Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1900-09-14

congress has not seen At to do the ono
OF the other, and the president had no
authority to do either If he had been so
inclined, which he was not. So long as
the sovereignty remains in us 1t is the
duty of the executive, whoever he may
be. to uphold that sovereignty and If it
be attacked suppress its assailants.
Would our political adversaries do less?
1t has been asserted that there would
have been no fighting in the Philippines il
congress had declared its purpose
to give independence to the Tagal insur-
gents. The insurgents did not wait for
the action of congress. They assumed
the offensive, they opened fire on our
army. Those who assert our RESPONSE
bility for the beginning of the conflict
have forgotten that before the treaty
was ratified in the senate, and while it
was being debated in that body, and while
the Bacon resolution was under discus
sion, on February 4, 1899, the insurgents
attacked the American army after being
previously advised that the American
forces were under orders not to fire upon
them except in defense. The papers
found in the recently captured archives
of the insurgents demonstrate that this
attack had been carefully planned weeks
before it occurred. Their unprovoked
assault on our soldiers at a time when
the senate was celebrating upon treaty
surrender and abandonment would have
prevented the fighting, and leaves no
doubt in any fair mind of where the re-
Sponsibility rests for the shedding of
American blood.
With all the exaggerated phrase-mak-
ing of this electoral contest, we are in
danger of being diverted from the real
contention. We are in agreement with
all of those who supported the war with
Spain, and also with those who counseled
the ratification of the treaty of peace.
Upon these two great essential steps
there can be no issue, and out of these
came all of our responsibilities. If others
would Shirk the obligations imposed by
war and the treaty, we must decline to
act further with them, and here the is
sue was made. It is our purpose to Ies-
tablish in the Philippines a government
suitable to the wants and conditions of
the Inhabitants and to prepare them for
self-gOvernment and to give them self
government when they are ready for it
and as rapidly as they are ready for it.
That I am aiming to 90 under my con-
StitutiOnal authority, and will continue
to do until congress snail determine the
political status of the Inhabitants of the
archipelago.
Are our opponents against the treaty?
If so, they must be reminded that it
could not have been ratified in the SEN
ate but for their assistance. The SEN
ate which ratified the treaty and the con-
gress which added it's sanction by a large
appropriation, comprised senators and
representatives of the people of all par
ties.
The American people will not make the
murdererS of our soldiers the agents of the
republic to convey the blessings of lib
erty and order to the Philippines. They
will not make them the builders of the
new commonwealth. Such a course
would be betrayal of our sacred oblf-
cations to the peaceful Filipinos, and
would place at the mercy of dangerous
adventures the lives and property of the
natives and foreigners. 1t would make
possible and easy the commission of such
atrocities as were secretly planned, to be
executed on the 22d of February, 1893, in
the city of Manila. when only the vigi-
lance of our army prevented the attempt
to aSSaSSinate our soldiers and all for
eigners and pillage and destroy the city
and it's surroundings. In short, the prop
osition of those opposed to is to con-
tinue all the obligations in the Philip
pines which now rest upon the govern
ment, only changing the relation from
principal, which now exists. to that Of
surety. Our responsibility is to remain.
but our power is to be diminished. Our
obligation is to be no less, but our title
Is to be surrendered 20 another power,
which is without experience training,
or the ability to maintain a stable gov
eminent at home and absolutely helpless
to perform its International obligations
with the rest of the world. To this we
are opposed. We should not yield our
title while our obligations last In the
language of our platform, "Our authority
should not be less than our responsible
ity.'' and our present responsibility is to
establish our authority in every part of
the islands.
No government cab so certainly pre-
serve the peace, restore public order. es-
tablish law, justice and stable conditions
as ours. Neither congress nor the execu-
tive can establish stable government in
these islands except under our right of
sovereignty, our authority and our flag.
And this we are doing.
Those who profess to dispute the lib
eral and honorable. purposes of the ad-
ministration in it's treatment of the Phil
|. ippines are not justified. Imperialism
has no place in it's creed of conduct. Free
dom is rock upon which the republican
party was builded and now rests. Lib
erty is the great republican doctrine.
for which the people went to war and
for which a million lives were offered
and billions of dollars expended to make
it a lawful legacy of all without the
consent of master or slave. There is a
strain of ill-concealed hypocrisy in the
anxiety to extend the constitutional
guarantees to the people of the Philip
pines, while their notification is openly
advocated at home. our opponents may
distrust themselves, put they have nc
right to distrust the good faith and pa
triotism of the majority of the people
who are opposed to them; they may fear
the worst form of Imperialism, with the
helples Fiipinos in their hands; but II
they do, it is because they have parted
with the spirit and faith of the fathers
and have lost the virility of the found
ers of the party which they profess tc
represent.
The republican party does not have te
assert it's devotion to the declaration OF
independence. 1t wrote into the consti
tuition the amendments guaranteeing po
litical equality to American citizenship
and 1T has never broken them cOun-
seled others in breaking them. 1t will MOI
be guided in it's conduct by one set Of
principles at home and another set in the
new territory belonging to the United
States.
If our opponents would only practice