Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1901-03-01
BLOW ON BROW OF AMERICAN
HONOR.

HONOR.
Chicago Times Herald.
But yesterday the word of this re-
public might. like that of Caesars,
have stood against the world. Today
who so weak or simple in all the
courts of nations as to do it rever-
ence? The Times-Herald has not
word of comment to offer upon the
Cuban amendment to the army bill as
an original proposition. 1t may con-
tain the wisest provision that could
be devised for establishing peace and
giving stable government to the
island. What we insist upon is that
the United States was not free to
adopt any such conditions and hapg
them about the neck of Cuba. 1t was
pledged to strike the Spanish letters
from an oppressed and ishamefully
abused people. with a solemn dis
avowsl of any purpose of substituting
American rule, however benefcen5.
in its place.
We wish the Herald had the
space to reproduce one title of the
fervent utterances that accom- panied
the adoption of the now notorious
resolutions of April 20, 1898. They
fill pages and pages of the Congress
sional Record, and in the light of the
action of the senate this week they
ring falser than the kiss of Judas.
How the senators hoped and prayed
that the starved and scourged people
of Cuba would not be betrayed with
the promise of freedom only to be
taught to look with suspicion and
hatred upon the stars and stripes as
they had looked on the hated yellow
flag of Spain!
The air of both houses of congress
was surcharged with electric elo-
quence that contrasted American
honor with Spanish perfdy.
Intervention and independence for
Cuba were on the lips and in the votes
of a majority of the senate, and al
most unanimous house during the
night of April IS, 1898. when the ia
nous resolutions went back and forth
between the two houses until they
came to final agreement which let
slip the armies of the United States
for the emancipation of the republic
of Cuba from the thrall of Spain.
Our own Senator Cullom denounced
Spain as robber nation, and APP
pealed to every clover of freedom and
humanity the world over'' to further
the sacred cause of Cuban iudepend-
ence.
In concluding his speech on the
question April IS, 1898. this is what
Senator Teller said in repudiating the
idea of a war of aggrandizement:
s'Mr. President. | want the senate,
before we conclude this debate, to say
to the world in the most emphatic
manner possible that we do not iu-
tend in any way or manner to derive
benefit from this Intervention. Spain
is too weak and to poor to pay in
demnity. 1 want the senate to say
that we do not intend to take that is
land; that whatever we may do as to
some other islands. as to this island,
the great bone of contention, we do
not intend to take it from the gally
constituted authorities of the island
as now established. At the proper
time. if no one else does SO, l propose
to offer some amendment to the joint
resolution that shall make it clear to
the world that it shall not be said by
any European government when we
go out to make battle for the liberty
and freedom of Cuban patriots that
We are doing it for the purpose of
ACKNOWLEDGMENT for ourselves or in
creasing of our territorial holdings"
And Mr.. Teller was as good as his
word. as the concluding disavowal of
the resolutions of April 20, 1898. tes-
titles. Yet Senator Teller last Tuesday
voted to rivet American suzerainty
on Cuba in the place of Spanish
shackles.
By that vote he and his associates
have stripped the intervention of the
United States on behalf of Cuba of the
last vestige of disinterestedness aud
have written hypocrisy and shameless
pertidy like blister across the hith-
erto fair and untarnished brow of
American honor.