The Savannah morning news., 1900-06-20

tons, but when President Mckinley was
inaugurated the country was in a state
more deplorable than had existed for a
genera ton.
Facing these difficulties, the President
mmedia tely upon his inauguration, con-
Vened Congress in extra session, and in
message of force and lucidity, summa-
rized the legislation essential to our ma
tional prosperity. The industrial history
of the United States for the past four
years IS the tribute 10 the wisdom of his
judgment"
When Mr.. Wolcott had given what he
called brief account of our steward
ship for four years" he said:
During a portion of that period we
were involved in a war that for time
paralyzed business and commerce, and
would have taxed heavily the resources
and credit of any other country than ours
and for the past year or more we have
been employing an army of some 5000
men in suppressing an instruction
against our authority 5000 miles away NO
industry has felt the strain of these eH-
traordinary expenses. nor have they al
fected the general sum of our prosperity.
More than that, the conditions resulting
from the legislation Of the past four
years have obllterated every issue that
was raised during the last campaign. The
democracy, having therefore TO find some
ralying cry, seek it in the results OF our
late war with Spain. and upon that ques-
ton, as upon all Others, we stand ready
to meet them IN the OPEN
Policy In the Philippines.
Speaking Of the administration policy
in the Philippines, MIR. WOlcott said:
ANY agreement by our commissioners
to give back the Philippines to SPAN, re
serving for ourselves an island or a coal
ing station, would have aroused uni
versal national Indignation, and would
h..
tatives of the people. No man saw this
so clearly as did the President. In his
advices to the Commissioners he told
them it was imperative that we should be
governed only by motives that should eX-
alt the nation; that territorial expansion
was our least concern, but that whatever
else was done the people of the Philip
pines must be liberated from Spanish
domination, and he T ached this view sole
ly through considerations of duty and hu-
manity. The American commissioners,
men Of differing political faiths, reached
a unanimous conclusion. The Treaty of
Paris was ratified by the vote of two
thirds of the Senate, and the territory
we acquired under IL became lawful and
legal possessions of the United States. The
responsibility for the war rested upon us
all; the responsibility for the treaty rests
chiefly upon the Republican party, and
that party avows the wisdom of the treaty
and declares it to be the policy of the
party to adhere to its terms and to ac-
cept the responsibilities 1t imposed"
With regard to the ADMINISTRATIONS pol
icy in Porto Rico, he said:
THE recommendations of the President
were fully and satisfactorily complied
with; the people of the islands are con-
tent, the vast mass of the American peo-
pie approve, and we have avoided prece-
dents that might vex US when we come
IN MI he hat
await us in the establishment of our per
manent relations towards people of the
Philippine Islands.
There has been much discussion during
the past few months In respect to the ex-
tent of the power of this country to deal
with Porto Rico and our other possess
ions, and it has been frequently contend
ed by the Democracy that as soon as we
became the owners of any of these ISL
ands the constitution of the United States
al once extended over them. or in the
oratorical but misleading phrase, THE
constitution follows the flag" The argu-
ment is specious, but it will not bear in
vestgation. The same question was rails
ed in 1903 at the time of the Louisiana
purchase, and the doctrine then establish
ed by Congress that we could acquire for
eign soil by purchase that Congress had
the right to establish there such a govern
ment as 1t saw fit, and chat the constitu-
llOH Slu not Oh IT'S own FORCE extend over
such territory. The doctrine was never
questioned until in Calhouns time it was
sought 10 be denied in the effort to extend
human slavery into the territories"
Our Dealings with Cuba.
As to Cuba. Mr.. Wolcott said this
among other things:
I'VE are dealing with Cuba In a spirit
not only of fairness but of generosity, ana
of absolute unseifshness, and whenever
the inhabitants OF that island evince anc
declare their ability to take over its gov
eminent and control, that day they shall
receive it; and until then we shall CON
tinue to administer its affairs under a
rule salutary and satisfactory TO all good
citizens in Cuba, and creditable to the
administration at Washington, under
whose orders the government is con-
Quoted"
Revertng to the Philippines, Mr. VOL
colt said:
I'VE are told that the islands are rich
in all the products of the tropics, in min
eral wealth, and in che possibilities of
their future development. So much the
better. But If they were as barren as
the Libyan desert. we would have taken
them just the same
I'VE haven't been there long but long
enough to reach two conclusions: One is,
that the first thing we intend doing is
to suppress the Tagal Instruction and
TO establish law and order throughout
the archipelago. That is the first ching
we shall do. And the last, the very last
thing we intend doing. is to consider,
even for a moment the question of giving
up or of abandoning these islands.
I'VE are actually owners of the Philip
pines by an undisputed and indubitable
title. We are there as the necessary and
logical outcome of our victory over
Spain"
Was n Keynote Speech.
Senator Wolcott has a clear, resonant
recesses of the hall. He speaks, however.
with great rapidity and this, perhaps,
somewhat spoiled the effect of his speech.
sympathy with him. and he had no diff
Guilty in striking responsive chord.
When, with outstretched arms, he pre-
dicted the triumphant election OF the
Republican ticket In November the au-
dience surrendered. and when he first
mentioned President McKinley's name he
could not proceed for a minute, owing to
the demonstration. AS he rehearsed the
history of the four years Of Republican
administration The prosperity which had
blessed it, the victories 1t had won, the
'orious outcome of the Spanish-American
war. the campaign OF misrepresentation
in connection with the Philippines, which
its enemies had inaugurated. and which
1t had met, the convention repeatedly
broke into applause.
1t was a keynote speech covering the
legislation which had been placed on tine
statute books and its deepest note was