The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-11-01
QUESTION OF Plain duty
DISCUSSES THE SUBJECT OF
IMPERIALISM
MR.. BRYAN CROSSES OHIO
Evening Address Was in Cincinnati,
Where He Was Introduced by
CIeveland's FORMER Cob
met Officer.

CINCINNATI, o., Oct 31.-W J. Bryan
made the first speech here tonight that
he has made in this city during the
present campaign. He arrived on a spe-
cial train at o'clock tonight and went
direct to Music hall, where he talked for
an hour Hon. Judson Harmon, formerly
attorney general under President Cleve-
land, presided at the meeting, and there
were many other leading Democrats
present. The doors were opened at p
m, but more than enough to fill the
hail were present before o'clock The
day was spent entirely In this state and
the itinerary covered the country be-
tween this city and Toledo. Beginning
with an hours speech at Toledo at 10
o'clock this morning Mr.. Bryan spoke in
succession at Wauseon, Napoleon, OF
tawa Lima, Wapakoneta, Sydney, Piqua,
Troy. Dayton, Hamilton and College
Corner. A majority Of the places where
stops were made were small towns, and
as a rule the crowds were not large.
There were, however, fine audiences at
Toledo, Wauseon, FiQua, Dayton ard
College Corner as well as here.
Judge Judson Harmon, who was at.
torney general in the cabinet of Presi-
dent Cleveland, presided. and spoke at
length In introducing Col. Bryan. Re-
ferring to the Philippines he said:
JUDGE HARMON, SPEECH
when our commissioners went to
dictate terms of peace to Spain they,
bore instructions. THESE have been care
fully withheld. although. the people had
a right to know them when the treaty
took effect When they come to life, as
they must we shall find that they were
changed after the negotiations began.
l do the president justice to believe he
did not at first intend to step into the
shoes of the king of Spain, but only
meant to pull or buy him off the backs
OF the Fflipinos. This was a plain
duty He did not then mean to buy
him out and continue the same business
at the old stand. But the president is
better at seeing his plain duty than at
people into his confidence and puts him
self under their control They turned
him about face. We can guess who they
were, because they did the same thing
as he had committed himself to his plain
duty, in message to congress, they
had to turn him in the open. 1t was
to US all her claims to the Philippines,
which We're largely pretended
"All we had to do was to declare,
them in trust for the, people thereof,
who, by our request had fought side
by side with us to overthrow Spain.
What =, should we have thought, if the
bought out England's pretensions and
then turned their arms to subdue us?
We had no formal treaty with the
Filipinos as the French had with us,
but honest people do not raise techni-
calities about the obligations of honor
and fair dealing. Many thought, and
he of whom [ am soen to introduce was
one of them, that it would be best to
end the war and get rid of Spain by
ratifying the treaty since 1t was made
and then declare and carry out this
trust. I believe they were right, but
they were deceived as to the real in
tentiOns Of the president and by the
worded, SO as to appear promise and
prove an evasion. So we went from an
honorable war to one of conquest against
those who helped US, because they
thought, and we made them think. We
were helping THEM. We have shed
more blood and spent more money In
this war than in the war with Spain and
still our boys are sent to disease and
still the tax gatherer calls for more.''