The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1899-09-09
J. Here is the program for the Phil.

tice. Here is the program for the Phil
ippine campaign Of imperialism as pro-
claimed at the Methodist camp meet
ing: peace, first; then, with charity
for all. the established government of
law and order, protecting life and prop
erty, and occupation, for the well-being
OF the people; a government in which
they shall participate under the Stars
and Stripes"
This delphic utterance is of course
variously interpreted, as it is plainly
susceptible of numerous and conflicting
interpretations. peace first" means, we
may suppose, the subjugation of the
Filipinos by force of arms, and the
blighting of their hopes OF indepen-
dence. Then charity will come in
charity for ALL" and the Filipinos will
be permitted-that is, those of them who
will escape from our machine guns-to
participate in government of law and
order under the Stars and Stripes. Par
ticipate, how much?
If Mr.. Mckinley would only stop his
hypocritical sniveling about benevolent
assimilation, destiny and the flag as a
symbol of justice and liberty, and give
the country manly, straightforward
statement of policy, the people would
respect him. But he travels about the
country with Chadband air about him,
and he pirates about the benevolent
purposes of the American people until
he seems to believe in them himself
AS matter OF fact, the American peo-
pie want to seize and hold the Philip
pine Islands by force or by any other
means available. Their purpose is to
enlarge the territory of the United
States and to increase the advantages
and opportunities for commercial ex-
pansion. There is no benevolence in the
matter any more than there is benevo-
lence in Chamberlain raid on the
Transvaal.
The mass of American people who
approve imperialism do not care any
more for the fate or fortune of Fill
Pine than they do about the fate or
fortune of Comanche Indian. But
they do care about his lands, his mines,
his timber, his hemp, his tobacco and
his other property. They want these,
and are fighting to secure them. Mr.
Mckinley is aware of all this, and con-
sequently his professions Of benevo-
lence and Christian charity are dishon-
est and nauseating. When he declared
war against Spain he disclaimed any
intention of territorial acquisition or
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT. Yet we have been
waging war since then for no other pur-
pose. When we undertook to- perma-
nently occupy portion of Philippine
territory, Mr.. Mckinley, with his eyes
turned skywards and his hand on his
breast, declared that permanent occu-
patton by force would be tantamount to
criminal aggression. Yet he has not
only seized the Filipino territory, but
has raised an enormous army to hold
what he has grabbed and to kill all who
oppose the rule which he is trying to
impose upon the people.
These lying and dishonest pretences
and these broken pledges bring the
presidential Office into contempt They
put premium upon national cant and
hypocrisy, and they tend to lessen the
popular respect for honesty and fair
dealing. Mr.. Mckinley should keep
away from camp meetings and summer
schools. They have bad effect upon
the remnant of conscience which he
possesses, and they perilously strain his
lachrymal mechanism.