The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-08-01
Guillaume Sam. the murdered
President.

Inc tnlrd basis fOr American action
is humanity and juStice-terms which
his Government has recently used In
communications with Germany. All
who are familiar with the islan nd agree
that there never was such a golden
opportunity for the Application Of the
principles II humanity. Justice and lib
erty a. n Iayti and Santo Domingo
to-dav.
The nh Nitan;s are ignorant and
d cased. they are held in o state Of
constant fear by IN. exercise Of the
most arbitrary military power. There
Is no conception of honest government
i'm the island, ana the ~pupulace is
alternately robbed by grating Off
cials ~ thrown into a Government or
A rebel army hy enforced enlistment.
The policy Of the United States in
treating both as sovereign States, as
republics. has been a travesty-in no
d-potISm ~" world has ever seen
have II. people had SO little real free
dom. Action y needed 10 save them
from their " rulers. who are merely
the military leaders Of the ONE
h poverty NJ the majority in each
country Is surpassed only by thei.
ignorance.
In Hayti only one President, has
ever served out a term. Hippolit..
known as the "sa vior' of HaytL.
served n fun term. but was muir
dered while serving his second. All
the others have He'd or have been
murdered IN their first terms. No
Government In llaNti has ever had
the money ~ the time to attempt any
public improvement, those In power
nave been required to devote all their
energioS and resources to maintain
themselves In control by military
force. The export taxes on the ma
tor.ai' iiayti has Ia sell To- the world
Tn" customs dues ON the necessary
imports and a system Of extortion
praotiSod upon those Of the inhsbj-
tants who have any possessions are
the attractions which lead ambitious
Haytians to organize revolutions,
Every bit Of harbor or railroad i'm
pro'em"nt carried out in Hayti has
been forced upon II from tho outsjd.
ana IN every case has led 10 contro-
VersN. ~ the IIaytians invariably de
fdultod an their obligations.
Mn'h the same is true Of Santo
Domingo. II IAN hardly he considered
strange, Therefore. that now not a
dollar will go into Haytian or Do
minic'n development without the
Strist"St guarantees, backed up by the
| nit"d states Government. Further
more, even the foreigner who at
tonp'7 to develop the coffee or fruit
lands Of Ilnyti and Santo Domingo
Is subject to repeated attempts at
eNtortion at the hands Of the Gov
eminent, or Ia likely to have his en-
'ir" labor force taken away from him
by some local military despot and
thrown into h army unless he is
wiling To pay a large brihe.
SdAto Domingo in recent Years has
not been quite 80 m~lsgoverned as
iinNii, control OF the customs coll
lotions by the United States, with n
guarantee that tho forces of tho
n!tod states would be used to hold
The custom houses inviolate. has re-
moved half Of the incentive to reyo-
luton. Successful re~volutionists i'm
Santo Domingo cannot now get THAR
hands on n cent Of the Government
funds unless recognized by the United
States.
Between 1907. when the convention
went into effect, and 1912, there were
no revolutions in Santo Domingo. for
the first time in half n century. In
1917, however, revolutions began again
and the republic hhr been il "A con-
tlnnal fcrment ever since. Each sue
ceodinS quarrel has been patched up
through the intercession Of the United
states, commission after commission
has visited the island and arranged
compromises which gave the revolu-
tionists partial. II not complete salts
fact;on. and at least obtained for them
vusI vInn - t.-..