Republican news item. [volume] (Laport, Pa.) 1896-19??, 1904-12-08

The Venerable Gentlemen Who Ad-
vocate Hauling Down Our FiaG In
the Philippines Have Outlfved
Their Political Usefulness.
The Chicago Tribune In an editorial
commenting ON the recent campaign
says:
Looking back upon the campaign in
dispassionate spirit, does 1t not strike
the reflective and philosophical student
as amazing that any 'sane and safe"
party should propose to the bounding
manhood of this country the abandon
ment Of one Of Its best possessions!
When we come to think-in the calm.
melancholy days Of late November-of
this issue SO cruelty resurrected from
the grave where 1t was put In 1900
and propelled into the forum of de-
bate, insufiiciently clad for public ex-
posure, we are inclined to drop ST.
lent tear over the follies Of mankind.
What political leaders ha,og an atom
OF sense or experience can believe now
that the Democracy had any chance to
win ON an issue of that kind?
The cry Of "anti-imperialism" was
tlemen who have outlived their po-
litical usefulness. The apostles Of dis
content on the Philippine question
were Carl Schurz. George s. Boutwell,,
George F. Edmunds and General Mel
son A. Miles. The average man, and
especially the average boy in the street,
would have thought twice short time
ago II he had been asked whether
some Of these gentlemen We're alive or
dead and might even now reflect with
discomfort upon the fact that one or
more Of them are certainly known to
be alive since the campaign brought
their existence to light.
In a sense, all these gentlemen. and
many more like them, who became
strenuous" over the Philippine issue
are on the retired list. The American
people have never yet been governed
by their retired list. They never will
be while they remain vigorous. pro
gressive, self confident, alert and yirile.
Take the case of General Miles, for
example. The young men of the coun-
try who know anything about him
know that he was Il brave soldier in
the civil war and very paladin OF of
fense during the Indian wars that sue
ceet,ed it. AS a counselor they know
nothing good Of him. He is not saga
cious when he leaves the tented field
His craftsmanship is mediocre, his
temper bad. his vanity boundless and
his conceit uncomfortable Who would
think of asking General Miles in these
fnr antninn nulllir
question? Even in matters relating to
the army his Judgment Is so warped by
political feeling and utterances so tine
tured by malevolence that they no
longer have any weight.
Mr.. Boutwell, is a Grabbed. egotistlc
self centered octogenarian whom no
man would think of consulting on any
question of business or affairs. Messrs
Edmunds and SchurZ decidedly are OH
the shelf, and so are most Of the other
gentlemen who have united with them
in the Philippine clamor.
The Tribune does not care to indulge
in self laudation nor to iterate the wea
risome shibboleth, "I told you sO," but
Is it not true that the bounding youth
of the country repudiated, as the Trib
une said it would do. with scorn and
indignation the suggestion that we
should let the Philippines go? The is
sue was no more popular than that of
1860, when Horace Greeley cried out
Let the erring sisters go in peace"
The young men of the country simply
would not have it. They were deter
mined that no palsied hand should
haul down the American flag In the
Philippines or any other place where it
was properly flying.
Why, the story Of the Hawaiian Is
lands should have been enough. Para
mount Ascendency" Blount. under the
direction of Grover Cleveland, took
down the flag III those Islands, and the
country knew him no more, and there
was no stop to public agitation until
they became permanently part of the
United States.
SO will it always be in matters of
this kind. The little Englanders who
wished to have Great Britain abandon
South Africa have put the Liberal par
ty out Of power most Of the time for a
generation. and 1t will be kept out of
PONSi uo iOhb 40 pSotC ~ any PhiSC
statesmen control its policy.
The corps Of "anti-imperialism" has
been put under ground twice. Twice
should be enough. but II the insane
and unsafe Democracy wishes to raise
the issue in 1908 the party of progress
will again cheerfully meet it with
bloody hands and welcome it for the
third time to hospitable grave.