Hot Springs weekly star. (Hot Springs, S.D.) 1892-1917, 1900-10-19
A CENTuRY'S GROWTH
OF THE COUNTRY.
History Of National Expansion
from Jefferson's Time.
The Life Of the Nation, Like That Of an
Individual, Depends Upon Its Ability
to Develop and Grow.

All lntelllSent youth. nftcen years Old,
who reads the daily papers, said to his
father, who is n student of politics:
"Nather, what is the meaning of i'm
pcrialism' as used in the Democratic
platforms and by Democratic speakers,
particularly Mr.. Bryan; and what do
you mean by expansion!'
The father answered.: My boy, 'impe-
rialism,' correctly defined. means per-
tanning to an empire.' The use of it, as
they intend it to apply by the party you
speak of, is pure dcmagogy-a clap
trap effort to catch votes in the coming
election. These men have erected an air
castle and are pelting it with words. But
few of the men of brains who use this
term, as applied to the conditions in this
country, believe it to be true or correct.
They AVE a mistaken idea that they
can scare the American people by pro-
claiming against Il bugaboo of their own
creation. In this they are mistaken. The
American voter is quick to detect hum
bug and is not easily scared even at the
threat of real evils. 1t is possible that
some of those men really believe what
they say on this subject. If they do,
they are in the unfortunate position of
those of whom it is said, they believe
a lie to be damned for these men will
he politically damned at the election in
November. Outside of these parties
there are some declaring against 'impe-
rialism' who are misled by diseased i'm
aginations and who, while being honest,
are simply foolish"
well. father, what do you mean by
'eNpansionY'"
II use the word in it's ordinary sense,
my boy, which is the enlargement of sur
face"
Eyes, I understand that, but this is a
political term as used now. Does it mean
the enlargement of the surface of the
countryY'
Certainly. and but for expansion this
country would have been very small in
deed"
when did it begin to expand? Who
was the first e~Npansionist!'
Look at the mar of the United States
and you will see that the colonies of
Great Britain which rcvoltcd in 1876
We're Massachusetts, which included
Maine; New Hampshire. Connecticut,
Rhode Island, New York, which with
New Hampshire included Vermont; New
Jersey. Pennsylvania. Delaware, Mary
land, Virginia, which included Kentucky,
North Carolina, which claimed Tennes-
see; South Carolina and Georgia. All
these colonies. with the outlying terri
tories claimed by them, had only 4S2.3G1
square miles. with a population of about
100000. just before the Revolution
George Washington, then IL colonel of
Virginia militia. was the first expansion
list. He aided in driving the French out
of Fort Duluesne, where Pittsburg now
stands: helped in anncNing to Virginia
all the territory which now comprises
the States of Ohio, Indiana. Illinois.
Michigan and Wisconsin. There were
no white inhabitants save a few French
on the lakes and in Illinois. These
States cover 2S3.361 square miles, about
three-tifths of the area of the colonies.
AT the taking of the census of 1890, ten
years ago. they had Il population of 49,
li1.S46 and wealth valued at $15,O41,-
G335, Washington's expansion proved
to be IL very valuable one"
"Who was the next eXpansjonist. and
what did he dog
lloiiiS JcllcFSOu WIS Vue next. In
April, 1903, he purchased the territory
of Louisiana from France. Look ut that
large map. All the States and territories
which YOU see west of the Mississippi
river to that irregular line which extends
from the Gulf of Mexico to the Cana
dian border, near the Pacific ocean. were
included in this purchase. AT the time
the purchase was made it was declared
,,1,.r1l.e r,1 T,fr,,-, -,o. -.-
as bitterly by the opposition ut that time
as Mckinley is now-in fact, more bit
terly. In 1910. the first census aftel. the
purchase. the entire civilized population
was W.4O1. The area of this purchase
was 974,s73 square miles, more than
double that of the original colonies. and
comprised what is now the States of
Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri, Iowa.
Minnesota, North and South Dakota. Ne.
braska. Kansas. part of Colorado. nearly
| all of Wyoming, nearly all of Montana.
| the Indian Territory and the Territory of
Oklahoma. In 1890 the population of
these States was II. sos and their
wealth was S11. 505 ,352,.4O, eleven Hill
ion five hundred and ninety-five million
three hundred and fifty two thousand
five hundred and forty dollars. These
States in 1898 furnished over one.holf
the wheat and nearly one-half the corn
crop of the country. and this year win
do still better. They have nearly one-
third of the total railway mileage md
are great producers of cattle. sheen
hogs and horses. And yet their prodnc.
tive capacity is in it's infancy. When
irrigation is established, as it soon will
he, the products of these States will no
doubled or tripled. And there is one nd.
vantage of this purchase that can never
be estimated in money, which is She CON
troll of the Mississippi river. Jeiferson,s
purchase has turned out to be n good ono
Notwithstanding the bitter opposition to
its contamination"
(To be %continued.)