Courier Democrat. (Langdon, N.D.) 1891-1920, 1904-07-21

whenever Q. nation In the western hem
isphere refuses to pay its obligations.
"What would the interference bef
Why, II serious and II resisted 1t would
result in bombardment Of cities, land
ing of troops and killing Of men, be-
sides rendering women and children
houseless. Imagination Of poet, mad
man or lover never went further than
the Imagination Of the acting president
when he says, II he does say, that 1t is
the duty Of the United States to make
Of itself a universal national collecting
agency; II he meant the same simply
to apply to people Of the western hem
isphere, then an American hemisphere
collecting agency.
1.-THE truth is that commercialism
ought to be taught q valuable lesson
to wit, that IL 1t chooses to do bust
ness in unsafe countries without sta
BILE institutions and among semibar-
barous peoples 1t does It with its eyes
open, 1t takes its own risk, and the
armies and navies Of the world, espe-
cially those of the United States. main
tanned by taxing the people, cannot
be used as constables without warrant
or other process Tor debt collection pur-
poses.
"If choose to buy Dominican or
Venezuelan securities or permit Haiti
or either Of the other countries to run
in debt to me it may be that I am
fool from business standpoint, but
my folly does not entitle me to have
my debts collected by the navy and
army Of the United States, and the
government of the United Suites ought
not only not to place itself In that 9th
tude, but it ought to 60 further and an
nounce to the world that, SO far as the
hemisphere of America Is concerned,
at any rate, collection Of money OBJ
legations by bomba1dment must cease.
II private individual killed another
because that other had fraudulntly
incurred a debt which he refused to
nav we would hang the individual who
did the killing.
"You ask me If the presidents policy
as outlined in the quotation by you
increases expenditures for the army
and navy and whether this letter to
ex-Secretary Root, read upon the &C.
casion referred to, would leave per-
petual sword Of war hanging over Cen
trail and South America and ourselves
"Of course it does and would, or else
the utterance in the letter is mere i'm
potence-and impotence by the way,
which results to certain degree tn
general loosening of the ties Of civil
lied society," The utterance Is Of
course not within constitutional limi-
tations,' except SO long as it remains
merely an utterance and no overt act
looking toward realizing it IS resorted
to.
Quickly, presume, however, no.
body will take the utterance Of the
president seriously, and the mad world
will wag' its own way, largely undts-
turbed by mere verbiage. Words are
but breath as long as they remain mere
words, but If the government Of the
United States were to proceed to act
upon the Suggestive utterances fulmi-
mated in the quotation which you sent
me from the presidents letter to ex-
Secretary Root then there would In
deed be general loosening Of the ties
Df civilized society,"
"Our first overt act looking toward
the realization In deeds Of the policies
and tendencies expressed in the presi-
dents words would be AN assumption
of authority contrary not only to all
international usage but contrary to
the laws of common sense.
'sYou ask me II st would not be a
flagrant exhibition Of jingoism.' Jingo-
ism is word too weak. Madness
would come nearer to it. Hysteria
would come still nearer. But as mat
ter of fact the word has not yet been
invented symbolixtng the thing Of
which that sort Of verbiage would be a
fragrant exhibition
.By the way, II other nations are 20
apply to us the doctrine which tho
president b quos5 a. having. laid down
as our guide IN our rele4i1ns with
Them. then thase might be some q
them who might say that We are noe
l9Acting with naoancySin industzial mat
|tss' and that until We do act Win
lDesnw 81 Industrial matters ~ -