The morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1899-1930, 1900-07-07

anxiety to make political capital for
the anti-eNpansionist campaign, and IN
cidentally to exploit the paper IN Ques-
ton as a brilliant and fearless cham
pion Of the party It disgraces by It's
support From beginning to end it Is
a screed Of outrageous falsehoods, Our
navy has ahundan;ly proved Its
superiority in discipline, as well
as in nearly all other respects,
over the navies Of the European
powers. II passes all comprthen-
sion how any American dares to brook
public sentiment at horne by asserting
otherwise. and it is Just such utter
ences as these in the petty press to
which this Astoria sheet aspires to
belong that eonfounds the opinion Of
American politics held by intelligent
people abroad, II is not true that We
have lost two valuable ships in the Far
East, but the traitor,us writer OF this
article evidently reflects by that state.
ment the hope that such national
calamity may yet come true. The
charge that our vessels are the only
ones meeting with disaster in the
China seas shows 4 paucity OF informa-
tion or a malignity II slanderous pur-
pose that should render any paper in
which it is published odious and con-
temptible in the sight of every Amer
ican patriot who chances to read its
gun. The loss of life as well as ship
ping in the waters Of the Orient is
fearful, and has been shared by the
commerce and navies OF all the world.
The Japanese. especially. who possess
the greatest tonnage in Northern Ash
attic seas. have suffered enormously of
late years. Only a short time ago
great French liner. whose captain had
navigated these waters for nearly |
lifetime. was lost on the Chinese shore. |
Il is not to be wondered that we. who |
are having practically our first expert
ence in that section of the world. should |
have suffered with the rest to some
extent.
The charge that the officers Of the
Charleston were drunk when she was
lost on an unchartsd reef in the Phil
ippines emanated from certain Agui-
naldo sympathizers at home. and was
so monstrous and ungrateful a false
hood as to arouse unanimous express
sions of indignation from naval officers
OF every nation throughout the world.
The matter was made the subject of
rigid official inquiry by the depart
ment and 1t was shown conclusively
that the Charleston was navigating
waters at the time of her mishap where
the chart gave great depth and that
her officers were even unusually alert
because Of unfamiliarity with the To-
cality. There is no branch of the pub
lie service in which merit so complete
ly controls position and responsibility
as in our navy. 1t is one institution,
at least. in which all kinds of Amer
leans should take pride and which
should be freest from the ISLANDERS Of
the penny-a-liners in the low politi-
cal sheets that thrive by lying attacks
upon American statesmen and misrep-
reservations Of the policies Of the party
in power. The effectiveness Of our ma
w, man for man and ship for ship, is
acknowledged to hold the
highest rank among the navies OF the
world. The prestige Of it's achieve
ments from its beginning until the
present time has called forth the
commentator and praise from
experts and textbook writer's in every
tongue.
The only charitable Interpretation OF
this Astoria libeler's conduct is that
to his small mind the visit Of the
Philadelphia furnished an auspicious
occasion for palming off the effusion
Of some ignorant ard malicious interior
party writer as the product of his own
brain. He copied the article, evident
ly, on the assumption that the ap-
Of the cruiser in Astoria wa
ters would lend plausible color to its
as a party argument for the
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