The free press. (Poplarville, Miss.) 1890-19??, 1900-08-23
HAULING DOWN THE FLAG.

HAULING DOWN THE FLAG.
At the behest of Great Britain,
President Mckinley has hauled down
the American flag from a strip Of
Alaskan territory twenty miles wide
and one hundred miles long.
In this strip of American territory
purchased from Russia thirty-three
years ago. there are American mines
and American miners, American farm
ers, American sawmills and American
lumber camps. They have all been
turned over to England. lock, stock
and barrel, as a gift by his imperial
majesty. the Republican president.
Let us see how much of gift 1t
was. The very territory turned over
to England by Mckinley was leased
from Russia for a term of twenty
years by the Hudson Bay Company OF
Canada, long previous to the purchase
of Alaska by the United States. In
the face of this contract and fifty
years later. William Mckinley pre-
sents to Great Britain the land which
that kingdom had previously leased
from Russia.
We are not surprised at McKinleya
action. 1t is in line with his policy
in other directions. We simply desire
to lay the matter before the people
his subjects-in it's true light.
We would also commend to the
earnest attentions of all true-minded
Americans, of whatever party, race or
color, the scrupulous manner in which
President Mckinley uDholds the plat
form of his party.
This platform says:
1--WE reassert the Monroe doctrine In
its full extent and we reafflrm the
right of the United States to give the
doctrine effect by responding to thu
appeals of any American state for
friendly Intervention in case of Euro
pean encroachment We have not in
terfered and shall not interfere with
the existing possessions of any Euro
pean power in this hemisphere, but
those possessions must not, on any
pretext, be extended. We hopefully
look forward to the eventual with
drawal of the European power from
this hemisphere, and to the ultimate
union of all of the English-speaking
part of the continent by the free con-
sent of its inhabitants.
With this platform in his mind, but
not IN his heart, President Mckinley
violated every word of it by his gift OF
American territory to England.
Both England and Canada had rec
ognized the Russian boundary be-
tween Canada and Alaska for 40 years
before the purchase of the territory by
the United States. England now
claims what we bought from Russia
and our patriotic president hauls
down our flag and evacuates without a
word.
mere Is ~ GqulNOCdIloA eipOuI the
treaty between England and Russia,
or that between England and the
United States. Each plainly and ex-
plicitly states that 1.-The boundary shall
follow the windings of the coast"
This agreement was lived up to for
30 years by England-until the acces-
sion of Mckinley.
What may we expect next? The
cession of counties along the St Law
renee, or a slice of Montana or Dako-
ia? OF what value is the American
flag without an American backbone in
the white house to uphold it?
We assume to own the Philippines
by a two-year-old treaty with Spain.
We have sent an army to hold 1t
against its inhabitants; yet on our
own continent we have shamefully
abandoned that which we purchased
under a -blooded, clear-headed
business treaty 33 years ago.
Bar the flag with the cross of st.
George and let the hybrid banner float
over the United States of England
Hearst's Chicago American.