The Topeka state journal., 1900-03-09


Rico, but if we intend to treat them as
the inhabitants of dependency, he
insisted that we cannot consistently de-
clare by congressional enactment that
they are to be deemed and held to be
citizens of the United States. Any ac-
tion we took as to them could not in
his view determine the civil rights and
the political status Of the FilipinoS, for
it was a matter of expediency with US.
The explanation that the odiouS tariff
provisions had no greater nor more
commendable purpose than to make
case for the supreme court, in advance
of legislation in respect to the Philip
pines would not be accepted as suffi-
cient, for it was not the business of
congress to make cases for the courts.
Moreover, the Philippines, while law
fully subject to our sovereign jurlSd1c-
ton, are not integral parts of the Uni
ted States and their inhabitants were
not. in his opinion, entitled to claim
that they can be governed only under
and in exact accordance with the con-
stitution of the United States.
The doctrine that the constitution of
the United States follows the flag and
that no country to which title may be
acquired. whether by treaty or con-
quest, can be held and governed other
wise than as an integral portion of the
United States, did not commend itself
to him. The United States was not
less than a, nation as these conten-
tions would make it appear. If it be
necessary or eXpedient for a republic
to go to war, to overrun the territories
of it's enemy. it may lawfully overrun
and occupy them, and at the close OF
a successful war may indemnify itself
for the experience and damage SuS-
tained by requiring the cession of such
portions of the conquered territory as
Justice and expediency may reasonably
demand It may require the inhabi-
tants of the conquered country to sub
init to reasonable and just rules pre-
scribed for their government. 1t was
to avoid the claim that by tn eaccept-
ance of the cession from Spain we
placed ourselves under obligations to
people of the ceded territory, to clothe
them with American citizenship, how
ever inexpedient or preposterous or
even dangerous it might be to do So
that the stipulations of the old French,
Spanish and Mexican treaties were
omitted and a materially different stlp-
ulatiOn inserted in the treaty of Paris.
AIr. Lindsay then considered decisions
of the supreme court which were relied
on to show that the constitution ex
propria vigore, follows the flag and ad-
mitted that they contained some ex-
pressions which tended to support that
view but the question raised by the
treaty of Paris never had been before
that court which never had attempted
to define the civil rights of person
coming under the dominion of the Uni
ted States in virtue of a treaty contain
ing the stipulation that the civil rights
and the political status of the native
inhabitants of territory ceded to the
United States shall be determined by
the congress.
/ All the judicial opinion relied on had
been rendered in cases arising under
treaties fixing and defining the personal
rights of the inhabitants. Those who
represent what they term the anti-im
perial sentiment of the country would
not he said, of course. accept his view.
They would attach no controlling i'm
portance to the covenants contained
in earlier treaties fixing the status of
country and people ceded to US and not
leaving this to extend ex propria- vigore
under the constitution but would claim
that without them the constitution
would have extended the supremacy of
its provisions over the ceded territories
and converted their inhabitants into cit
liens of the United States. Summing up
his position with reference to the diff
ference between the treaty of Paris and
other treaties by which the United
States had acquired territory, Senator
Lindsay said:
1.-The treaty of Paris does not provide
as have other treaties, that the inhabi-
tants of the territories ceded by Spain
shall at any time, or in any contingency
be made citizens of the United States or
that their civil rights are to be meas
ured by the federal constitution. These
rights are committed to the determina-
tion of congress. The Asiatic countries
ceded by Spain cannot be incorporated
admitted to the rights of citizenship
We have therefore the alternatives,
either to refuse the performance of the