The Tucumcari news and Tucumcari times. [volume] (Tucumcari, N.M.) 1907-1921, 1908-10-10
Bryan and the Philippines.

In none OF William Jennings
Bryan's expressions on public
questions have his thickness and
lnslncerity been so clearly dis.
closed as in his u%tt-rances con
corning the Philippine Islands.
in a speech on October II, 1000,
he said:
The republican president has
promised to haul down the flag il
Cuba. II the republican
president can haul down that hag
within 400 miles OF our shores, a
democratic president can haul il
down 1000 miles away"
When Mr.. BRYAN uttered those
words he was guilty either OF a
deliberate misrepresentation OF tact
or OF the grossest ignorance OF the
truth. He may choose the horn
OF the dilemma which appears the
more attractive. The question tor
him to determine is whether he is
a trickstcr OF an lgnoramus.
President Mckrnlev's promise
to haul down the american flag IN
Cuba was merely "A pledge to exc.
cute the will OF the proplc as ex.
pressed IN the cnactments OF Con.
grcss. Tha. body had formally
declared that Cuba should he a tree
and independent nation, that the
] ltNNtn tCfF al 80 alt.tNa lAs 49,.
United States should be only tenn.
porary and that when the Cubans
had recovered from the shock oi
war the American government
should withdraw, leaving them to
work out their own destiny. Pres.
ident Mckinley's promise TO haul
down the American flag in Cuba
was simply a pledge TO obey the
law. The obligation was sacredIy
fulfilled. The will OF the people
was faithfully executed. Cuba was
and is still recognized, not only by
our W government, but bv the
! other great power OF the world, as
an independent nation.
But Congress made no such de-
! claration in respect to the Philip.
pines. II enacted no law requir.
ing the president TO haul down the
American flag in those islands.
On the contrary, 1t adopted meas
ures requiring him to uphold Am.
erican authority throughout the
Archipelago, to maintain peace and
order, using military force, II ne.
cessary, for that purpose, and to
impress upon the FIllplnos that
they must make an unqualified re.
cogh,tion OF American sovereignty
before the question OF their politi-
cal future could be considered even
tor a moment.
Mr.. Bryan's contention that, il a
republican president may haul
down the American flag in Cuba, a
democratic president may haul it
down in the Philippines is the sub.
teriuge OF a demagogue or the
mounting OF a numbskull. There
is no more analogy between the
political status oil Cuba and that
OF the Philippines IN American law
and American policy than there is
between loyalty and treason. The
people through their representa-
tives in the law.making branch OF
the government have ordered that
the Stars and Stripes shall he TAX.
en- down in Cuba, but kept up in the
Philippines. The law, clearly de.
clared by congress, has been faith.
fully obeyed by the republican party
in its treatment OF our insular terri
tories. The record is an open
book, and the republican party
stands Tor it to the last line OF the
last chapter.
Mr., Bryan's threat to haul down
the American flag in the Philip
pines in the event oil his election
serves notice that he would moi
hesitate to violate the law i! il
suited his purpose to do so. He
would ignore the authority OF a
coordinate branch oil the govern
ment and centralize in the execu.
tive the whole power OF determin.
ing the scope and integrity OF
American sovereignty, BY his
own confession he would become
a law breaker il the law should
onnoss his nolicies.