The Montgomery advertiser. [volume] (Montgomery, Ala.) 1885-1982, 1902-06-03

Leaders win temporarily paraiyze the in
Such u the opinion formed by VIII
liam Jennings Bryan as the result Of his
snts Of Golfer = We Wse sRyeA'
III his article In Golfers Weekly OF
June 8. Mr.. Bryan will say:
That the people of Cuba are capable
open for. dispute. Henry Clay. declared
in his defence Of the Independence OF
the South American republics. that God
never made 9 people incapable Of self,
thrones and reflection on Jehovah to
say that He created people Incapable Of
government and left them to the govern
ment Of kings and emperors. Clay's logic
Capacity for government Is not a
thing to be acquired or to he bestowed
1t Is inherent In the people. As indi-
viduals diner In wisdom. In sef.restraint
end in moral character. 90 nations DIFF
fer. but It can not be said that any ma
ton has. reached perfection In the
science Of government or In the art of
administration: neither can 1t be said
that any nation is so low down in the
scale of civilization that 1t needs for
eign master
when Jefferson was invited to sug-
gest laws for French colony which
located In the United States early in the
nineteenth century, he declined. and
gave as his reason that laws were the
outgrowth of the history and Of the peo-
pie and that no alien could be sufficient
ly informed about, or sufficiently In
sympathy with, q people to make their
laws for them. enlargement IL In it.
self a developing process and growth in
capacity comes With the exercise OF hu-
But one who visits Cuba and becomes
acquainted with the people need not rest
the case upon abstract principles. for
he Is convinced by observation that the
rtYhn hay "a o. tn
ern themselves but also have the ability
TO do So That they will make mistakes
is certain. but have We not made mis-
takes in the United States?
That they may sometimes resort to
violence instead of reason Is possible.
but have we not done SO in the United
States? 1t Is even possible that the ISL
and NAV I be the the scene of
in the United States? The child will
stumble and fall in its effort to walk,
but Is there any other means by which
1t can learn to walk?
Cuban independence will not give the
people a government free from fault,
but 1t will give them government as
good as they deserve to have-a govern
ment that will improve as the people
themselves make progress in virtue and
Intelligence.
Free government does not mean that
each citizen will have just such gov
eminent as he wants; 1t simply means
eminent as the majority desire, ana
that each individual can present his
views to his fellows with the confde9ce
that whatever Is best for all will uit-
Mr.. Bryan enters with careless grace
upon the discussion of fundamentals
when he repeats Henry Clay and says tn l,
God never made a people incapable Oh 81
self government-a statement which Is
true only when We extend the meaning
of the term .'self-government' so that II
shall embrace any and all forms OF IN
dependent government. Even the "a
honey savages are capable of independ-
ent government: so are the Digger IN
dams. But, If we mean by self-goyern-
ment. an intelligent preservation OF the
rights Of the individual by an admins
tration elected by the people there Is
serious reason to doubt II there be any
truth in Clay's statement.
The Clay dogma is used here as the
foundation for a future argument IN
of the Philippines. Mr.. Bryan Is always
laying wires of this sort to be pulled
at convenient season. He declares tnat
capacity for government Is not q thihg
to be acquired or to be bestowed lit Is
inherent in the people" This Is con-
trary to all human experience. A very
cursory study of history will convince
any one that self-government Is growth,
that first we have the desp otism and then
the Democracy-not the reverse. as would
be the case II the capacity for govern
ment were inherent in the people. Inc
story of the English people Is the one
with which the American people are
most familiar; and 1t Is clear demon
stration of the processes whereby. PEG,
pie incapable Of self-government learned
how to govern themselves. The history
of the world Is full of like illustrations.
Mr.. Bryan reasons from insufficient
premises; his conclusions. therefore. are
false. Take this statement based upon
the alleged inherent capacity Of people:
Neither can 1t be said that any nation
is so low down in the scale Of civiliza-.
ton that 1t needs foreign master
We do not have to 60 away from home
to get proof that this is a false conclus-
ion. Mr.. Bryan, possibly. would set up
the Indian tribal nations in this country
as Illustrations of inherent capacity, yet
1t is generally agreed that they were
unfit for self-government or for. occu-
pancy Of the land; and We. as foreigners,
have not only mastered them but have
conferred a blessing upon all peoples by
so doing.
There is no need to consider Mr.. Bry.-
ans forebodngs as to Cuba's future. A
man who so frequently despairs Of the
republic at home. can be excused Tor
taking no very hopeful view of the eff
fort Of a newly organized government to
cope with the octopusses that crowd upon