The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1916-04-28
MONROE, HIS DOCTRINE"
 AND THE 'sHOLY ALLIANCE

This year marks the centenary of two events of great importance in the history of both the Old and New Worlds-the public announcement of, the formation of the Holy Alliance of European monarchs, ostensibly to maintain and uphold Christianity, but in reality to defehd absolutisn and stamp out free institutions on both sides of the Atlantic; and the election to the Presidency of the United States Of James Monroe, whose famous doc Urine was Americas answer to the threats of the Old World despots of Prussia, Austria and Russia. Both of these events stand for issues which are still in the crucible, for the spirit which animated the Holy Alliance, and which upholds the rights divine or hereditary monarchs3 as against democracy, is not yet dead; and al though the United States has success fully maintained the Monroe Doctrine for nearly a century, the danger of European challenge of American free dom is not yet a thing of the past
 This Is the birthday of James Mon roe, the fifth president of the United States. Like three of his predecessors he was a native of Virginia and was born on April 28. 1758, his parents be- Ing Of scotch descent. He was first elected President in 1816 and four wears later he was returned to office almost unanim ous1y, only one elector voting against him.
 The Monroe administrations marked the beginning of a new political era for the infant republic. All the old partisan landmarks had been uprooted by the war, the tariff issue, and other questions. It was in international rather than in domestic affairs, that Monroe gained his lasting fame. He recognized the independence of several of the South American countries which had thrown off the yoke of Spain, and, when the Holy Alliance launched it's projects for the over throw of the struggling republics on this side of the Atlantic Monroe re- piled to the threats of Europe by an nouncing a new policy declaring that i've should consider any attempt on their part to extend their system to any portion of this hemisphere as dangerous to our peace and safety" He Added: With the existing col onies or independencies of any Euro pean power we have not interfered, and shall not interfere; but with the governments which have declared their independence and maintained it, and whose independence we have on great consideration and just princi- pies, acknowledged, we could not view an interposition for expressing them,
 
 their destiny by any European power, in any other light than as a manifes- tation of an unfriend1y disposition toward the United States
 The position assumed by the United States as the protector of America aroused only contempt and sneers in Berlin, Vienna and St. Petersburg The determined opposition of England to the projects of the Holy Alliance was however "a horse of another coIor..' That the Monroe Doctrine. was not challenged soon after it's an- nouncement in 1928 was in all proba- bility due to the stand taken by Great Britain, which upheld the Washington government. The Continental mon archs made every possible effort to win the support of England for their plans, but failed, and the Holy AL lance soon passed into history. The humble followers of Christ as the mo1iarchs styled themselves, succeeded in restoring absolutism in Continental Europe for a time. but their greedy schems for dividing America between themselves came to nought.