The Farmington times. (Farmington, St. Francois County, Mo.) 1905-1926, 1920-03-19
pINEAPPLEs AND WORLD PEACE

Hawaii shows in her pineapple trade
one of the benefits of her annexation
to the United States. For many
years she was independent under ma
tive kinds and queens and then became
republic, finally coming into the
United States voluntarily as terri
tory when we were at war with Spain.
During all time previous to this last
step pineapples grew there in fine
quality and great abundance, but they
did not make the islands rich. In 1900
company was formed to can the
fruit and put it on the Aemrican mar
I ket During the first year of opera
| ton, 1901, the total output was 1000
cases. In 1912 the pack had increas-
ed to 1913, 1863 cases, in 1918 to 3,847,-
315, and last year the total output,
shipped chiefly to the United States
was 5,07I,976 cases, valued approx
mately at $20,000,000. This is but an
example of the material prosperity
which has come to the islands because
of their annexation to the United
States and of their government for
their own good instead of our explio-
tation.
Similar figures might be given with
respect to the PHILIPPINES and Porto
Rico, and in a few years we shall be
able to tell about the progress Of Hay
ii and the islands purchased recently
from Denmark. Wherever the hand
Of the United States goes to undevel-
oped regions and peoples it is a hand
of blessing. Education, prosperity
and the spirit of democracy go with
it. We are not a colonizing nation in
the sense of holding undeveloped re-
gions for our own welfare, but we are
a developing, an uplifting, an educat-
ing nation, and when force or circum-
stances compels US to take over the
government of underdeveloped re-
gions and backward peoples wonder
full change for both the regions and the
peoples takes place within a gener-
alton. 1t all depends upon the spirit
with which the controlling and guild
ing hand is actuated. Never have we
taken new territory without protest
from large portion of our people, Of
ten a majority. We have been reluc-
tant to assume new burdens of tute-
lage. Yet whenever we have done so
we have made our control blessing
instead of curse. 1t is only neces-
sary to compare many of the colonies
of the world, some of which have been
under the same foreign control for a
century or more, with the enormously
called colonies of the United States,
to recognize the fundamental differ
ence in the spirit of the treatment they
receive, so far as the welfare of the
natives is concerned and the advance
ment in democracy of government and
lation in understanding of it. Mater
ial prosperity has kept pace with in
tellectual, moral and political uplift.
There has been material prosperity in
some colonies controlled by regular
colonial powers, but it has been pros
perity for the benefit of the coloniz-
ing nations rather than the natives.
Perhaps as people we have failed
to recognize the value of this record
to US in establishing our place in the
good will and confidence of all ma
tions. The world has been watching
US ever since we bought Alaska from
Russia. Our record has been true to
principle consistently. Perhaps the
most dramatic challenge we gave to
the world to observe how different is
the spirit Of the great democracy of
America from that of the nations still
inspired by the old selfish acquisitive-
ness was when we paid Spain 20,000,-
900 for the Philippines after taking
them from her and when we had power
to keep them as prize of war, pow
er other nations had ruthlessly ex-
excised from time immemorial. Then
followed the incidents in China and