The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1913-07-18
United States Southern Policy

To realize what child the United States is
at international politics, one has only to visit
of the Spanish-American countries to the
south of US.
The editor of the Palladium spent over two
months last winter in Spanish American repub
lies in Central America and Cuba. Invariably he
found that citizens of the United States in those
countries were unwecome, despised and subject
to insults.
This more true in Central America thar
in Cuba. At the same time citizens of Germany
or Great Britain were respected and never sub
ject to insults.
The editor was grossly insulted one Sunday
by drunken native. He was urged by friends
to pay no attention to the insult any attempt
on his part to punish the native would result in a
knife fight foreigner in such has tC
his revolver-and that mighty quickly.
Furthermore, he was told that even the
slightest trouble of that kind would result in his
arrest. And" said his frends,' your govern
ment will let you rot in Honduranian jail until
kingdom come. 1t will make no effort to take
your part for fear of disturbing cordial relations
with the little brown brothers,
"Now if you a German an Englishmap
that native would never have dared insult you
He knows his government would punish him for
embroiling it with nations that resent the slight
est discourtesy to their citizens"
* i
The whole trouble is that the edward heeers
whom dignity by the term statesmen at
Washington, haven't the slightest conception of
the Spanish American temperament Our poll
cy has always been to pat our southern neighbors
on the back and tell them to be good. They real
ize strength and despse for our policy,
for they have no intention of being good unless
forced to-
In the past when differences have appeared
between any of these republics and such Europe
powers as Germany or England, a warship of
the power involved has appeared on the scene
quickly and correction of a wrong policy soon
followed.
During a revolution in Honduras in 1911 two
negroes were killed. One British subject
and the other, little boy, was the son of an
American citizen. In three days time a British
warship arrived at Puerto Cortez Honduras. It's
captain was empowered to act for the interests
of the slain British citizen. After hearing all
the facts in the case the British captain awarded
$500 damages to the slain Negroes family and
gave the Honduranian government week in
which to make payment. The damages were
promptly paid
The American consul took up the question of
the murdered child of the American negro with
our state department at Washington. Nothing
has ever come of it. Presumably the matter was
pigeonholed lest our little brown brothers" lose
tina. "cordial' feeling they entertain for citizens
of the great United States.
Meantime, Europe is plainly indicating that
either must change supine policy or else
expect to see the Monroe doctrine disregarded by
such countries Germany and England which
will not permit their citizens in such countries as
Mexico, to be murdered and robbed.
Americans in Central America told the editor
they wished the United States would give up the
Monroe doctrine and let some European nations
divide up Spanish-America between them and en-
able its great natural resources to be developed
under peaceful conditions.