The Montgomery advertiser., 1902-08-23

in which the highest standard must be
demanded
Standpoint of Honor.
In making appointments to the insular
| service, 1t is necessary to disregard any
question of mere party expediency and
| to look at the matter solely from the
standpoint of the honor of our own ma
ton and of the welfare of the island itself.
| This has been the standpoint adhered to
| in selecting the men who represent our
government in Porto Rico. In consei-
| quence, all Americans should feel a real
pride in the manner In which their COM
| patriots who are responsible for the
government of the islands have admins
| tered 1t.
Moreover in shaping the government
of the island we have acted with good
sense as well as with good faith. We
| have not been frightened or msled into
giving the people of the island form
| of government unsuitable to them and
while providing that they should govern
| themselves so far as possible we have
not hesitated in their own interest to keep
| the power of shaping their destiny.
In Cuba the problem was larger and
more difficult. Here again, we kept our
promise absolutely After having deliv-
| cred the island from its oppressors, we
refused to turn it loose off hand with the
certainty that it would sink into chaos
and savagery. For over three years we
administered 1t on plane higher than it
had ever reached during the four centu-
ries since the Spaniard first landed on its
shore. We brought moral and physical
cleanliness into its government.
I'VE stamped out yellow fever, in it.
self an inestimable service both to the
Cuban people and to the people of our
own Southern States. We established a
school system. We made life and prop
erty secure so that industry could again
begin to thrive. Then when we had laid
deep and broad the foundation upon
which civil liberty and national indepen-
dence must rest we turned the island
over to the hands of those whom the
people had chosen as the founders of the
new republic. 1t is a republic with which
our own great republic must ever be
closely knit by the ties of common inter
est and common aspirations.
Cuba must always be peculiarly relat-
ed to us In international politics. She
must be to degree a part of our politi-
cal system. In return she must have
peculiar relations with US economically
She must be, in a sense, part of our
economic system. We expect her to ac-
cept a political attitude toward us which
we think wisest both for her and us. In
return we must be prepared to put her in
an economic position as regards our tar
if system which will give her some meas
ure of the prosperity which we enjoy.
Stamped Out Yellow Fever.
I'VE cannot in my judgment, avoid taxi
in gthis attitude II we are to preserve
the course which we have outlined for
ourselves as a nation during the past four
years and therefore I believe that it is
only matter of time and 1 trust only
matter of a very short time. before we
ante Iofn arfn 40 Lot <v,.. =,
Cuba.
THE isthmian canal represents what is
probably to be the greatest engineering
feat-the greatest feat of the kind-of the
twentieth century. Before we start upon
the construction of the canal certais ques-
tions of detail and OF our relations with
the people owning the soil have to be
settled. When this has been done, the
first question will come on choosing the
commission which is to supervise the
building of the canal. Here again we
have to deal with a problem so vast and
so far reaching that but one thought is
permissibe-how to get the very best
men In the nation-men of the highest en- |
cheering. business and administrative
skill who will consent to undertake the |
work.
IF possible I should like to see these |
men represent different sections and diff
tons are secondary. The primary aim |
must he to get rNen who though able to |
control much greater salaries than the |
nation is able to pay nevertheless possess |
the patriotism and the healthy ambition |
which will make the willing to put their |
talens at the governments service.
In the Orient.
80 much for what has been done in the |
Occident In the Orient the labor was
more difficult.
ut is rare, indeed, that great work,
a work supremacy worth doing, can be |
done, save at the cost not only of labor |
and toll. but Of much puzzling worry |
during the time of the performance. Nor
mally the nation that achieves greatness
like the individual who achieves great
ness can do so only at the cost of anx-
iety and bewilderment and heart wearing |
effort Timid people. people scant of
faith and hope, and good people who are
not accustomed to the roughness of the
lie of effort, are almost sure to be dis
heartened and dismayed by the work and
the worry and over much cast down by
the shortcomings, actual or seeming, |
which in real life always accompany the
first stages even of what eventually turn
out to be the most brilliant victories
''All this is true of what has happened
during the last four years in the Philip
an easy task. but 1t is left US certain
other tasks which were more difficult.
Task in Philippines.
"One of these tasks was that of dealing
with the Philippines. The easy thing to
do-the thing which appealed not only toI
lazy and selfish men, but to very many |
good men. whose thought did not drive
them down to the root OF things-was to
leave the islands. Had We done this a
period of wild chaos would have super
vened. and then some stronger power
would have stepped in and seized the
islands and have taken up the task which
we in such a case would have fiinched
from performing.
"a less easy. but infinitely more absurd
course would have been to leave the ISL
ands ourselves and at the same time to
assert that we would not permit any one
else to interfere with them. This par
ticular course would have combined all
the possible disadvantages of every other
course which was advocated. 1t would
have placed us in a humiliating position,
because when the actual test came, it
would have been quite ont of the ques-
ton for us. after some striking deed of
savagery had occurred in the islands. TO
stand by and prevent the re-entry Of