New Ulm review., 1900-10-31
ORATOR OF THEEAST
Bourke Cochran Held Thousands
Under His Matchless Oratory
in St. Paul Auditorium.
APPEALS TOPATRIOTS.
With FOrceful Utterances He Declares the
Foundations of the Government Are
Being Assailed by Insidious
Doctrines.

Thousands of people heard Hon.
| Bourke Cochran at the Auditorium at
st. Paul The vast hall was filled with
the most appreciative audience that has
gathered there since the beginning of
the present campaign.
They sat for two solid hours and lis
tened to the great orator discuss the
merits and demerits of the policies of
| imperialism and militarism, and at the
| close of the speech there was even more
interest than at the beginning.
| Mr.. Cochran spoke as follows:
Mr.. Chairman, ladies, gentlemen. fel-
low Democrats, all. 1t affords me the
| greatest satisfaction to join with you
this evening in a discussion of the
great questions which the American
| people must decide at the ballot box
within few days. We are told by our
Republican friends, that the issue of the
canvass, is the preservation of our ma
terial prosperity. l believe that is
| correct statement of the ISSUE On the
result of your vote, will depend, not
prosperity of this people, but the pro-
spects of the whole human race. (Ap-
plause.)
We are asked in this campaign to de-
eide whether the republic of Washing
ton, of Jefferson, of Jackson, of Lin.
coin, and of Grant, shall be preserved
for our children's children, or whether
we will cast off as worthless and worn
out, the principles of justice on which
we have risen to greatness and adopt
| policies of conquest, of rapine, of ag-
gression and of plumber, which will
lead. through the oppression of others
to the ruin of ourselves. (Applause)
Now, | believe, if there are Repub-
licans present, they will concede it is
the policy of their party to seize the
Philippine Islands, and to hold them
| against the consent of their inhabitants,
and to govern them, not through our
constitutional government, but through
certain office holders, who are to be ap-
pointed by the President, and who will
exercise their functions outside of the
constitution and independent of its linn
its. Now, Democrats call that imperi-
alism; Republicans call it benevolent
assimilation. (Applause) 1t doesn't
make all difference what either we or
they chose to call it, we must judge it
by the fruits it will bear. I have no
doubt Mr.. Mckinley is honest in re-
pelllng the imputation that he wants to
establish imperialism upon the ruins of
! the republic. I have no doubt that Mr..
M cknley believes his purpose is be-
nevolent assimilation. have no doubt
that the powers which he seeks to at
tain he means to exercise in all kind
ness and with all benevolence. I have
no doubt in fact, that if Mr.. Mckinley
succeeds in making despotism. it will
be benevolent despotism. But it is
the benevolent despot of whom I am
chiefly afraid. No man need fear the
| vicious despot. While the first despot
has usually been benevolent, his sue
cessors have always abused the powers
for the oppression of the people who
trusted him. The people are induced to
sanction the assumption of extraordi-
nary powers by the personal character
| of the person who asserts the right to
them. If | were asked to name the
best king in history, should say it
was loux TX. of France, and yet, the
kingship founded upon his virtues
proved the most degrading of which
| estimate policy, we must estimate. not
| by the good which it may do, but by
| the evil which may be accomplished
from its powers. When we discuss the
| imperialism of Mr. Mckinley, we are
not discussing any good things which
| he might do if he established imperial
| ism in this country, but the evil things
| which baser man might do who would
succeed to his powers
Now. that this experiment of Mr..
McKinley's is justified by the purchase
of Louisiana, during the administration
OF Thomas Jefferson, is a marvellous
indication either of audacity of reckless
| the part of the person who advances it,
or if not that, an assumption of the ig-
| norance of those whom he addresses
| The purchase of Louisiana, so far from
being a precedent to justify Mr.. Nc
Kinleys attempt to subdue the Philip
| pine Islands, is a justification for oppo-
sition. wonder, ladies and gentlemen,
if you recollect the fact that the pur-
chase of Louisiana was accomplished
not for the purpose of securing an en-
largement of territory. 1t was not an
aggressive measure but a defensive
measure. It was not one which Mr.
Jefferson initiated. but one which was
forced upon him by the essential con-
dition of this people. You must re-
member that when the independence of
the United States was accomplished,
the territory of the United States did
not touch the Gulf of Mexico anywhere
| We had no access to the sea on the
south except through Spanish territory.
The southern boundary of the United
States, when our independence was rec
ognized by England, was the 31st par
allel of north latitude. It wasn't the
Gulf of Mexico, as many people are in
c!inded to believe now, but south of
this 31st parallel, between this country
and the Gulf of Mexico, lay both the
Floridas and the territory of Louisiana,
all owned by Spain at that time. Louisi-
ana, as you may look at the map now,
covered all the territory west of the
Mississippi river, except where the 31st
parallel crossed the river; it extended
eastward as far as the Perdito river and
then ran south to the sea, covering both
banks of the river and the island of