The Dalles times-mountaineer. [volume] (The Dalles, Or.) 1882-1904, 1899-05-06
GERMANS on IMPERIALISM.

GERMANS on IMPERIALISM.
Among the foreign element in
America there are none more level
headed or far seeing than the Germans.
Although raised in a monarchy, they
readily adopt our systems, acquire
knowledge of our political institutions,
accepting the duties and responsibilit-
les of American citizenship with a
promptitude that fits them to judge
of national questions intelligedtly and
accurately. A majority of them came
to this country to escape milltaryism
that is a menace to the freedom of
citizenship in their fatherland, hence
it is not to he wondered that they do
not accept with any degree of approval
the Imperialism into which this gov
ernment is drifting at present. The
Westliche Post, an influential German
publication, outlined the sentiment OF
German-Americans in recent edi-
torial in which it said in part:
"Time an1 again the attempt has
been made to supplant American re-
publicanism with imperialism. Time
and again American patriotism and
that high and far seeing love of man.
kind which unites men of all countries
in a common brotherhood of humanity
have rallied and won against it, When,
half century ago, we had the same
cries of manifest Destiny the CON
quering Saxon Expansion and all
the rest we are hearing over again now,
Americans as radically opposed to
each other in most things as we're Cal
hourn and Corwin, joined with Clay,
Webster, Lowell, Clayton and Clemens
against it.
"What American can read this with
out an indignant refusal to consent
that the blood of those once our allies
shall 'saturate the soil on which they
were born that we may be praised by
the London Times for our noble work
for progress in furtherirg British
plans for disembering and robbing
China. John NJ. Clayton himself
the author of the Clayton Bulwer
treaty and openly in favor of co-operat
ing with England in business, was
openly opposed to having anything to
do with the political methods of British
Imperialism.
"What is there in stalwart Ameri-
canism I'm native Americanism, if you
willy except what German-Americans
are saying now in declaring that they
gave up home and friends and came
thousands of miles into an unknown
country for the love-not of British
colonialism, but of American repub
licanism. To that they are loyal now
and always; to Americanism, not to
British Commercial ism of the bayonet;
to liberty; to progress; to freedom
from militarism; to the expectation of
time to come when the world will be
no longer shacklCd by Imperialism,
with its bayonets and fetters; to that
German Americans who renounced
Imperialism in Europe are devoted
now as they were SO years ago, when
they listened to Seward, as he said of
these same 'expansionists': Sir, they
have sent the American eagle abroad,
bearing not the olive branch, but
shackle in his talons.'
1.-THE flag of this great republic
stands now-not for what the London
Times approves-but for what it meant
when Seward stood under it to utter
publicanism as that was not his, nor is
it that of any other American who is
loyal to his flag and to his own country.
May heaven forbid that 1t ever should
be. May the time never cone when
the American people will applaud those
who dabbe a flag dedicated to freedom
and human progress in the blood of
men who die on their own soil resisting
the same principle of British imperial
ism against which America triumphed
at Yorktown and New Orleans. Such
ideas will never prevail in America.
Any party which commits itself to
them, will be wiped out of existence.
Any leader who attempts to check
civilization and progress and American
institutions and American principles
will be repudiated and disgraced; any
foreign nation which for its own selfish
purposes attempts to use the American
people as at's-paw in schemes of
fraud aud violence will find itself the
victim of the reactions of it's own mall
evolent scheming. Justice, liberty
progress through justice and liberty
until the whole world is elevated by
our national life, as it has been by the |
individual life of Washington-that is |
the manifest destiny of America; for |
that the flag stands, and for that Ger
are willing now, as
they have always been, to stake every.
thing, knowing that when issues are
made against liberty and in favor of
everything is at stake for
them, the American flag and all that
is worthy of survival in the world"