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Show from the constitution "when" a people "has the right to claim independence. The grievances charged against Great Britain answer our inquiry. We are told, first: "Governments long established should not be changed for light or transient tran-sient causes. But when a long train of abuses and usurptions, pursuing pur-suing invariably the same object, evince a desire to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty to throw off such government." gov-ernment." The American government In the Philippines has not been "long established." estab-lished." It was assumed by the consent con-sent of the Republicans and Democrats, Demo-crats, of Mr. McKinley and Mr. Bryan. It has existed but a year.or two. There has been no "long train of abuses and usurpations." On the contrary, many Spanish abuses have been corrected, and self-government is promised as soon as it can be provided. But we may consider the specific complaints made against the King of Groat Britain as justifying the Declaration of Independence. "He has refused his assent to laws the most wholesome." We have done nothing of the sort. "He has refused to pass laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish re-linquish the right of representation in the Legislature." We have not done that. These islands is-lands have never had a Legislature, and we are anxious to give them one as soon as we can. "He has dissolved representative houses repeatedly." They have never had any. "He has kept among us, in times of peace, standing armies without the consent of the Legislature." AVe have our army in war, with the consent of the insurrectionists, and will be glad enough to withdraw our army in time of peace, or as soon as quiet is assured. There have been no legislatures on the islands to say anything any-thing about it. And so the specifications continue, utterly inapplicable to a people like the tribes of these islands, who have never had any legislature and are still incapable of self-government. We have not "cut off their trade," nor "deprived them of the benefits of trial by jury," which they never heard of; nor have we "excited domestic insurrections,'.' or brought upon them "merciless Indian In-dian savages." The conditions are utterly ut-terly different. "When" the people of the Philippines shall be fitted, by the diffusion of civilization civ-ilization and education, to be independent, independ-ent, and to "assume among the powers of the earth" a "separate and equal station," needing no protection, and if then they shall desire independence on account of the tyranny of the United States, we hope they will demand it and get it. Then the principles of the Declaration Declara-tion of Independence will justify them in declaring themselves "free and independent inde-pendent states," and not till then. The Independent, September 13th. DOES IT APPLY? An Analytical Examination of the Declaration De-claration of Independence Will It Fit the Filipinos? It must be that there are people who believe that the Declaration of Independence Inde-pendence forbids us to take possession of the Philippines and restore peace there, or it would not be so often repeated, re-peated, in the Democratic platform and in Democratic addresses, that the present pres-ent administration has trampled on the declaration, and that the Democrats Demo-crats will set it up again. People do not read the Declaration of Independence Independ-ence very often, and they remember only some remarks about being "created "creat-ed equal," "the consent of the governed." gov-erned." and "inalienable rights," such "life, liberty and the pursuit of hap-.ness;" hap-.ness;" and they may imagine that there is something in it that bears out the assertion of the Democratic speakers. speak-ers. Let us look at it a moment. The declaration begins: "When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bonds which have connected them with another, an-other, and to assume among the powers of the earth the separate and equal station sta-tion to which the laws of nature and nature's God entitle them," etc. It begins with "when." What is this "when?" Does it apply to the Philippine Philip-pine islands? Are they Luzon, Mindanao, Min-danao, Panay, Negros, Mindoro. Sa-mar, Sa-mar, Sulu ready "to ssume among the powers of the earth" a "separate and equal station?" Every one knows better; bet-ter; even Mr. Bryan proposes to maintain main-tain a protectorate indefinitely. The proposition is ludicrous. The very first sentence settles the matter. But let us inouire a little further |