Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1904-06-25
RECKLESS AND UNSAFE
iRoosevelt's Policy as Outlined
In His Cuban Letter.
CONTRARY TO COMMON SENSE.
John Sharp williams Says Jingoism
Is Too Weak a Word to Describe
the Presidents Utterances Hys-
terra Better Expresses Them.

4
leader Of the house. commenting in the
New York World on President Roose-
lYelts lingo letter to the Cuban indie
pendence celebration, says among other
things:
1.-The most absolutely indefensible
thing which the president says is this:
IF nation pays its obligations. then II
need fear no interference from the
United States The necessary infer
.ence Is that If a nation does not pay
its obligations then it must fear in
reference from the Caited States
This is the most absolutely reckless,
unsafe, and l had almost said insane.
utteraDce that has ever been attribut-
ed TO president of the United States.
cannot believe that'the president said
1t. You must have misquoted him.
"As far as individuals are concerned
criminal procedure for the collection
Of debts has been abolished in all civ
ilized countries. Dickens made the
people Of England and of the world
ashamed of imprisonment for debt.
Now comes along the president Of the
most enlightened nation of the world
and intimates that it is the duty of
that nation to resort to Interference
whenever a nation In the western hem
isphere refuses to pay its obligations.
What would the interference be?
Why, if serious and if resisted it would
result in bombardment Of cities, land
ing of troops and killing of men, be-
cid
houseless. Imagination Of poet mad
man or lover never went further than
the imagination Of the acting president
when he says, If he does say, that it is
the duty of the United States to make
of itself 4 universal national collecting
agency: If he meant the same simply
to apply to people OF the western hem
isphcre, then an American hemisphere
collecting agency.
1.-The truth is that commercialism
ought to be taught valuable lesson
to wit, that II IT chooses to do bust
ness in unsafe countries without sta
bic institutions and among semibar-
barous peoples 1t does il with its eyes
open. II 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 for debt collection pur-
poses
"If l choose to buy Dominican or
Venezuelan securities or permit Haiti
or either of the other countries to run
in debt to me 1t may he that l am
fool from n 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 States ought
not only not to place itself in that atti-
tude, but It ought TO go further and an
nounce to the world that, so far rs the
hemisphere OF America is concerned,
at any rate, collection OF money OBJ
legations by bombardment must cease.
If private individual killed another
because that other had fraudulently
incurred debt which he refused to
pay we would hang the individual who
did the killing.
You ask me II 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 oc-
casion referred to, would leave per
pctual sword OF war hanging over Cen
trail and South America and ourselves
"Of course IL does and would, or else
the utternnce in the letter is mere i'm
potence-and impotence by the way.
which results TO Il certain degree in a
general loosening of the ties Of civil
lied society The utterance is of
course not within constitutional limi-
tations,' except so long as II remains
merely an utterance and no overt act
looking toward realizing 1t IS resorted
to.
Luckily, presume, however, no
body will take the utterance of the
president seriously, and the mad world
VIII wag' its own way, largely undis-
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 a general loosening of the ties
Of 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 oS common sense.
"You ask me if 1T would not be n /
fragrant exhibition Of jinEoism.' lingo |
ism is a word too weak. Madness !
would come nearer TO IT. Hysteria !
would come Still nearer. But as a mat 4
ter of fact the word has not YET been /
invented symbolizing the thing of /
which that sort Of verbiage would be a |
fragrant exhibition
by the way. If other nations are to |
apply to Us the doctrine which the |
president is quoted as having laid down /
as our guide in our relations with 1
them. then there might be some Of .