The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1900-02-07
The Race Issue
And Annexation of the Philippines.
Can Our Republic Stand When 1t Erects Military Despot
ism in the Spanish Islands and Governs Outside the
Constitution and Contrary to the Declara-
ton Of independence?
sb Of Hon. B. R. THman, of South Carolina IN the Senate
the United States, January 29 1900

South Carolina, IN the Senate OF
January 29, 1900.
to them which even fifteen years ago
would have caused this country to be
shocked from one end to the other. And
yet, Mr. President, we hear nothing in the
newspapers except praise for this new
evangel. We find the press of the country
controlled by the new influences which
dominate our affairs, yelpingin chourus in
favor of these new doctrines, and there is
no longer. any pTetense that the eclara-
tion of independence is governing force
in our affairs, or that The Constitution itself
can apply to all people under our jurlsdIc-
ton. -.
The resolution, as l said, embraces a
rehearsal Of the famous beginning to the
Declaration of Independence in regard to
the equality of men, the inalienable right
to life, liberty, and happiness; that gov
erninents derive their just powers from
the consent of the governed, anu SO forth.
These ideas are stale and outworn, 1t
seems, and shall not discuss them, except
Incidentally. I shall illustrate some Of my
arguments by reference to this immortal
declaration, but l will go on to the next
proposition, which is that this Government
can not hold territories for the purpose OF
governing them as colonies only, and that
there is no power under our Constitution or
under our laws TO govern people and terri
tory with other purpose than to create
States.
That is legal proposition about which
men will differ. Men who are lawyers
always differ. 1t is their business to differ.
If all lawyers agreed, there would be no
attorney on the other side and one fee
would not be earned.
I lay down this broad proposition, which
I will not undertake to argue out from a
legal standpoint, but which rests on the
basis of common sense, that the United
States can not govern any country that
idoessnot belong to the United States, and
that IL we have any territory anywhere
above which our flag floats there the
Declaration of Independence and the
Constitution Of the country go together,
and if the flag goes there the Constitution
and the principles underlying the Con-
eStitufi0H and Declaration Of Independence
go t9a i sD we surrender these, If we by
Our 8f 81 h6re claim that we have other
and sfi ii8f f{aWen, then, Mr.. President,
Efil9s Bkf6H fof the end has come. -.
||f ||ss3 f 1 a my remarks, but will not
" 81 read them, some decisions OF
~ <6 Ie GblTt! bearing on this Ques-
shs IL lang guages the strongest,
~ - HHHt mphaJ1p,r rIm0SE unQOuDCeQ
{ T.! hing can convey any meaning, it
4 j. 8 h Ahat aec6 Birding to the opinion Of
pTenle Court the proposition have
hid down Is the law of the land and that
Congress must carry it outa
Our Supreme Court, the authorized in
tFpreter q our Constitution, has said:
ys,,vsl IN the General Government to OBJ
tam & sss ssd hold colonies and dependent terri
tories oyeriwhich they (the Congress) might
3eStslate without restriction would be inconsis-
tent With fts own existence In It's present form.
JScott ~ Sanford, ~ How, 3H)
In another case that court has said:
The power of Congress over the Territories is
limited by the obvious purposes for which 1t
was conferred, and those purposes are satisfied
Tsrritories ~ 1e to become States in hU the Union. @
Murphy rs. Ramsey, la U. S. Rep, l5.)
In still another case it said:
The Territories acquired by Congress, wheth-
Ter by deeds OF cession from the original States
or by treaty with q foreign country, are held
with the object, as soon as their population
and condition justify It, of being admitted into
with the original States I'm an, respects
i(Shively rs. Bowlby, l52 U. s., s,
In still another case it said
The Constitution was madeaor the benefit of
every citizen Of the United States and there Is
no citizen, whatever his condition. or where
ever he may be within the Territory of the
United States, who has not O right TO ITS pro-
lection. UNITED States Us. Moote Granch,
1897 stsgs t.,f
And in defining the rights oftkeeI iinhabi-
tants of Territories it said: szs I,
The personal and civil rights Stt lnhabi-
tants of the Territories are secufds 10 them, as
to other citizens, by the principdG5 h constitu-
tional liberty, which restrain altsfle agencies
of government, State and national. K Murphy
u.s. Ramsey, III L. =. Rep, Is. See also Nor
mon Church rs. United States, l36 T.. $. Rep,
~
The fourteenth amendment to the
Constitution OF the United States provides
that "all persons born or naturalized in the
United States and subject to the jurisdic-
tion thereof are citizens Of the United
States"
Chief Justice Marshall, for the entire
scourt, defined the term "United States
fas follows.
n sDoes this term designate the whole or any
Eparticplar portion of the American empire ?
Certainly this question can admit of but one
answer. 1t is the name given to our great
Republic, which is composed of States and
Territories. The District of Columbia or the
territory west of the Missouri Is not less within
the United States than Maryland or Penn
sylvania. Loushborough rs Blake, )
Wheaton, 1871
o.
universally accepted as conclusive inter
Ipretatiohs of our constitutional law, sum.
marizes the doctrine as follows:
/ And when territory is acquired the right to
suffer States to bc formed thcrcfrom and to
receive them into the Union must follow OF
course, not only because the Constitution con.
fers the power to admit new States without
restriction, but, also because it would be
| inconsistent with institutions founded on the
fundamental idea of sclf-government that tho
| Federal Government should retain territory
under its own imperial rule and deny the
people the customary local institutions
| tCoolcy's Principles of Constitutional Law
TO-
Having given these opinions of oul
court of last resort, will leave this part
of my subject and pass on.
The next proposition which is involyee
in the resolution is that our comnaetC{
does not depend upon the acquisittpfsDl
Asatic territory, and will only dTaW tht
attention of Senators, without going ifttl
statistics, to the fact, which can not BIZ
disputed, that of the exports Of the Ameri
can people at least go per cent at this time
60 to Europe. Our commerce in the HPaci
fic is comparatively small.
While visions of greatness, Of empire
and of untold wealth which is to 2fov
thcrcfrom. which so dazzled the eyes o
the Senator from Indiana the other day
are in the air, and every man imagine
that q new Aladdin's palace is going II
spring up in that quarter of the glob
which we are to march forward to and in
habit, | say to him thatif know anythin!
about it-and | at least am entitled to III.
opinion, il nothing else-the nations q
Europe which has Il comparatively snlal
area and is denscly populated, will call ol
nS i'm futllrp ga thnV have in thn uuSt fp