The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1901-06-12
DEMOCRATS and EXPANSION.
A Bit of History for the McLaurin-
ties TO Study Seriously.

McLaurin made a characteristic
blunder when he stated that expansion
is good Democratic doctrine: that it
has always been So Never before has
this country engaged in war of sub
er before 1867, when Johonson, a
Tennessee Republican, was president
and everything in sight was Republi
can, when Alaska was bought from
Russia, did the country commit any
act of expansion as expansion is now
understood. The swallowing of Ha-
waii and it's leper settlement later, in
order to benefit few sugar trust cap
italiists and to continuessa a handful of
white carpet-baggers in jobs, was like
wise perpetrated by Republicans, not
Democrats. Democrats have always
followed the spirit of the Monroe doc
trine. Democrats have never crossed
seas on errands of conquest, not waged
wars of subjugaation to acquire terri
tory. Prior to 1860, the additions Of
territory made by Democratic admin
istrations were always of adjacent ter
ritory and came in the way of natural
bodily growth. Some of these additions
were necessary to insure the political
integrity of the nation, or to guaran-
tee the independence won in the Rev
olution.
Though the territory of Louisiana
was desirable in order that
the United States could ef-
fectually protect the pioneer
settlers on the east side of the Missis-
sippi from the depredations of the nu-
merous savage tribes that infested the
plains in the French territory beyond
the river, Jefferson did not dream of
buying it when he began to treat with
France for the opening up of the lower
Mississippi, which ran through French
territory into the gulf of Mexico. At
that time the United States had not
an inch of gulf coast, for the Spanish
territory of Florida joined the French
territory of Louisiana at Pearl river.
Spain had controlled Louisiana also,
and had permitted the United States
the use of the river, but Napoleon came
into power, abrogated the treaty of IL
defonso, and again made Louisiana
French territory thus doing away
with the agreement between Spain and
the United States. It was before the
day of railroads, and the water courses
were the most important avenues OF
communication and travel. Closing
the lower Mississippi bottled up all
the United States except the narrow
strip along the Atlantic seaboard. 1t
became necessary to treat with Napo-
leon. When this autocrat of Europe
intimated that the territory could be
bought by the United States Jefferson
was good enough Democrat to settle
thus peaceably and honorablv, and
forever, this Mississippi river ques-
tion. He also took what under the
circumstances came almost as free
gift with it. the immense territory
controlling all the tributaries, of that
river on the western side, doing away
with any subsequent claim of England
or Spain to the right of use of this wa
terway now opened to the free use of
all our own citizens. He settled at the
same time an impending Indian
question by getting these savage tribes
within our own territorial jurisdic-
tion so that we could deal with them
in our own way and rid the river
valley of a continued menace. The
territory was contiguous and not 9TH
erwise Objectionable.
The Seminole Indian trouble and
the invasion of Florida by Jackson
led to an offer by Spain to sell that
territory to the United States. It
came between our Atlantic coast and
the mouth of the Mississippi and was
contiguous and otherwise desirable,
and was added to the United States in
1919.
Texas was peopled by our own kith
and kin. They adjoined US and asked
to be taken ,,in. The United States
was Democratic and took them in on
such extraordinarily Democratic terms
that Texas was granted the privilege
of dividing itself at any time 1t
wishes into four States and sending
eight representatives to the United
States Senate instead of two.
Mexico grew jealous, went to war,
and being unable at its conclusion to
pay any other indemnity for the cost
to the United States granted territory
next to and beyond Texas and the
Louisiana purchase to the Pacific. But
we were so considerate and Democratic
in dealing with our nelghborlng re-
public and attached so little import
ance to the land she had given US that
we forgot in the treaty (that called
the treaty of Guadaloupe Hidalgo,- il
we remember correctly that we did
not make the boundary line south OF
the Gila river sufficiently definite. and
this led to- quarrel which we settled
in Democratic way in 1852 without
an appeal to arms, by what is known
as the Gadsden purchase, considera-
tion of $4,000 600, by which the
boundary between the Rio Grande and
great Colorado, and south of the Gila,
was settled.
This brings US to the place where
the Republican party, grown pompous
on the results of the civil war, took
things in hand. Instead of the policy
of broad, liberal, just and natural
growth, followed by the Democratic
party, they substituted expansion into
foreign territory by force, in which
the rights OF humanity are ignored
for the rights of the dollar. Commerce