Tazewell Republican. [volume] (Tazewell, Va.) 1892-1919, 1903-11-26
Roosevelt Supplies An Issue.
Richmond News Leader.

President Roosevelt is supplying the
Democrats with an Issue and his oppo.
nents in the Republican party with pow
erful weapon for use against him. o.
yiously with his assistance, the newspapers
printed Saturday parts of the message he
intended to send to congress. The gist Of
this message was that if the republic of
Colombia persisted in demanding unfair
terms for the privilege of building canal
across her territory, we should make her
what we might consider to be fair offer
and if she continued to refuse, simply seize
the territory we want and go ahead with
the digging.
This seems to acquit President Roose-
welt of having stirred up or secretly aided
the secession of the State of Panama. 1t
indicates that if anybody in our govern
ment had ANYTHING to do with the seces
sion 1t was somebody who had more sense
and more regard for the decencies OF in
ternational intercourse than the president
The American people love and admire
courage, aggressiveness, progre:slveness
and virility. Yet they do not want these
United States to figure as the worlds
drunk and disorderly. We doubt if they
will be willing to elect to represent them
and shape their foreign policy a man
whose methods are those of the bully and
the slugger, however good his motives
may be.
There is a distinct difference between
the common and fair strategy of trade and
highway robbery. 1t is legitimate business
to take advantage of the neglect of an adj
versary or even of the discussions in a ri
val concern. 1t is contrary to law and
morals to throw a man down and take bis
property away from him by force because
he happens to be friendless and bis assail.
ant is physically stronger.
The News Leader is imperialistic in its
tendencies 1t has tremendous ambition
for the growth and glory Of this country,
for the increase of its power among the ma
tons, to see it recognized AS the strongest,
highest, cleanest, best Of all governments.
We have approved the course of our gov
eminent with Cuba and Porto Rico and
have steadily defended the Philippine pol
icy because we do not see how it could ne
avoided or improved. We could see no
sense or decency in leaving a collection of
half or wholly savage tribes to anarchy |
and to be the prey of any European power
that wanted their trade and territory. On |
general principles We believe that the cav.
age, the barbarian, the sluggards Of the
peoples Of the earth must give place to
progress, religion and civilization. We
cannot concede, however, that we have
the right to seize violently the land of a
country with which we are at peace and
use il, because we choose to assume that
its use ie necessary for cur prosperity and
for the advancement of civilization. The
tendency OF modern progress is all against
that theory which was accepted in the
time when robber barons ruled the land
and pirates rode victorious on the sea. We
believe the American people will recognize
the wide difference between doing thing
by methods of diplomacy or under the
rules of commerce and within
International laws and doing it by force
and violence in defiance of all rules and
avs. If their attention is directed to the
subject we believe they will be unanimous
practically in refusing to trust a man who
undertakes to commit them to any such
riotous, foolish and violent
course.