The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-02-22
is THE PROTECTION OF TRUSTS
THE Niger IN THE WOODPILE.

THE NIGER IN THE WOODPILEs
The congress of the United States is
now busiIy engaged discussing schemes
for the government Of our new insular
possessions. The friends of the Mckinley
administration are devoting their efforts
to the solution of an insolvab1e propo-
sition, which when deprived of the mystf-
flying verbosity with which they attempt
to surround it may be boldly stated IL
these terms:
How shall the constitution of the
United States be partially extended over
the new island possessions so as to de-
prive the people thereof of an unrestrict-
ed ballot and to place their exports out
side of the customs regulations of the
United States; while at the same time
affording these islands with constitu-
floral judiciary and an unconstitutional
civil government?
The main question with the Republi-
can members of congress is to deprive
these new island possessions of free. ad-
mission for their exports to the United
States. The Stars and Stripes shall wave
over the islands, the courts shall be OPP
Grated by federal machinery and officials.
and the people shall enjoy every blessing
guaranteed by the American constitution
except freedom of trade with the United
States and unrestricted suffrage.
The pretended basis for these excep-
tons is the cheapness of labor in these
new possessions which 1t Is alleged
would be a menace to the higher priced
labor of the United States. But the pro-
consisting principally of tobacco, sugar
and fiber, if poured into the United
States in the greatest quantities, would
be a boon instead Of a menace to the
laboring classes OF the United States
The menace would be for the tobacco
trust, the sugar trust and the Irvine
trust, who would find more raw material
thrown upon the market than they could
handle and which would at once destroy
the monopolistic privileges they now en-
joy.
American labor wants all the raw ma
terial 1t can obtain and the cheaper it
is obtainable the better. And If the
sugar cane and beet raisers cannot COM
pete with sugar which has to be carried
continent, then the sugar raised in the
United States Is a very expensive lux
ury for the people.
An increase in the supply Of tobacco
would be limited by the demand of con-
sumers and under no circumstances could
the tobacco of the Philippines destruc-
lively compete with the grades of tobac-
co grown in the United States any more
than 1t can destructively compete with
Cuban tobacco, or than Cuban tobacco
does with the American grades.
And as for hemp and other fibers it
is scarcely possible that the farmers OF
the United States having in view the
present price of binding Irvine will OBJ
ject to the free admission of such fbers
wherever they may be grown. Nor Will
the working people employed In the man
ufacture sof fiber into yarn, Irvine and
cordage object to vast increase In the
supply of raw material.
As for danger to American labor from
the possible importation Of manufactured
fiber, and tobacco and refined sugar, such
"a contingency may be considered when
the natives Of these rev possessions be-
come as expert as the American work.
men and when they are able to manu-
facture their own machinery. A people
that cannot manufacture its own ma
chinery need not be feared as a trade
competitor.
The attempt of Republican congress.
men to restrict the freedom OF the bal
lot in the insular possessions of the
United States is another matter, and is
of most serious bearing. Section 4 of
article IA of the constitution of the
United States says:
"Ail persons born or naturalIzed in the