Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1900-08-29

pub:icans declared ar St Louis that ii
restoration Of bimetlllism in this coul
TRY, although desirable, was impossib
without the aid of7the leading commel
cial nations of the old world. the nor
ulists and silver republicans joine
with the democrats in asserting til
right and duty of the American peopl
| to shape their financial system fc
| themselves, regardless Of the action {
| other nations. The failure of the rt
publican party to SECURE internations
bimetallism and it's open espousal c
| the gold standard, still keeps the none
question in politics, but no economi
| question can compare in fmportanc
| with a question which concerns tn
principles and structure of government,
| Systems Of taxation can be change
with less difficulty than financial sys
| TENS. and financial systems can be al
tered with less danger and less disturb
| ance to the country than the vital doc
| trines upon which free government
| rests.
A GREATER ISSUE.
In the early SOS, when we were en-
gagged In a contest which was to deter
mine whether we should have one re
public or two, questions of finance wer
| lost sight Of Silver was at a premium
over gold. and both gold and silver wer
at a premium over greenbacks an,
bank notes. but the people could no
afford to divide over the money ques
| tion in the presence Of greater issue
And SO today we are engaged In q con
| troversy which will determine wiiethe
we are to have republic In which til
government derives its just power
from the consent of the governed, o
an empire in which brute force is tn
only recognized source of power.
In a government where the peopl
rule, every wrong can be righted an,
every evil remedied, but when once tn
doctrine of self-gevernment is i'm
paired and might is substituted 70
right, there is no certainty that an;
question will be settled correctly.
A colonial policy would so occupy tn
people with the consideration OF tl1
nations foreign policy that aemesti
questions would be neglected: ..""iWh'
by the president would be the pf6mp
response to every criticism OF the ad
ministration, and corruption and Spe
cial privilege would thrive under til
cover of patriotism.
1t is not strange that the populist
should oppose militarism and imperial
ism, for both are antagonistic to tn
principles which populists apply t
other questions. Looking at question
from the standpoint of the producer o
wealth, rather than from the standpoin
OF the speculator, the populists recog
nize in militarism q constant and in
creasing burden. The army worm
which occasionally destroys a field o
wheat, is not nearly so dangerous al
enemy to the farmer as a large stand
Ing army, which invades every field O
industry and exactS toll from ever
crop.
If 100000 men are withdrawn from
the ranks of the producers and placed
as burden upon the backs Of those
VINO remain, 1t must mean longer hours
harder work and greater sacrifice fol
those who toll, and the farmer, while
he pays more than his share Of the
expenses of the army, has no part in
army contracts or in developing com.
panies, and his sons are less likely ts
fill the high positions in the army thar
the sons Of those who, by reason OF
wealth or political prominence, exer
influence at Washington.
Soon after the republican leaders be
gan to suggest the propriety Of a colo
NAL policy, the papers published an in
terview given out from San Francisc,
by foreign consul residing at Manila
He declared that the people of tn,
United States owed 1t to themselves
and to other nations, and to the Fill
pinos, to hold the Philippine island,
permanently. At the conclusion Of tn,
interview there appeared the very sig
nif1cant statement that the gentleman
was visiting the United States for tn,
purpose of organizing a company fol
the development of the Philippine isl
ands. A few days later, on his wal
east, he gave out another interview II
which he explained that the company
hi lob 64 sr1N I1 -
establish banks at Manila and at othe,
places throughout the islands, ant
build electric light plants, water plants
street car lines, railroads, factories, etc
1t seemed that the plan Of his syndicat,
was to do all the developing and leav,
the rest of the American people nothin,
to do in the matter except to furnish al
army sufficient to hold the Filipinos IL
subsection while they were being de
yeloped.
At the present rate we will spent
annually upon the army approximate,
half as much as we spend for edu
cation in the United States, and thi
immense sum is wrung from the tax.
payers by means Of taxation which
overburden the poor man and undertaI
the rich man.
IMPERIALISM.
In the presence of such an issue a.
it is impossible that an,
populist should hesitate as to his duty
But even the menace Of militariSm 1,
but part of the question of imperial.
ism. The policy contemplated by the
republican party nullif1es every princI
pie set forth in the Declaration Of In,
strikes a blow at populaf
government and robs the nation of its
moral prestige. Already the more ad-
supporters of the colonial idea
point to the economy Of a system OF
government which entrusts all powe.
to an executive and does away with
the nece'--;.;y- for legislation. The Army
Navy Journal, in its issue of August l.
commends the English system and de-
clareS that as a result of this system!
a fifth OF the worlds area, containing
a fifth of the population, Is ruled with
an administrative economy which is ar
marvel, and adds:
"One million two hundred thousand
dollars spent in London is the price of
order over a colonial
rule whose total budgets aggregate ST.
I24, 1854, ,S96. or so per cent more than our
total of federal, state county and viii
lage expenditures for every possible
purpose, for which taxes are levied In
contrast to the results of this system
Of executive administration, the fact Is
cited that the American congress has
spent an entire winter wrestling with
the tariff, the taxation, the administra-
ton and the personal rights of two lit
tie islands. The English executive Is
an imperial executive. The British par.
lament is an English legislature. TC
THE SAME SYSTEM WE ARE COM.
ING BY THE DECREE OF CIRCUM-
STANCES AS INEVITABLE AS THAI
"a