IMPERIALISM
"The guns of Admiral Dewey did something more than destroy a Spanish
fleet in the harbor of Manila. Their echo came back to us in a
question new in the history of our government." The new problem was
Imperialism--was it wise policy and was it constitutional to annex and
govern territories outside the limits of continental North America? In
colonial problems the United States had had no experience; and if the
Philippines, Cuba or Porto Rico were annexed, it would be necessary
to administer the affairs of peoples whose languages, racial
characteristics and forms of government were utterly strange. Such
objections arose in the minds of many Americans as the conference
assembled at Paris on October 1 to settle the terms of peace.[1]
The chief controversies between the Spanish and the American negotiators
related to Cuba and the Philippines. The Spanish commissioners early
proposed to transfer Cuba to the United States, the latter to turn it
over to the Cuban people in due time. With the sovereignty of Cuba was
to go the debt of the island. On the refusal of the Americans to accede
to this, the Spanish commissioners urged the transfer of Cuba to the
United States without any promise as to its future. Instructions from
Washington both on possession and on debt, however, were explicit and
in the end Spain had to relinquish all claim to Cuba and assume
responsibility for its indebtedness. The proper disposition of the
Philippines presented far greater difficulty. Not only was there a
difference of opinion between the two groups of commissioners, but the
American government was in doubt about the wisest course to pursue, and
grave diversity of opinion existed among the people and in the peace
commission itself. Moreover the capture of the city of Manila had taken
place after the protocol had been signed and after hostilities had been
ordered suspended, but before news of these facts had reached Admiral
Dewey. The original instructions of President McKinley to the peace
commissioners were to the effect that the outcome of the war had placed
new duties and responsibilities on the United States, that the
commercial opportunity which possession of the Philippines would present
could not be overlooked and that the island of Luzon at least must be
ceded. So little was known about the people and the possibilities of the
islands that the American commission was compelled to go far afield to
obtain information from writers and investigators in regard to questions
of defence, the political capacity of the inhabitants, the danger that
another nation might step in if the United States should evacuate,
commercial prospects, and so on. President McKinley soon came to the
opinion that the proper course was to take the entire archipelago. To
give them back to Spain seemed "dishonorable"; to turn them over to our
commercial rivals, France or Germany, seemed "bad business"; to leave
them to themselves would be to leave them to "anarchy and misrule";
hence there was nothing to do but to take all of them and attempt to
spread American civilization among the Filipino people. The American
commissioners therefore demanded the Philippines, but realizing the
defect in their case, since the conquest of Manila had taken place after
the conclusion of the protocol, agreed to pay Spain $20,000,000. The
Spanish commissioners thereupon yielded to necessity and reluctantly
agreed.
As finally signed, the treaty of December 10, 1898, contained the
following points: Spain agreed to relinquish Cuba, and the United
States was to protect life and property during its occupancy of the
island; Spain also ceded Porto Rico and the other Spanish West Indies,
Guam in the Ladrones, and the Philippines on payment of $20,000,000;
the United States agreed to return to Spain, at its own cost, all
Spanish prisoners taken at the time of the capture of Manila; the
civil and political rights of the inhabitants of the ceded territories
were to be determined by Congress; and freedom of religion was
guaranteed.
The reference of the treaty to the Senate for ratification elicited
many divergences of opinion, the ablest opposition being presented by
members of the President's own party. In particular, the position
taken by Senator Hoar, a rigid Republican and a close friend of
President McKinley, made a strong impression. That there can be no
just government without the consent of the governed, he asserted, was
the central doctrine of the Declaration of Independence. Moreover, the
acquisition of foreign lands, he believed, would lead us into
competition with European powers for territory, and thus tempt us away
from the international policy which had been laid down by the
"fathers" and followed by the nation ever since. Most of the Democrats
held similar views, but some of them heeded the advice of Bryan, who
urged that the treaty be ratified in order to end the war, and that
the ultimate disposition of the new possessions be decided in the next
presidential campaign. The point of view which seems to have prevailed
with most Republicans was that the United States, being a sovereign
nation, possessed power to acquire territory and to determine its
future status, and that as a matter of expediency it was better to
take the Philippines than to risk the dangers which lay in leaving
them alone. Shortly before the final vote was taken, an insurrection
broke out in the Philippines against American control, which may have
influenced some senators to accept the President's settlement. Even
with this aid, however, ratification was brought about by the narrow
margin of one vote more than the required two-thirds majority.[2]
Within the field of politics, the Republicans increased the advantage
which they had gained in 1896. The congressional and state elections
of 1893 continued their control of the House and strengthened it in
the Senate; the world-wide prosperity which has already been mentioned
and in which the United States shared, was in striking contrast with
the business depression of the recent Democratic administration;
discoveries of gold deposits in the Klondike and the improvement of
methods of extracting the metal from the ore greatly increased the
currency supply and assisted in raising the level of prices, thereby
giving greater prosperity to the western farmer and lessening his
complaints. The gold standard act of March 14, 1900, pleased the
financial interests, for it fixed the standard of value, set the
amount of the gold reserve at $150,000,000, and specified adequate
means by which the Secretary of the Treasury could maintain other
forms of money on a parity with the precious metal. Within the
Republican organization, the President's soothing personality and
Hanna's meticulous attention to the details of the party machinery
continued undiminished the momentum which had been gathered.
