Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1899-02-09
THURSDAY EVENING. FEB. 9. 1899.

us to consider the history of this gross
laundering. The President began his
administration as the friend of peace. he
remained very conservative up to
wear ago. and even later. Not even the
blowing up of the Maine disturbed his
eouanimity. He was no lingo. He
would not concede that the Cuoan in
surgents were belligerents, and Still!
less that they had government ne
could recognize. He made one Gle.
mand after another upon Spain
and then, after she had yielded 10
all but one, he Topped over
violently to the war party and In die
tating terms of peace he out'herod-
ed Herod himself. He is hardly out
of one war when he prostitutes his of
fee to involve us in another, and
one wholly unnecessary. Let US 60
back to last spring. Battle was joined
over our final demand that Spain should
evacuate the island of Cuba. He ex-
pressly disclaimed any idea or purpos5
of holding on to Cuba. Not a word
was said about taking Porto Rico or
about the Philippines. There wasn't
even the whisper of q revolt or dis
content with Spanish rule in Porto
Rico. AS for the Philippines, all we
knew about them was that the natives
were then prosecuting revolt
against Spanish authority, with great
success, ard that Spain was unable TIC
subdue them. II was claimed that Gu!
war was war for humanity" and to
be waged on high moral plane.
Nothing was said about corquerirg
Porto Rico or the Philippines. Cuba
was our objective point. Even thsre
tie plan was to wait till autumn before
sending out our army and i. YVES Only t. e
accidental fact of Cerqera's fleet being
at Santiago that led to the sending Ofao
expedition to capture il. After the de-
feat of Spain at Manila, in Porto Rico
and Cuba, and Spain had sued for peace,
the task ofthe President might not have
been altogether easy, buth duties were
plainly pointed cut by the act of Cen
gress declaring war and by the attitude
the country had assumed. II he haze
simply aimed to do his duty, the nego-
tiations at Paris might have been easily
and quickly terminated. All the Presi-
dent had to do was to consider the act
of Congresssdeclaring war, as pointit 6
out his line of duty. But he had
schemes and purposes not avowed fully
even now, that plain and simple per
torrance of his duty would not tend 10
promote. What the President might
have done and ought to have done was
to have his agents at Paris insert in the
treaty of peace the same provision in
respect to Porto Rico and Philippines
that had been demanded in the case
OF Cuba-namely, for Spain to reln-
quish her sovereignty merely, thus
leaving the road open for Us to do in
the Philippines what we now say we
are going to do in Cuba. Why not? If
we depart from this. principle, it We
convert the war for humanity" into
game of grab, Cuba is the true point to
begin. 1t lies right st our doors and at
the gate way of the Gulf of Mexico. II
Spanish power has been dislodged in
Cuba, it is the work of the army and
navy Of the United States. The Cuban
insurgents, by all accounts, did nothing
in the war. So far from helping our
soldiers, they robbed them. So far from
fighting, they were lodging in the bushes
1t is true that taking advantage of trop-
ical jungles and mountain Businesses
they had for years kept up a set OF
guerrilla bands, burning plantations,
and cutting Spanish throat here
and there, but they bad no stomach for
8 regular battle with the Spanish army,
even when the American army went
down to Santiago to help them. In
fact they owe US everything. We owe
them nothing. We have fed and
clothed them and they now want there
millions or more before they give up
and suspend their buccaneering habits.
The future of the island of Cuba, and
of property holders and decent people
there, under such regime cannot be
foretold, but it looks gloomy enough
In respect of the Philippines, tie case
is very different. The Filipinos had
rebelled against Spain long before
Dewey sailed to Manila bay and fought
his grand fight. They had the Span.
iards on the run all over those islands, |
aud before the American troops had |
landed in sufficient numbers to attempt
the capture of the city of Manila, the
Filipinos, headed by Aguinaldo, had
driven the Spsniards up to the very
walls of Manila. 1t was the same thing
all over the islands. When the peace
commissioners met in Paris every man |
of them aid the whole world knew |
that the insurgents forces controlled at |
least forty-nine ont of every fifty
square miles in the Philippine islands. |