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DECEMBER 7 190
no better dependence than the nayy whether that
navy he large or small. In his message two years
ago the president announced this astounding doc
trine: "If the great civilized nations of the pres
ent day should completely disarm, the result would
means an Immediate recrudescence of bar
barism in one form or another." This passago
In his former message can bear no other con
struction than that tho president regards a war
like spirit as necessary to a nation's progress
If ho Is right, then the whole doctrine of the
Christian religion is wrong; if he is right, then
the peace movement is a movement toward bar
barism and not toward civilization. Tho presi
dent challenges the idea that right is might
There is just now an effort in all the leading
nations to increase the navy. Each new ship
built by one country is used as a reason why
other countries should build new ships, and there
is no limit to this rivalry except the power of tho
peoplevto pay the taxes. From a practical stand-
The Commoner.
KdnSIft uVI!lry ? ,nc"ul. From a moral
2nSJSl fa, aylmaia& The president was
in brined nS?laU?e? T7h0n h0 wa instnimcnLil
S, P?nce, Hctwecn Ru88la an Jan, but
who has applauded his utterance of two years
SS.J? r0etird th0 cvllB of a eduction of arma
ments, and who but a military enthusiast will
endorse his proposition that tho navy is the best
guarantor of peace?
In advising tho establishment of shooting gal-
h S? nf rIfl? ,rangCS throughout tho country,
ho is only applying to land what ho has hereto
fore applied to water. If ho is right In tho ono
case, ho is right in the other. If it Is right to
build up a great navy and to roly upon marks
tnenship for our nation's safety, thon to bo con
sistent wo should establish Roosevelt shooting
galleries not merely in tho schools but through
out the country and turn our attention toward
preparation for war. What a shocking spcctaclo
this country will present when its youths have
no higher ambition than to get ready to kill some-
body. By tho tlmo wo havo cultivated enough
Si ISf BPlrU l mak0 nhool,n& Ballorlofl popular;
wo will havo somo oxcuso for making uso of tho
markmenship tlint wo havo cultivated. It Is la
montablo that tho president of a nation possess
ing more altruism than any othor nation in tho
world and ofTorlng hlghor Ideals of cltizonshln
and government than any other nation, should
present so un-Amerlqan and ho un-Ohrlsllan a
doctrine. Our nation's prosllgo should bo a
moral prestige and not a physical prosllgo; our
nfluenco should rest upon high oxnmplo, not upon
brute force; the aim of our people should ho to
act righteously rathor than to aim rifles accu
rately; our nation's security should bo tho spirit
ni.ii 1 v tn . mat I)Crvml08 " People, not in its
ability to kill those who differ from us In opln
Ion. War ought to bo a last resort, not a first
consideration, it l bad enough to havo a ow
professional soldiers, it Is not nccoBKary that
the who c nation shall bo keyed up all the tlmo to
tho fighting point.
THE PRACTICAL VS. THE IDEAL
becretary Root, Secretary Shaw and Mr.
Bryan spoke at the Trans-Mississippi Commercial
Congress which recently met at Kansas City. Tho
Kansas City Journal, one of the strongest repub
lican papers of the west, makes the following
editorial comment upon their speeches:
"One of the most conspicuous features of
tho address at the sessions of the Trans
Mississippi Commercial Congress is the clear
line of cleavage between the methods and
policies of the two big political parties in
dealing with the great economic questions
which press for settlement at the hands of
the American people. The speeches of the
republican spokesmen, Secretaries Root and
Shaw, are meaty with practical plans based
on the experience of the great nations in
dealing with the same questions, while the
speech of Mr. Bryan, the. leading democratic
statesman now living, is full of untried theor
ies and moral sentiments, fine in their way
but utterly Inapplicable to the cold and inex
orable laws of economics. The one side illus
trates practical statesmanship which deals
- with things as they are and will always be as
long as human nature remains as it is; tho
other illustrates the visionary philosophy
which mistakes ideals for facts and proceeds
on the theory that things .are so because they
ought to be so, according" to the golden rule
or the abstract principles of moral philos
ophy. Root and Shaw advocate ship sub
sidies, not on theoretical grounds, but because
all the nations which are competing with us
for the world's trade are using them success
fully to build up their merchant marine, and
, get their share of trade. Bryan, the dreamer,
opposes the tremendous impetus which ship
subsidies would give the whole country be-
cause a few men will get some direct benefit
from them, and as a substitute remedy he
offers the plan of building fewer battleships
and of 'expending our money for a merchant
marine "that could be used in times of war.' "
The Journal editor, recognizing the impossibil
ity of defending a ship subsidy upon theory prompt
ly rejects theories and clamors for something prac
tical. That has been the policy of the republican
speakers whenever they are cornered. When
asked to defend "the principle involved in a pro-
THAT LITTLE BROWN BABY
Secretary Shaw is' still illustrating the Philip
pine question as he views it by the story of the
little brown baby. He pictures himself going
across the street to settle a row in a neighboring
family, and when he returns he is carrying a lit
tle brown baby. His daughter wants to adopt it.
His son wants to put it out in the street, but his
wife advises him to keep It until it has grown
and then decide what to do with it, and he fol
lows his wife's adVice. Beautiful picture, but in
complete and not to the point. What about tho
other little- brown baby? We found Cuba as well
as the Philippines. Both were fighting for liberty.
