The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-05-24
DEMOCRATIC SPEECH BY ARE
PUBLICAN SENATOR.

senator HOarS speech attacking the
American policy in the Philippines was re-
markable for Inconsistency, illogicalness,
unfairness OF statement and weakness of
argument. These qualities are not generally
attributed to Senator Hoar. but in this
case he had to exercise them. Democratic
senator's can indulge in wholesale denun-
citation of Republican policies without be-
ing inconsistent, and unfairness Of state
ment and weakness of argument are habit
ual with them. But when a Republican
senator tries to invest this style of ar
gument with a semblance of judicial fair
ness and to palm off Democratic sophis-
tries as the essence of political wisdom he
undertakes a hopeless task. Senator Hoar
seems to have realized to some extent the
absurdity Of his position, for he tried to
make it appear that. although bitterly OPP
posed to the policy of the administration,
he is nevertheless an administration man.
He characterized our policy in the Phillip
pines as one of the most wicked and foolish
chapters in history. yet FASTENED to add
that the men who were responsible for it
were neither wicked nor foolish. He eulo-
gized Presidents Mckinley and Roosevelt,
yet condemned their acts. He admitted the
purity of their motives, but declared that
his conscience would not permit him to fol-
low them, thus implying that enlightened
conscience can face two ways at once In
one sentence he declared that 1.-THE United
States is fighting to secure a dependency
not republic" and in another he admitted
that what vindicates that which has been
done Sc far is the saving of the islands from
anarchy and the material benefit conferred
upon the Filipino people" He said the gov
eminent had created a despotism in the
Philippines" and yet admitted that 1.-The
share which it was proposed to give the
Filipinos in the proposed scheme of gov
eminent was an admission that many of
them are fit for seIf-government." He did
not try to explain how the establishment
Of a despotism could be consistent with
the comforting of self-government. Refer
ring to the cruelties alleged to have been
committed in the Philippines, he said he
believed the American soldiers were as
brave and humane as ever lived. "They
would be done in like conditions The chief
guilt was upon the heads of those who
created the conditions" Yet he had already
declared that the men who had created the
conditions were neither wicked nor foolish.
1t does not seem to have occurred to him
that the real responsibility for the condi-
tions rested on those who had begun the
uyar hA INV
cruelty and no war in Porto Rico because
the Porto Ricans did not take up arms
against the United States and attempt to
abrogate the treaty of Paris.
These are only few of the inconsistent
cies of this Democratic speech by Repub-
lican senator. In other respects Senator
Hoar showed fully as great ignorance of
facts and as much recklessness of state
ment any Democratic senator. He dwelt
upon the horrors of the recommendation
camps in the Philippines, which he Hkened
TO the dreadful scenes in AndersonvilIe
Prison during the civil war. Such a COM
parison would better come from the Filipino
junta in Hong-Kong than from Massa-
chusetts senator. The so-called concentra-
ton camps in the Philippines have been
described by trustworthy officers as places
of safety and schools of sanitary instruc-
ton, and in all of them there is not
single established case of individual cruelty.
starvation or suffering. If a Massachu-
setts senator, during the civil war, had
attacked the war policy of the administra-
ton as Senator Hoar did in this speech he
would have been retired from office at the
earliest opportunity and have been made to
feel the weight of popular odium as long
as he lived. If it happens differently now
it will be because the quality of Massachu-
setts patriotism and Repubicanism has de-
Perforated