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About The Conservative (Nebraska City, Neb.) 1898-1902 | View Entire Issue (June 14, 1900)
Conservative * TUB CONSEUVA- KXPLOUKI ) . Tivn will continue PKOPHECIES. to republish from time to tinio the political prophecies and financial forecasts which were made in 1890 by the Hon. William Jennings Bryan then , as now , a candidate for the presidency .Possibly a pernianoutlystaud- ing list of prophecies gone to protest may be established in these columns. But no prophecies that can not be identified as of the real genuine Bryan- archistio brand will be among them. There is no more fairness in trying to sell goods from a canning factory under false labels than in attempting to destroy , by misquotations of cant , the reputation of a cant-ing prophet. The kind of a T1IK PHILIPPINES. declaration to make relative to the Philippines will perplex the platform makers for the re publican national convention. The failure of congress to act upon the Spoouer civil government bill places the party in an embarrassing position. In his argument in behalf of the bill , Senator Spooner urged the necessity of some action on the part of congress up holding the president so as to allay the criticism of one man power. The pur pose of the bill the senator said was to "put this measure of authority behind the president. " "To leave it all to his war power , " he said , "seems to be unjust. " It was for congress to deter mine whether they would do that which "seems unjust , " to leave all with the war power of the president , or assume the responsibility of an authoritative declaration relative to the future gov ernment of the islands. In his message of February , 1899 , the president thus defines the duty of con gress : ' 'This whole subject is now with < l congress and congress is the voice , the conscience , and the judgment of the American people. " It is a sad comment ary upon the American people that its voiceconscience and judgment have de clined to speak. Congress has , from the beginning of the trouble in the Philip pines , maintained a profound silence , and has studiously avoided putting it self on record. The first Philippine commission , through its president , Mr. Schurman , thus forcefully ' . Schurinan'H Opinion. urged an' 'authori tative declaration" by congress , believing that else "could much nothing so con tribute to an adjustment of our Philip pine trouble : " "At the present time no one can tell the Filipinos authoritatively what their political relations hereafter shall be. Nay , more , the Treaty of Paris left the political status and the civil rights of the Filipinos to be determined by the con gress of the United States , and since the ratification of that treaty the Filipinos have been in this regard floating between heaven and hell. Aguinaldo's coin- missioners wore informed that a liberal form of government would be granted to the Philippine peoples , with a largo share of home rule ; that there should be a governor-general appointed by the president of the United States , a cabi net consisting of Americans or Filipinos appointed by the governor-general , and judges of the higher courts , either Am erican or Filipino , appointed by the president of the United States. But the shrewd Filipinos immediately made the point that under the constitution of the United States only congress could deter mine their political status ; that what ever powers the president exercised were the war powers of the constitution , which ceased with the establishment of peace. " Mr. Schurman's opinion upon Phil ippine matters is entitled to cousidera- , tiou. If , as he says , Kvcunl IndufeiiHlblo. , . _ . ' . the Filipinos are awaiting a declaration from congress , as the only body having power under our constitution to speak , what excuse will the republicans offer to the people for not making this declaration ? They have repeatedly proclaimed their desire for a speedy termination of hostilities. How will they defend their failure to do that which the president of the Philip pine commission declared to be essential to bring this about ? " Senator Spoouer stated , upon the floor of the senate that it was the purpose of the republican party "to educate the Filipinos for self-government and to give it to them. " If this is really what the republican party intends to do , what harm could there have been for the republican majority in congress to have said so , in a positive , straight forward declaration , that the Filipinos would understand ? Without question such a declaration would have ended the war. Can the action , or more ac curately the inaction , of congress bo construed otherwise that as an evidence of a directly-opposite intent , viz. , the determination to hold the Philippines and govern them as a dependency ? The republicans should have their most skillful word juggler write the Philip pine plank , if they hope to beguile the people into endorsing the record of the majority in congress. THE WAR WITH . SPAIN. 1B'S m congress contended with Grosveuor of Ohio as to who should have the honor and glory of having in volved the United States in a corpse- making tournament with Spain. Bailey of Texas and Oummings of New York , together with other equally valiant trenchermen like "Ohump" Olark of Missouri , declared with impetuous vehemence that except for their efforts no war would have been brought about. And thereupon the great arithmetician , Grosvenor of Ohio , disputed their declarations and declamations by aver ring that it was a republican war. Each boasted of it as a partisan war. But thoughtful men deemed it 'merely an unnecessary war. It cost good blood and put out noble lives. After it was over the two countries did that which they should have done before a gun was fired. They negotiated. The forces of mind settled the international disagree ments and the pen ratified the settle ment. The Spaniards at the making of the treaty in Paris , however , did strenuously object to one thing. One Thliif , ' . m.J . . . ° That one thing was the cession of the Philippines. But upon that one thing the American diplo mats under specific instruction from McKinley inexorably insisted. It was accomplished and a twenty million dollar lar plaster at once applied to heal Spain's pride. Then the treaty came to the United States. The older and wiser men of the senate at first secured a majority against its ratification. They Ratification. . . . , , . , believed that once ratified the islands would be as much a part of the United States as the terri tories of Alaska , New Mexico , Oklahoma and Arizona. They held that after the ratification by the senate the treaty was as binding as the laws and constitution. They wavered. They considered. They attempted to solve the great problem of insular colonization by study and thought. But the alleged democracy would not permit experience and logic to control. It hastened all its vealy and unripe statesmen to bring pressure for the ratification. In Colonel Bryan , fresh from slaughtering Spaniards in Cuba , the friends of "McKinley and his " found in effective policy , Washington an tive ally. The colonel , ripe in experi ence as a statesman , took with him to the senators , whom he persuaded to vote for ratification , a sort of paternal authority. They were young and knew little of statecraft when compared to the sage and philosophic colonel. Thus Bryan soon brought about ratification of that dearly beloved treaty , which has given us the right to christianize , chasten and corpse-construct the Filipinos pines until we are tired , or out of money and men. Colonel Bryan's fol lowers then proclaimed Colonel Bryan the savior of the treaty of Paris the only man on earth who could , and did bring about that benignant end. His fighting lieutenant colonel , the game and distinguished veteran , Victor Vif- quain , was so enraptured with the strategy by which Colonel Bryan brought about the ratification of the treaty , by which we have secured the priceless privilege of killing Americans with climatio and other diseases , while we manufacture the Filipino cadaver with shot and shell that he came out boldly in a letter and declared that except for Colonel Bryan the treaty would have been beaten. With his uniform livery of modesty even Colonel Bryan himself
