The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1900-03-09
TAFT Is NOT
in ACCORD.
acknowledged He Was Not an
Expansionist.
HARMON SPRANG A SENSATION.
The Ex-Attorney General Said the Fill
pinos Had Trusted This Nation, Know
ing It's History-Judge william X. Day
spoke-Yet Taft Upheld Mckinley.

CINCINNATI, March 6.--The compli-
mentary dinner given at the Queen City
club to Judge William II. Taft, the re-
Gently appointed president Of the Phil
ippine commission, by lis friends and
neighbors, was unique in its elegance
and its good will.
M. E. ingalls,, president Of the Big
Four Railroad company, presided as
toastmaster. After reading a letter OF
regret from Secretary of War Root,
who was unable to attend, anil after
speaking in a happy vein Of Judge Taft
and his great mission, he introduced
Judge William r Day, late secretary
of state, who spoke of the negotiation
Of the treaty of peace with Spain.
Judge Day was followed with the
closest attention. The heartiest APP
plause was given to his assertion that
the aim of the United States is not to
exploit trade in the Philippines, but to
serve the interests of the people of those
islands.
Governor George K. Nash followed
Judge Day, speaking pleasantly Of Judge
Taft as citizen, lawyer and n judge.
Judge Judson Harmon, attorney gen.
eral under the last Cleveland admins
tration, was the next speaker.
He created sensation in his opening
sentence. "If you had met to approve
| the general course of the government
with the Philippines" Judge Harmon
| said, Il should not be here. For 100
years we contented ourselves with words
of sympathy for peoples struggling as
we once struggled, for freedom and in
dependence. Here, for the first time,
an opportunity came to help in such
struggle without breaking our settled
| policy. We Joined ranks with the ma
| tive patriots against the common enemy.
| Whether any one made or was author
| lied to make promises to them is Of no
consequence. Our history and princi-
pies are perpetual promise: and no one
| will deny that when the Fiipinos joined
| forces with us, they believed, and we
know that they believed, success would
mean the fulfllment Of their hopes"
| The silence which marked the opening
remarks by Judge Harmon was intense.
| He produced undisguised surprise when
| he limited that one of the best qualitica-
tions of Judge Taft for this mission was
the fact that he was not an eXpansionist
Judge William H. Taft, who followed,
said in part:
| "The commission is not organized. Its
members have never conferred together.
1 speak, therefore, for myself alone.
Like Judge Harmon and unlike Chair
man Ingalls,, am not now and never
have been an expansionist. 1 have al
ways hoped that the jurisdiction of our
nation would not extend beyond terri
| tory betweC the two oceans. We have
not solved all the problems of popular
government so perfectly as to justify our
voluntarily seeking more difficult ones
abroad.
"My conviction is that the calm in.
vestigation of the future historian into
all the conditions existing at the time of
taking each step toward the present stu
alton in the Philippines will lead him to
conclude that President Mckinley and
his administration selected in each crisis
the only alternative which a due regard
to our national and international Obliga-
tions would permit"
Judge Taft was frequently interrupt
ed with applause, which was especially
vigorous when he announced the charge
given by the president to the new COM
mission and when he spoke of the neces-
sity of enforcing civil service in the
Philippine At the close of his address
the entire assembly arose and Cheered to
the echo the distinguished guest Of the
evening.
The presentation of handsome silver
loving cup to Judge Taft closed the ex-
ercises. and the guests departed after
siuging "America.