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Show G7 TianUh Wrst Indin. The announcement that Denmark haa agreed to accept the offer of 16,-OoO.rM'O 16,-OoO.rM'O kroner by the United Statea for the Danish West Indies. If finally au-thentli au-thentli ateil, mean the withdrawal of avnoai' r t'irc:n tl.m from the weMern hemisphere and the acquirement by thia nation of the finest harbor and site for a naval station In the entire gToup cf islands. Whether the United States drove a good bargain or not depends upon the Talue of the islands to this country strategically and commercially and (he price paid for them. Commercial- Ily the transaction Is a small one. Involving In-volving the payment of H.OoO.OoO for j sovereignty over 144 square tnllea of j territory, whose trade can never amount to much Judged by our stand- ards. But considerations of greater national import than commerce have controlled the action of the United Statea in making an offer for the-e islands. Our intervention In Cuba not only took our flag Into the West Indies In-dies but the events of the war Incident thereto made it very plain to the world that the United State must own and control the dsthmlan water way connecting the oceans. I With our flag over Porto Rico and w-ith the Isthmian canal under our control. It Is very easy t discern the i great strategic and commercial ad-vantages ad-vantages that will accrue to us throuEh the possesaton of these Islands. The D.ilil.-Ti Wet I.e.lej coil..:t of the Islands of St. Thomas. St. Croix. St. John and St. Ku-tatlus. lying east and southeast of Porto Kiro. With a naval base at St. Thomas we would command the Virgin Passage, which Ilea between the island and Porto Rico, while naval stations on the coaat of Cuba and Porto Rico will give us the mastery of the highway from Europe to Central and South America and the absolute control of the eaatern terminus of the Nicaragua canal. |