Little Falls herald., 1900-09-14
PARTY OF REVOLUTION.
Republicans No Longer Stand
For Conservatism.
POLICY A RADICAL INNOVATION.

Militarism and Imperialism Are Un-
American - Republican Alliance
With the Trusts Involves Upheaval
! of the Roots of Our National Life.
Old Time Traditions and Policies
Abandoned.
By one Of the Queerest kinks Of rea-
soning Of which the human mind is
| capable the Republican party has sue
! ceeded in persuading itself and per-
haps some people outside that it is the
party Of conservatism and safety and
that the Democracy threatens danger
| GUS innovations. That such an as
sumption could meet with even tol-
Grant reception is signal proof of the
power Of ''bluff."
The truth is, as a moments consid-
Grafton must make obvious, that the
Republican party in it's present policies
is the most recklessly revolutionary
organization in our history and that
the Democracy stands for all those
familiar principles by which Ameri
cans have guided their lives not only
through the century and quarter OF
their national history, but through the
other centuries during which the con-
ceptions of civil and political liberty
that characterizes our race were grow
ing to maturity.
The policy Of Imperialism is an in
novation Of the most radical kind. It
is.a complete break with all the tradi-
tions of the American republic. Less
than three years ago William McKin-
ley denounced forcible annexation as
"criminal aggression" Now he is ex-
tending his rule with fire and blood,
and the Filipinos, who voted in the
Malolos congress for annexation to the
United States when they thought we
were still a republic, are laying down
their lives to resist the advance of our
empire.
There never was a time before now
when any political organization In
America felt affronted by mention Of
the Declaration Of Independence. Dur
ing the Dreyfus madness in France a
cry of "Vive la republique!' was con-
sidered an insult to the army. If an
attendant at Republican meeting in
this country should shout "Hurrah for
| the republicv' he would run the risk
Of being thrown out as a disturbing
Democrat. A mention Of the consti-
tuition or the Declaration of Independ-
ence would simply convict him offhand.
Equally revolutionary, from the old
American point of view, is imperial
ism's twin, militarism. The idea Of a
great standing army is repugnant to
| every American tradition. The found
ers of our government seriously con-
sidered the policy Of prohibiting the
maintenance of any standing army at
all. Every statesman, of every party,
down to the advent of the present ad-
| ministration, has held as one Of this
country's chief blessings its freedom
from the military burdens Of Europe
Yet the Republican party is now com
mitted to a permanent standing army
of 100000 men, and it is spending for
military purposes more than any other
country in the world.
The Republican alliance with the
trusts involves an upheaval of the very
roots of our national life. The Demo
cratic policy here, as in everything
else, Is conservative. 1t proposes tic
keep as near as possible to the familiar
landmarks-not stubbornly resisting ali
change, but not rushing recklessly into
untried paths. The policy by which the
|. American nation has grown great anG
the American character has beer
formed has been that of individual en-
terprise. The trusts are destroying
this enterprise. They are turning Us
>into something worse than Napoleon's
nation of shopkeepers" nation .o1
servants. They are giving us social
ism, with all it's demerits and none OF
its advantages socialism,. not for the
common benefit, but for the advantage
of a, few. They have organized the
industries Of the nation SO that for tht