Graham guardian., 1900-07-27
FREE DM0CRACY VS. T0REl
FEDERAL IMPERIALISM.
war Against the the FIlipinos Without
Authority.

war Against the the FIlipinos Without
Authority.
by A. BUCK.
By what authority did Mckinley
declare and wage war against the
Filipinos? Who authorized such
war against the Filipinos? The
war was lnaugurated in pursuance
of an order of President Mckinley
made December 21st, 1898, and
nearly three months before the
treaty between the United States
and Spain was ratified. Congress
had not declared war against the
Filipinos, though Congress was in
session when Mckinley issued his
celebrated war proclamation. The
treaty provided, as Mckinley knew
long before its ratification, that,
"The civil rights and political
status of the native inhabitants of
the territories hereby ceded to the
United States shall be determined
by Congress-" Yet no commune
cation was sent to Congress ask
ing what should be done, or
what policy should be adopted.
The treaty conferred no powers
upon the president. Yet, before
its ratification, not as provided in
the treaty and as provided in the
first volunteer measure, that Con,
gress should act, the president,
upon his own responsibility, forced
war upon us against our friends,
and while General Otis declared
that the war must proceed, Nc
Kinley could not see any way out
of it. Such impudance and i'm
abacility is in perfect accord with
his declaration of war before he
knew whether the treaty would be
ratified or not. He cared nothing
for the fragrant violation of the
constitution which his action in
volved, knowing as he did, that
that instrument confers upon Con-
gress the right to declare war.
Besides, nobody contemplated that
the president would violate the
Volunteer Act of April goth, 1898,
which required him to reduce the
army to a peace basis as soon as
the object for which it was intend.
ed had been accomplished, nor
violate the law in holding soldiers
over the time of their enlistmsnt;
law that provides that they shall
be mustered out when the objects
for which they were called had
been reached.
Upon what did Mckinley base
his claim that it was his duty to
conquer the Filipinos and compel
them to recognize the sovereignty
of the United States? He claimed
that he was surppressing an in
surrection or rebellion. How
could he entertain such an idea
when he commenced the war and
when no laws of the Uuited States
ever prevailed in the Philippines?
The people there could not have
rebelled against us for we had no
laws nor no control there to be
rebelled against. 1t is said that
we bought the country from Spain.
However disgraceful such a pro.
ceeding was unless done to assist
the Filipinos in procuring their
independence, Spain could not
sell more than she had. 1t is a
notorious fact that Spain had Mt
terly failed to subdue the Fill
pinos and bring them under her
dominion, and that, on the CON
trary, the Filipiuos had virtually
gained their independence from
Spain through their own exertions.
1t appears, if we bought anything
from Spain, we bought the fight
Spain was making against the
Filipinos. The president under
took to do what Spain could not
do,-despoil and vanquish a people
who were striving, through fire
and blood, for their liberty and in
dependence. How proud our
modern imperial statemen should
be of taking up cause so heartless
and infamous.
Certainly the president had no
right to abrogate the express terms
of the treaty between the United
States and Spain which provided
that congress should fix the politi-
cal status of the Filipinos; and, ifI
that is true, by what authority did
he wage the war? If the president
based his action on the proposition
that he, as commander-in-chiof, has
a right to declare war, then he con-
stituted himselfa military dictator.
He become greater than Comwell,
and he can put people in rebellion
whenever they refuse to obey an
order or proclamation issued by
him contrary to any law or treaty
as he did in the case of the Fill
pinos.
1t is certainly an anomily to see
q president precipitate such war
without the authority of Congress,
and that to, while that body was