Washington sentinel., 1900-08-25
The Reality an Empire. !"

political campaign, when the poll
tician and the partisan are abroa,
treating the voter to flights of ora
torical fancy, in which words ar
most often used to conceal fact
and distract the attention from tht
real and pertinent issues, it is wei
to pause and see how our neigh
bors regard US. A recent issue o
the Mexican Heyald has the fol
lowing comment to make which /.
most pertinent to the issues of the
present campaign, and one which
the American voter will do we'll tc
carefully consider:
The progress Of imperalistic ideas in
the United States is eagerly observed
by both the great parties of Latin
America. The Clericals rel oice to note
the growth ofthe desire Tor world power
in the free republic Of Washington; they
predict that the American people will,
without being aware of it, come under
a strong government, that a vastly
wealthy plutocracy will come to rule at
Washington, the forms oirepublicanism
being preserved, but the reality an
empire. II this results, so much the
better for the progress Of the monarchi-
cal idea IN Latin America, for the
Americans of the North cannot, in
decencY, protest. Reactionary ideas
will have triumphed in the United States
Such an opinion cannot be ac-
cused OF partisan bias. 1t goes
right to the pith OF the issue-the
one great issue-oi the campaign.
1t sounds the keynote Of the anti
imperialistic propaganda. THE
growth Of the desire for world
power" which has betrayed the Re-
publican party into the waging OF
a relentless war of conquest against
the struggling and libertY-loYing
Filipinos, which has impelled them
in forcing a government "Without
the consent Ofthe governed" upon
the suffering Porto Ricans, and
which is now leading them to per.
petuate militarism in the struggle
for a so-called commercial suprem.
acy in China, will and must, as our
Mexican contemporary tersely
puts it, speed the time when ga
vastly wealthy plutocraGy will
come to rule at Washington" It
is to this that Republican politi-
clans are leading the people step
by step. Military aggrandizement
-plutocracY. The scheme is cum
ninglY devised and skillfully hid
den since "the forms OF Republi-
canism being pr .served" it will be
easy for the people, without being
aware Of it," to "come under a
strong government" Not a gov
eminent oil the people. but a
Strong government" OF VASTLY
wealthy plutocracy1" Are all the
traditions, all the thought, all the
labors that have made US a nation,
happy in our home life and re-
spected abroad, to be cast to the
winds at the behest of "a vastly
wealthy plutocracY." We do not
believe it. The innate sense ofthe
American people is too great to be
caught bv such clap-trap. II we
need an inspiration to continue the
light against imperialism and mill
tarism we have only to look at
England and Germany. The staid
and intense conviction that Amer
ica is for Americans the doctrine
OF Monroe and OF Democracy
tested and not found wanting after
nearly century OF trial, will not
permit tree people to lon toler-
ate the existence OF this hydra
headed monster that threatens the
very life OF the nation. And the
voter will see to it in November,
that "a vastly wealthy plutocTacy"
who would preserve "the forms oil
Repuolicanism" does not come
to rule at Washington"