10 Cbc Conservative *
A IIIIVAX IIAXQUET.
For the bonoflt of the New York sil-
rentes who are going to the dollar diu-
ner at the Grand Central palace , the
banquet of the Kansas democrats at
Topeka last week may servo as a model ,
an inspiration or a wnrning. Eleven
hundred of the brethren were on hand ,
apparently very hungry , for a historian
records in The Topeka Capital that
"Sergeant Jake Owens , with two police
men , had to light the crowd back to
prevent the doors from being broken in. "
The t'uobt was given in the library hull
of the state house , and amid distinctly
plutocratic properties :
"Thousands of glowing incandescent
lights caught the eyes. Row after row
of glittering electricity , the crystal bulbs
alternating with clusters of fragrant
roses , swung from pillar to pillar nbout
the vast expanse of immaculate table
linen , which later in the evening was
marked by dividing lines of black-coated
masculinity. "
Colonel Rryan , who occupied the seat
of honor , must have been reminded of
his old friend Belshazzar by these splen
dors , of which these further details are
related :
"The two broad pillars on either side
of the aisle leading to the speaker's
table were wound with green bunting
and garlands of roses , the style of archi
tecture and general arrangement sug
gesting nothing so much as a feast in
the. days of the old Roman empire , when
the statesmen reveled in luxury. Palms
filled in the windows , and from every
light branch hung a boquet of roses.
Thousands of flowers were used in the
decoration , and they retained their
freshness perfectly. "
Nothing is too good for the colonel ,
but when the Mlvurites dine amid the
gorgeous decorations on which the idle
holders of idle wealth are wont to spend
the money wrung from the producing
classes it is hard for the unregenerate to
feeo the line between permissible and for
bidden luxury. There the colonel sate ,
his diamond and the thousand incandes
cent lights flushing in competition. It
was a proud night for him , and it will
1)0 difficult to beat it at the Grand Cen
tral palace.
The question of a proper costume for
a silver statesman at ono of these har
mony sociables was not settled at the
Topeka entertainment. Colonel Bryan
wore a cutaway coat , perhaps as a com
promise between evening clothes or the
statofeinan's frock coat and the plain
democratic sack.
But if the colonel stoops to compro
mise he is lost. A cutaway is a sort of
mugwump among garments , indefinite ,
unclassified and nondescript. The col
onel should declare himself more plainly
or ho will repel all genuine partisans.
Another pro-eminent statesman , the
Hon. Champ Clark , of Miosouri , wore a
"drifts suit. . " As Champ Clark would
rather cut off his tongue than coudo-
scend to plutocracy , it must be that
evening clothes are in accordance with
the democratic platform , after all. If
they are. whjr didn't the colonel put
them on ? If we knew how the Hon.
Horace Greeley Jumper , as good a pop
ulist as the colonel or Mr. Clark , was
dressed at the dinner , it might be pos
sible to tell how a silver banqueter ought
to dross.
Whatever may bo the judgment of
the Now York Bryanites as to the minor
point , the chief duty of Bryan banquet
ers was poformed at Topeka by the Hon.
Champ Clark in his clear and confident
manner :
"William J. Bryan , following the
example of his illustrious predecessors ,
will bo elected in 1900 , re elected in
It is understood that for the sake of
etiquette Colonel Bryan prefers that the
renominatiou. election and ro-oleotion
ceremony shall bo performed by some
body other than himself ; and the New
York Bryanites have doubtless appointed
an orator for the purpose. Perhaps the
solemnity of the functions that Champ
Clark performed justified his evening
clothes. New York Sun.
On T u e s d ay ,
was held in Boston
by the anti-annoxationists , which , we
trust , will bo followed by many others
of a similar kind in other states. It was
addressed by the leading men of Massa
chusetts , and the following resolutions
were adopted unanimously :
1 (1. ( ) That our government , shall take
immediate steps towards a suspension of
hostilities in the Philippines , and a con
ference with the Philippine leaders , with
a view of preventing further bloodshed ,
upon the basis of a recognition of their
freedom and independence os soon as
proper guarantees can be had of order
and protection to property.
" (2. ( ) That the government of the
United States shall tender an official as
surance to the inhabitants of the Philip
pine Islands that they will encourage
and assist in the organization of such a
government in the islands as the people
thereof shall prefer , and that upon its
organization in stable manner the United
States , in accordance with its traditional
and prescriptive policy in such cases ,
will recognize the independence of the
Philippines and its equality among na
tions , and gradually withdraw all mili
tary and naval forces. "
This is the more valuable because just
as the meeting assembled , there came
the very disappointing report of the
president's commission , announcing as
the result of their month in the Philip
pines , not an illuminating despatch for
the president , but the issue of another
proclamation to the Filipinos of exactly
the sumo toner and effect as the one is
sued in February by the president him-
self. That is , it is a promise to people
whom we are killing by the thousand of
all sorts of "blessings" if they will
abandon the struggle for freedom which
they have been carrying on so long.
This sort of work the president or Gen
eral Otis could have done themselves an
well as the commission. The notion
that the Filipinos will perceive the dif
ference between the commission and the
men who are killing them and the per
son who is ordering them to bo killed , is
quite illusory. To them we are all
Americans of the same sort and same
religion , and tarred with the same pitch.
They know nothing about college presi
dents , or professors of eminence. The
commission , therefore , it seems to us ,
should not have wasted its time in pro
claiming to the natives what in sub
stance the president has already pro
claimed , but have given him some ad
vice as to the best way of getting them
to lay down their arms and stop the war.
If they issued any proclamation to the
natives at all , it should , as the Spring
field Republican has pointed out in a
sensible article , which wo quote else
where , have oli'ered them something
which they have not been offered hith
erto namely , protection while they are
building up a government of their own ;
in other words , something which would
have shown them that wo had aban
doned the Russian and Austrian role of
conquerors , for the American role of
protectors of men struggling to bo free
and independent ; .
President Schurman is trying to make
up for this defect in the proclamation by
telling us the stories we used to get dur
ing the war of the rebellion from the
"intelligent contraband" and the "relia
ble citizen" about , the disaffection pre
vailing in Aguinaldo's ranks , the readi
ness of his army to desert him , and the
eagerness of some tribe or other of the
many , for our mild rule. A man who
has passed a month in a camp of fighting - "
ing men without over going beyond their
lines , with no knowledge of the enemy
or their language , naturally enough
swallows all stories of this kind. They
are the staple gossip of an army in the
field. They may be true in whole or in
part. But they are not things to base
inilicy on. What policy should bo based
on is the statements of the lead
ers themselves , of those whom the ad
ministration journals so comically and
ignorantly call "rebels. " The way to
get this , as the Boston resolutions point
out , is to tell Aguinaldo that we are not
seeking to conquer him , but to help him ;
that wo are not asking him to lay down
his arms as our "property , " but as a
fellow-republic , struggling to bo free ,
and which wo desire to buildup. But
the main thing is to stop the fighting.
There is no need to attack this now
stronghold. What harm is it doing us ?
None whatever , except to offend our
military dignity. We have become
such warriors that wo have to attack
