
says: "Let us take all these colonies and
keep them. Let US take them from their
native owners and make their former
owners work for u.s." And he has we'll
said "there is no other way to make
them pay" Tor no anexationist has ex-
planned how, by any process except to
make the natives, slaves and vassals, we
are to make the acquisition of the islands
q financial benefit to America. The
noble words of one OF England's greatest
patriot and statement, Fox, in the Brit
ish Parliament during our revolution
"Liberty granted to the American colon
les and friendly treaties with them will
be hundred fold more advantageous to
England than to conquer them"-applies
with even greater force to us in our re.
lations to the PHILIPPINES and time proved
the words of Fox to be prophetic.
Senator Hoar says: "My opinion is
that ii the United States, acquire the
Philippine Islands to govern them as
subject or vassal state, the destruction Of
the American Republic will date from
the Administration Of William McKin.
ley." And Senator Hoar is staunch
republican. do not know whether that
will be the fate of my country or not.
We know of the future only by
the past; Greasy in his Fifteen de-
cisive battles Of the world" says:
"There has never been u republic
yet in history, that acquired dominion
over another nation, that did not rule it
selfshly and oppressively. There is no
single exception to this rule either in
ancient or modern times. Carthage,
Rome, Venice, Genoa. Florence, Pisa.
Holland and republican France, all ty-
rannized over every province and sub
ject state where they gained authority"
AND THAT Is DEsPoTrsM.
Lincoln said mo nation can long live
half slave and half free." A nation half
republic and half despotism cannot long
exist, it must sooner or later become
wholly the one or the other, and history
points her warning finger to the nations
OF the past. Athens in the height Of her
national splendor dreamed Of universal
empire. Pericles and Cleon warned
their people against the wild scheme of
colonization: their warnings were I'M
needed, they were called demagogues by
the expantionists who were incapable Of a
noble thought, just as Bryan. Turner,
Allen, Mason, and Hoar are today called
demagogues by the groundlings and
tumblebugs OF politics." The Syracir-
san expedition was planned and carried
out, and Athens dated its downfall from
that day. In vain did her people cry for
a Percles and Cleon to lead them back
to their former glory and spledor.
Shall we as nation refuse to learn
from the past? Shall We, forgetting all
the greatness of earlier and better days,
plunge into the maelstrom which has
wrecked empires and destroyed repub-
lies?
Shall we, with the delusive notion
that expansion will, in some unexplained
way, bring riches and splendor; close
our eyes to our declaration of independ-
ence that call governments derive their
Just powers from the consent OF the gov
erned?" If so then let lis all be as
"honest" as the Argonant, and mot
open the robbery with prayer"
JOHN a. GILKEY.