Virginian-pilot. (Norfolk, Va.) 1898-1911, 1900-07-18
EIGHT PAGES.
WEDNESDAY. JULY Is. 1900.
THREE WARS WITH ONE
UNDERLYING CAUSE.

The world Is getting prettx, 1,r-a
dose of what Hon. Theodore Roosevelt
calls the strenuous life. Indeed III.
supply of that commodity is at present
somewhat larger than is either desjro
pie UT convenient. According to Teddy
TINS would be impossible; nevertheless
ltis so. With great reluctance the oh
server will be compelled to conclude
that strenuousness has its drawback.
fat least as at present exemplified In
China. the Philippines, the Transvaal
Ashanti and in other remote quarters
And not the least impressive part of
thls whole business is the fact that the
so-cailed civilized nations have gone
out or their way to provoke and 10 pro
gmote the strenuousness which is nre
7 sently victimizing them. Not one of
them has case that would not he
kicked out OF n common law or equity
court with warning to counsel TO be
more careful in future. The quality
and quantity of strenuousness TINT
England has aroused in South Africa
has amazed the world and has put tho
British Empire in mourning. And this
mas come to pass because the hardy
schemes of spectators and of Eng
lands dream of Empire in South
AFRICA. 1t is war upon liberty pure
and simple; war upon the right of n
nation to exist and upon the right of n
people to govern themselves. In the
philippines our case stands much the
same. except that the Independence of
the Filipinos. while practically
achieved. had never been formally ac-
knowledged; we took over the islands
under the empty husk of a Sovereignty
Spain was not able to exercise outside
of Manila and a few garrisoned towns
we took up the task of subduing the
Filipinos and 1t is still with us. 1t is
a war upon the right of n people to
choose their own form of government
4 a war of conquest merely. In China
all the nations of the West. aided by
I Japan, are locked in n death grapple
with the yellow hordes of Mongolia.
Why? Because foreign representatives
were butchered at Pekin? Not at all.
That was but single unspeakably
horrible incident in the struggle. The
real underlying cause of the war is
The attempt, long persisted in, of Eu-
rope to dominate China. The Chinese
nave not been permitted to govern
themselves in peace or to live their
lives free from annoying and domineer-
ing interference at the hands of ma
fions with selfish purposes to serve.
There is the apparently anomalous and
remarkable spectacle of civilized" ma
tions engaged in waglng three wars
upon peoples less highly civilized, and
i IN each instance the purpose is to deny
to the latter the rights the "civlized'
nations demand for themselves. the
right to manage their own affairs.
When 1T is recalled that this nation had
I Its beginning in the triumphant vindi-
cation of that right, that for II century
and quarter it has maintained that
right for itself and for other nations in
this hemisphere, but that it is now
engaged in warning upon that right
elsewhere, the lamentabe change in
3 our governmental policy is apparent.
s Che United States has become a leader
: iii a world wide scheme of Imperialism
having for its object the extinguish-
ment of nations not protesting Euro
pean civilization, and this it has done
through the reputation of its very
foundation principle.
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