Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1899-08-03
THE RETURNING HEROES

craters." See'nlns
THE RETURNING HEROES.
me failure of the San Francisco demo.
cratic press to make any political capital
Ior the approaching city campaign out
- .he oVercoat issue has caused it to re-
double Its exertions to bring General Otis
into dlsrepute. Sensible people fully mn
derstand If it shall be ascertained that
GUS IS incompetent or that the situation
is too big for him he will be relieved.
There is no doubt that the president is
IN possession of all the facts, and will do
the right thing at the right time. He
PROBABLY claims no infallibility, nor did
ne prlng about the war. If mistakes have
Deen made he will correct them and en-
ueaVor to make no Others. The effort to
hold him responsible for the rainy season
at Manila or for accessions to the insur-
gent forces. or for the casualties of battle
Or sickness IN the hospitals may be good
politics. but it is poor patriotism and at
Iofds encouragement to no one except
Agulnaldo and his fellow cannibals. The
returning soldiers hold different views as
10 the philippines. Some of those who
were wounded or sick and have come
nome discouraged naturally talk as they
feel. or can be led to talk that way by
shrewd reporters, but the great majority
or the returning young patriots feel tina
w AUS 1lAIl III Z.
sources and SHOULD be retained. They are
not anxious to return there for $13 a
month as soldiers, but that fact proves
nothing against the wisdom of the per-
manent occupation of the islands 1t sim
ply proves that the boys having enlisted
to ght Spain and the war with that
country being concluded, they wish to re-
turn once more to their civic occupations,
leaving the regular army to conquer and
garrison the new possessions until such
time as the government shall decide upon
a permanent policy. Congress, not the
president, will decide that policy, and the
people of the United States will be solely
responsible for consequences. No politi-
cal question is involved, and it is to be
regretted that silver is to be dropped as a
leading issue in order to give democratic
organs and orators a hance to appeal to
the passions and prejudices of the people
concerning a subject upon which there
should be no division Of sentiment among |
true Americans until order and civilian
ton shall be restored in the Philippines. |
After that will properly come a discus !
sion as to the best method to pursue.
Nearly all the democratic charges are as |
false as they are malicious. 1t has now
been ascertained that James Creelman,
upon the strength of whose alleged in
terview with Dewey much dissatisfac-
ton has been created, never spoke 10
NOTuS 10 the aQmlfal IN his life. The in
terview never occurred, but it had as
much basis of fact as many of the other
cock and bull stories started by the Ex-
aminer's bright young men and seized
upon by the country press as campaign
material to be retailed to the public in
lieu of on behalf Of the aban-
dOned issue of free coinage The brave
boys who are coming home from Manila
after a year of danger and hardship did
not volunteer to go on a picnic. They
went from a stern sense of patriotic duty
and their sufferings, instead of being used
to the injury Of the administration which
conducted the wal SO brilliantly might
better be used to bring Opprobrium upon
the party which forced the war before the
nation was ready for it. Had the army
and navy been ready, the war never
would have occurred, so that the respon-
sibility rests upon the party which did
the most to precipitate hostilities. The
Congressional Record will tell you which
party that was n history records the
fact that Mckinley did everything in his
power to prevent the firing of the first
gun. The returning soldiers know that,
but they are not being interviewed by the
yellow press on that phase of the situa-
ton. 1t may be all right for the demo-
cratic press of San Francisco to work up
a war issue for local effect, but it is pitt /
full to see newspapers away out in Mon
tana solemnly echOing the Examiners
fantastic and spectacular yarns and max
ink critical military tacticians out of all
the young men who followed their coun-
try's flag into South China sea. Otis is