Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1904-07-09

under the oaks. The real and personal
wealth Of the country has grown in
this amazing half century from seven
thousand millions to ninety-four thous'
and millions. Our railroads have
grown from a mileage of $4,000 to one
OF 100000. Our imports and exports
nave gone up by leaps and bounds To
the same monstrous proportions. And
finally let Ills hasten to say as the 9th
ed side will say it for us, instead OF
the $47,OOO,OOO which supplied our
modest needs in 1850 we now collect
and spend some $7OO00OO0O annually
can only add what Speaker Reed re-
Piled to democratic statesman who
complained of billion dollar con
gress: well! this is billion dollar
country"
Spanish-American War.
1 II the government for the last seven
years had done nothing else, it would
nave entitled itself to an honorable
place In history by the manner in
winch 1t has handled the questions
OF the islands whose destiny has been
SO interviewer with our own. The war
with Spain was carried through with
Incredible swiftness and energy, with
out a shadow of corruption, without a
moral or a technical fault A hundred
days suff1ced for the fighting Diplom-
acy then did its work, and our COM
mlssioners brought home a treaty so
just and so beneficial that it was i'm
possible to unite the opposition against
1t. Then came the far more difficult
and delicate task of administration.
/ You remembtr the doleful prophecies
OF evil with which the air was filled;
that we had not the habit nor the abil-
lty to govern outlying possessions; that
the islands would be cesspools of job
berry and fraud; that the enterprise
was conceived in violence and would
go out in disaster And now you know
the result. The republic never is in
default Of men to serve it worthily
when the Chief of State is honest and
able; when he has the eye and the will
to choose the best men and will be
satisfied with no less. So in Cuba
Porto Rico, and the Philippines we
got the best we had. Wood, Allen and
Hunt land Taft have each in his place
wrought great work and gained a
righteous fame. Cuba and Porto Rico
are free and enjoying-the one under
} her own banner, the other under the
stars and stripes-a degree of prosper
ity and happiness never known before
in all their troubled story. AS to the
} Philippines the work done there by
Judge Taft and his associates will rank
} among the highest achievements OF
|. colonial administration recorded In
!, history. Never since their discovery
: has there been such general peace and
!, order! so thorough a protection of the
!, peaceable and restraint of evil doors
so wide a diffusion of education. sc
!; complete guaranty to industry OF
| the fruit of it's labors And when they
see this energetic and efficient govern
ment carried on, free from the venality
and bribery which formerly seemed tc
them necessity of existence, then
, indeed, they are like them that dream
{ The principal evil from which they
{ still suffer has it's origin here. Some
| well-meaning people-and others not
so well meaning-are constantly per
suading them that they are oppressed
and that they will be given their lib
, erty, as they choose to call it, as soor
, as the republican party is overthrow
in this country These are the true
enemies of the Filipinos, and not the
men who are striving with whole-heart
, ed energy and with consummate sue
cess to ameliorate their condition anc
, to make them fit for self-governmen
and all it's attendant advantages. Thf
, so-called anti-imperiallsts confound II
their daily speeches and writings two
absolutely unrelated ideas-the lib
! erty, the civil rights, the self-govern
: ment which We have given the FLIP
! Iinos, and the independence which the
!, best of them do not want and know
,, they are unable to maintain. To aban
don them now. to cast them adrift a
the mercy of accident. would be an &C
of cowardice and treachery which
:, would gain us the scorn and reproacl
+ of civilization.
r The Republican Platform.
! Our platform is before the country
Perhaps it is lacking in novelty
r There is certainly nothing sensational
, about it. 1t is substantially the plat
!, form on which we won two great vic
tories in the name of Mckinley, ant
. it is still sound and serviceable. 1t
, !, principles have been tested by eigh
1 years of splendid success and have re
: ceived the approval of the country
1t is in line with all our platforms o
the past, except where prophecy an
S promise in those days have becom
history in these. We stand by tn
e ancient ways which have prove
: good
e 1t would take wizard to guess wha
0 dainty dish our adversaries will Sc
4 before the sovereign people tomol
r row. Their state conventions hav
g given them rich variety to choos
+ from AS to money, they range al
f the way from Bedlam to Belmont; a
to tariff, the one wing in Maryland i
almost sane, the other wants ravin
i, free trade and dynamite for the Gus
! tom houses. When they discuss GU
: island possessions, some want to scu'
;. tie away and abondan them out Q
). hand; others agree with that sensibl
southerner who said: What's tn
use talking about expansion. Grea
Scott. we've done eXpanding!" On
: thing is reasonably sure: they vii
y get as near to our platform as the
$ possibly can and they will by implics
l.: MI i,,1o ~