We let Cuba' set up for herself, "because we
promised to," and kept the Philippines because
we did not promise and becauso we thought that
we could Use them in our business. The little
brown baby in tho Orient was to help us extend
our trade among the Chinese. It was not phil
anthropy, but cold "practical buslnoss" that led
-to4 the adoption of a different course in regard
tectlve tariff, they answer: "This is not a theor
etical question; it is a practical one." And then
they proceed to attribute to protection all of the
advantages that havo como from a fruitful soil
and generous climate and a free government.
When asked to defend the principle that under
lies the trust, they answer: "Wo are not dealing
with ideals; wo are practical statesmen and tho
trusts have helped to develop the country." And
then they put to tho credit of tho trusts every
' reduction in price which has come from Improved
machinery or from any other source. And now
they are defending the ship subsidy with the same
set of arguments. Finding that other nations givo
subsidies, they rush to the conclusion that ship
subsidies and ship subsidies alone will rebuild
the merchant marine, and they propose to enter
into competition with other nations in the giving
of subsidies.
Secretary Root estimates the subsidies given
by other nations at twenty-eight millions, and yet,
according to the figures which he gives, our na
tion will have to pay more than that to put our
vessel owners upon an equal footing with other
nations. Secretary Root gives two reasons why
our ships can not compete with foreign ships
first, that the tariff has increased the cost of
living in our country, and second, that the wages
paid upon American ships are higher than the
wages paid on 'foreign ships. If therefore, we
.must not only pay a subsidy equal to the sub
sidy paid by foreign ships but enough more to
overcome the increased cost of living and the in
creased wages, the ship subsidy means a very
large annual drain. And that is not all. If for
eign nations have been willing to pay twenty-eight
millions to secure trade when we paid no sub
sidies, they were unable to compete with subsi
dized American ships. Might we not expect an
increase in foreign subsidies, and would this not
have to bo counteracted by an increase in our
subsidies? What limit except the willingness
of the people to tax themselves would there be
to the subsidy policy? No wonder the Journal
does not attempt to defend a subsidy upon theory.
But as a practical proposition can It commend
itself to the American people? Is our trade to be
a one-sided trade? Are we to carry American
goods away only and not bring foreign goods
back? Or if we are to bring goods to the United
States as well as carry them away, what folly
to subsldlzo ships to bring merchandise to our
ports and thon raise tho tariff to keep It out!
If we desire to encourage shipping, why not
discriminate in favor of goods brought into the
United States in American ships? This would
give to the ship owners a part of tho advantago
which tho tariff-protected manufacturers now en
joy. But this would not bo acceptable to the
republican leaders. They havo Insisted upon tax
ng.the whole cpuntry to build up our manufac
tures, and now they want to place an ndd"itlonal
tax upon the country to build up American lines
for tho purpose of carrying our manufactures to
other countries.. According to tho republican lead
ers the practical policy must have two characteris
tics; first, it must lay the tax on all tho people;
and second, It must confino the benoflts to a
few of the people. If one advocates any othor
policy, ho subjects himself to tho charge of be
ing visionary and idealistic. Within tho last
eight years tho .appropriations for two depart
ments of government war and navy linyo In
creased over ono hundred millions of doUnrn, The
people are required to bear this additional annual
burden as a preparation for war that ought never
to come. The benefits of this policy are enjoyed
by the shipbuilders or contractors for supplies,
and a comparatively few secure a life position.
There is no suggestion of a reduction In unneces
sary expenses only a clamor for more appropria
tions and bigger profits for tho few who will be
favored.
The democratic party can afford to stand for
Ideals rather than for such practical statesman
ship. It can afford to protect the rights of the
many. If public necessity requires tho establish
ment of steamship lines, let the government build
and own the ships and establish the linos on con
ditions which will bring tho benefit to the entire
country and not to a few favorites. Whatever Is
important enough for the government to spend
money on is important enough for the govern
ment to control. It Is a favorite device of the
practical politicians who control the republican
party to plead a public necessity in order to got
a public appropriation and then Insist upon the
appropriation being spent for private Interests.
The ship subsidy means an Indefinite Increase In
tho taxes; It means great rich picking for a few
financiers and a large fund to draw on for cam
paign expenses.
to the two. Secretary Shaw would have It appear
a philanthropic undertaking, but that would not
account for the difference in treatment. More
than that, he regards the Filipinos as children
when they are not children. No one who has in
telligence enough to be secretary of the treasury
ought to be so ignorant of the human race as to
compare grown-up people with children. You
can not deal with the adult as with a child no
matter how inferior. Fact as well as theory con
tradicts Secretary 'Shaw's picture. Tho Filipino
would not be able to conduct as good a govern
ment in the Philippines as we conduct in tho
United States, but what of it? We do not conduct
as good a government for them as wo conduct
for ourselves. We refuse them the constitutional
guarantees which We regard as essential to us, arid
we sacrifice them to the interests of Americans.
A republican congress refused amendment after
amendment offered for tho protection of tho
Filipinos when the Philippine bill was under con
sideration. A republican congress refused to givo
to the resident Filipino the first chance to buy
public land, and it sanctioned a perpetual fran
chise which would not be tolerated in this
country.
Secretary Shaw does not know what to do
with the Philippines. If ho would study the prin
ciples of government laid down by the fathers, he
would not find it difficult to make up his mind on
the subject. He would recognize that people who
are not desired as citizens should not be held as
subjects.
. JJJ
There Is one consolation In tho thought of an
asset currency. It will keep banks from talking
about a fifty cent dollar, for an asset currency
has not as much back of it as the silver dollar had
when it was subjected to the most criticism.
There Is an old saying that oil and water wit
not mix, but it is evident from tho drop in ttie
price of oil stock that there was more or lesf
of water in it before the squeeze began.
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