The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1908-06-12
THE COMING Of
THE BIG FLEET


having met an enemy. without having
fired a shot in anger. without having
encountered anything more. dangerous
than salutes and dinner parties. ths
fleet under the command of Rear Ad
| miral Evans came to the ports of the
Pacific Coast States to receive vel
come more enthusiastic in spirit and
more catholic in extent than ever fleet
received before. If it had returned
unscathed from a victorious sea battle
the million throats could not have
| swelled the volume of cheers that
greeted it. The cities from San Diego
to Seattle could not have increased
the show of bunting, the myriads of
| flowers, the multiplicity of entertain
! ments for officers and men. Why did
this peaceful cruise create such Won
derful interest?
1t was because the people of the Pa
cific slope had feared the coming of
| another navy flying the flag of the
Rising Sun. The fact that the great
fleet had come from the waters of the
Atlantic to the Pacific seaboard and
had arrived in better fighting condi-
tlOH lIdH WHtu III set out. SttllcQ "
these people to be a guarantee of peace
and protection. With every cheer there
was a deep breath of relief. III the
people who live to the east of the
Hudson river fail to understand why
the Pacific Coast feared the agrees
sion of an Asiatic power, the people
who live to the west of the Great Dr.
vide are equally unable to understand
why the Pacific Ocean should be look
ed upon as foreign waters"
But the influence of the cruise of the
great fleet does not end with it's relief
of fears of attack. 1t has given the
people of the Pacific Coast States a
sense of sharing in the destinies of
the future of this great nation which
they did not possess. 1t has been well
coined as the first act of the long-pre-
dicted campaign for the supremacy of
the United States in the Pacific Ocean.
1t is looked upon as an earnest for the
future that the Pacific fleet of the
American Navy will be treated with
as much consideration as the Atlantic
fleet, that the Pacific Coast will be
considered as much a part of the
United States as the Atlantic sea-
board. The influence of the fleet, think
these Western patriots, will more than
overcome the influence of Eastern
statesmen and editors who seem to
look upon San Francisco Bay as a
foreign port.
The half million dollars spent by the
people of the Pacific cities in enter
tanning the officers and men of the
fleet, the two million dollars spent by
people of the interior who came to
the port cities to join in the welcome,
the many thousands of dollars spent
in private entertainments, aggregate
a princely fortune. But dollars and
cents can not measure the real extent
of good accomplished by the cruise of
the fleet in allaying the apprehens;ons
of the people of the Golden West
A little more than a month from now
the great fleet will sail from San Fran
cisco to visit the ports on the other
side of the Pacific. 1t will be well
coined with even greater enthusiasm
by The people of Hawaii and the Phil
ippiries, whose safety and protection it
guarantees. Honolulu already looks
forward to it's coming as the greatest
event since annexation of the islands /
to the United States. 1t is construed
by the Hawaiians as evidence that at
last the United States has come to |
realization of the Importance of the |
Pacific, and that Hawaii is the key to
the supremacy of that great ocean.
But the full measure of the active
influence of the cruise of the fleet will
be noted in the foreign ports at which
the great ships will call. That influ-
ence reached those ports long ago,
months in advance of the coming of
he ships. 1t will remain, potent for
American welfare, long after the
echoes of the saluting guns have died
rom the ears of man.
In Japan the fleet probably will re-
eive a welcome which will equal, If
does not surpass, any of the official [
receptions of the whole cruise The {
polished and cosmopolitan diplomatists, |
minister's and military officers of the {
Umpire will employ every art of l
eople trained for two thousand years
n courtesy to make the stay of the .
american seamen pleasant. And, what
5 more important, the Japanese for
ign office will carefully abstain from
Triting any notes to the American
Government in the arrogant tone which
vas employed in discussing the San
francisco incident. The influence of
ne fleet has already manifested itself
l the diplomatic communications of
he .Mikado's ministry. Its full force
ill be felt later on.
In China the influence of the fleet v
ill be wholly different. Already the .
hinese look upon the coming fleet as
physical guarantee of that terrific :
al integrity which John Hay pre- !.
srved eight years ago. Then China T
AIRED European nations whose mutual :
alousy prevented war McKinley's q
ecretary of State saved China by di- =,
Iomacy. Now China fears the insid- "
us encroachments of Japan. The
hinese believe that the demonstra- y
on of force made by the presence of /.
lie American fleet will operate to :,
,ter Japan from carrying out its de- y
gns. The Chinese newspaper press, =
hich has come into existence since =
e Boxer trouble of 1900, has told the =
,ople all over the Empire that the =.
merican Emperor has sent his great :,
.et to protect China from the Mikado. z
at home may smile at this :.
lildiike faith in a Chinese-American I.
lance, but the Chinese take comfort :,
1t. Furthermore, they will cite some =
r-r-.l a.s~-< fr-a Il