Cbe Conservative.
Mil. VALENTINE'S HEI'LY TO SOIHE
CltlTlOISMS.
[ The recent atldrosa of Qovurnor Roosuvolt
upon HtrunuoiiH effort and brute force ) .
The following letter was recently soiit
by Mr. J. J. Valeutiuo to The Portland
Orogouiau :
To the Editor of The Morning Oregon-
iaii , Portland , Oregon
Dear Sir : Will you kindly grant me
a little space in your esteemed journal ?
I have only recently returned from a
month's absence to Mexico and among
other things of interest find upon my
desk The Oregoniau of March 17th con
taining an editorial criticising the pos
ition of Dr. David Starr Jordan and the
undersigned on the question of expan
sion.
Knowing and appreciating very highly
the sturdy character and aims of The
Oregouian and the friendly attitude of
the writers on that journal towards me
personally and officially , I regret ex
tremely that we are not in accord on
this vital question of the day , expansion
imperialism. However , I believe you
will give me credit for the same sincerity
on this subject that you did in past
years when I was dealing with other
problems , and I can assure you that the
sentiments of reprobation and words of
warning so frequently expressed by me
of late on the evident tendency towards
imperialism of the national administra
tion , were prompted neither by vanity
nor hope of political preferment , but
rest on strong and sincere convictions.
lu answer to your criticism I would
summarize from various papers already
issued and say that the movement
toward the taking in of the Philippines
is not in response to any "world force , "
"national impulse" or "manifest des
tiny , " but is rather the result of an
unholy ambition aroused by accident
and catered to by those in authority ;
that no increase of btrength or prestige
or enlarged spread of the gospel can
come from this action. The only proper
course of those in power is to bring the
present warfare to an end at once , re
gardless of any pressure that might be
brought to bear in opposition , from
whatever source it might come. This
would be my course if it were within
my province to deal with the vexed
question. The breaking of the pledges
made or implied to and as understood by
the Philippine leaders , and the stern
denial of the right of life , liberty and
the pursuit of happiness to the Philip
pine people except under our permission
and regulation , cannot be regarded by
them as other than bad faith.
Au exeoxitive of character must lead
when the responsibility is upon him. I
should think ill of my country under
present conditions were it not that I
know that the real sentiment of the
American people has not been tested on
the question of the hour , and that even
congress itself has not had an oppor-
tunity to investigate the now dogma of
annexation and imperialism on its
merits.
The Oregonian says that "when a na
tion has fixed its policy * * *
it ouljr remains to carry out the plan
laid down , " and some of our state uni
versity professors here have declared
themselves of the same purport. I have
yet to learn that the fixed policy of the
United States has been authoritatively
determined and announced. It is not in
evidence that the administration is pur
suing any plan whatever , except a con
tinuation of that of Spain the crushing
out by brute force of every attempt on
the part of the people of the Philippines
to regulate their own all'airs. To their
very natural question as to what the
United States proposed to do with them ,
no answer has been deigned , except the
imperial mandate of General Otis that
Aguinaldo must surrender his prisoners
under pain of arrest.
If an enlightened nation wishes to
help an inferior race , it cannot do so by
force of arms. If wo feel ourselves
under obligations to aid the Filipinos ,
wo have chosen to fulfill these'obliga
tions by means which can lead to no
good results , and through agencies
which we cannot rely upon. Wo have
to admit that we are dealing with 0110
of the most perplexing problems which
have ever come to us , but not a single
official in Washington seems to have de
voted any considerable time to the con
sideration of what moans to employ and
how to use them so as best to bring
about the end in view.
I have a similar criticism to make on
the words of Governor Roosevelt's re
cent address at Chicago , in which ho as
sumes that by strenuous efforts and
brute force wo can solve the problems
before us. The little good wo can pos
sibly do for inferior races must bo along
totally different linos. It is because wo
lack moral courage that wo fall back
upon brute force. All that the govern
ment of any higher race has over done
for a lower one is to substitute some
form of slavery for anarchy and war ,
and I have never learned that any race
was fitted for self-government after any
length of time spent in tutelage under
the superior force of a higher one.
Always with best wishes , I am very
truly yours ,
JOHN J. VAUSNTINK.
San Francisco , Col. , Saturday , April
16 , 1899.
an
01,0 MAGAZINKS.
old gentleman in
the year 1870 , who bought the first num
ber of a new periodical , called Scrib-
ner's Monthly , and continued buying it
regularly thereafter. Magazines were
not as plenty then as now , and he took
great pride in it ; he would study the
editorials , the funny page and the ad
vertisements , and read considerable por-
tious of it aloud to his family after sup
per. It was not always easy to pay for
it , and he would sometimes make his old
hat do for another HOUBOUHO as to have his
magazine. Thou once a year ho would
have it neatly bound , and contemplate
with satisfaction the lengthened line of
volumes through the glass doors of his
book-case.
When Scribner's became the Geutniy
in 1881 he adhered to it still , though he
hardly understood the change ; he
missed the pious Dr. Holland's guiding
hand , and the Vedder covers were quite
a trial to him. But his respect for his
collection increased with each passing
year ; he used to say that it was a whole
library in itself , and firmly believed that
he was accumulating a valuable literary
property for his descendants.
But instead of old sets of magazines
having an augmented value , almost any
thing of the kind can be got today for
the cost of the blank paper or less. The
IiftjT or so volumes of Scribner's and The
Century , which cost $200 when new , are
offered by dealers in such goods for ex
actly $20 , and others run in the same
ratio. Rather oddly , the dollar maga
zines , which were not in existence for
many years after the others were started ,
command higher prices than their older
competitors which bring four times their
rates when now. Another class that
seems to bo considered more valuable is
the juveniles ; St. Nicholas and Har
per's Young People are listed at much
higher prices than the standard maga
zines. The compilations , such as Pub
lic Opinion and The Review of Reviews ,
are also worth more as they increase in
ago.
LET US WE JUST.
If the more fact that railroads oper
ated by men who have had a life exper
ience , and whoso experience must bo
paid for in this ago of competition , are
robbing us by charging one cent a mile
more than people who have had no experience >
porionco think they ought , is of so
much importance to the five or six mil
lion people in Indiana , why don't two
or three hundred of these six million
people form an incorporation and run
opposition.lines parallel with the sys
tems now running , if there is "millions
in it , " as Colonel Sellers used to say ?
Such lines , on account of their public-
spirited management would get all the
business , except that of four or five de
posed magnates of the iron horse.
Then people could ride for almost noth
ing , the "grasping corporations" would
bo throttled , freight would be carried
for a song , and the yearly dividends
would make millionaires of the now
humble sidewalk regulators. Anything ,
everything , should be done , but for
Heaven's sake let somebody try it , and
let our legislators direct their attention
to matters that are more competent to
the general welfare of the people of the
state. Our Standard , Indianapolis , Ind.