Defections on the imperialism issue, while affecting important party
leaders, were numerically unimportant. Among the financial and
industrial classes, therefore, confidence in President McKinley and
his advisors was thoroughgoing. There was a strong bond of interest,
moreover, between territorial expansion and industrial expansion,
between Imperialism and the expansion of foreign markets. The primacy
of business was assured.
The renomination of McKinley at the Republican Convention in
Philadelphia, on June 19, 1900, was unanimous. The vice-presidency,
contrary to tradition, occupied the center of interest. Several men of
prominence were mentioned in this connection but the name which evoked
most enthusiasm was that of Theodore Roosevelt. Roosevelt's career
during the war with Spain had been a prominent factor in making him
Governor of New York. As Governor he had shown energy and independence,
especially in connection with measures for taxing street railway and
other franchises, and had come into conflict with Senator Thomas C.
Platt, the boss of the state. Senator Platt, therefore, desired to
divert the vigorous Governor into the vice-presidency, an office which
usually casts a "species of political oblivion" over its occupant.
McKinley was opposed to the plan and so were Hanna and Roosevelt
himself. The latter desired to put into effect further plans which he
had made as Governor, and the attempt to shelve him aroused his
fighting spirit. In the convention, however, sentiment in behalf of
Roosevelt, especially from the West, was so strong as to over-rule
both the administration and the wishes of the Governor. McKinley sent
emphatic word that he was neither for nor against any man, but would
accept the decision of the delegates. Hanna then withdrew his
objections and Roosevelt was nominated without opposition.
The Republican platform emphasized the prosperity which had resulted
from the accession of the party to power; it pointed out the danger
which would ensue if the opposition were allowed to conduct public
affairs; and it dwelt upon the growth of the export trade, and the
beneficence of the Dingley tariff. An antitrust plank deprecated
combinations designed to create monopolies, and promised legislation
to prevent such abuses. Imperialism was briefly dismissed: "No other
course was possible than to destroy Spain's sovereignty throughout the
West Indies and in the Philippine Islands. That course created our
responsibility before the world ... to provide for the maintenance of
law and order, and for the establishment of good government and for
the performance of international obligations."
The dissension which had existed within the Democratic party since the
second administration of Cleveland was still the important fact about
the organization. Having been out of power, the party could take only
the negative position of hostile criticism; there had been no
reorganization and clarification of purposes, and no new leader had
appeared who combined the personal prestige of Bryan with those
qualities of conservatism and solidity which the East demanded, so
that from the beginning there was no doubt that Bryan would again be
the candidate and that he would take the lead in framing the platform.
The convention met in Kansas City, on July 4. The platform placed most
emphasis upon three issues. The first, which was declared the
"paramount" one, was imperialism. The reasons given for opposing
territorial expansion were mainly those brought forward by Senator
Hoar at the time when the peace treaty was under discussion.
We declare again that all governments instituted among men derive
their just powers from the consent of the governed; that any
government not based upon the consent of the governed is a tyranny;
and that to impose upon any people a government of force is to
substitute the methods of imperialism for those of a republic.
The second issue, the evils of big business, received renewed
attention, although an old complaint, because of the many industrial
consolidations of the years immediately preceding. The "trusts" were
condemned for appropriating the fruits of industry for the benefit of
the few, and the Republican party was charged with fostering them in
return for campaign subscriptions and political support. The Dingley
act was denounced as a "trust-breeding" measure. The remedies proposed
were severely definite in comparison with the vague plank which had
been offered by the Republicans: they included publicity as to the
affairs of corporations doing an interstate business; the prohibition
of stock-watering and attempts at monopoly; and the use of all the
constitutional powers of Congress over interstate commerce and the
mails for the enactment of comprehensive and effective legislation.
That the silver issue was mentioned was due to the insistence of Bryan,
who believed that the stand which had been taken by the party in 1896
was a right one. Notwithstanding the objections of many influential
leaders, therefore, a free silver plank was inserted, although in brief
terms and in an inconspicuous place.
As a political contest, the campaign of 1900 lacked life in comparison
with that of 1896. Interest in anti-imperialism was difficult to
arouse, and waned visibly as the weeks wore on. Prosperity and the
increased money supply sapped the strength of earlier discontent with
the currency situation, so that the choice presented to the voters
simmered down to imperialism and Bryan. A bit of vigor was infused into
the campaign through the energetic speaking tours of Roosevelt and the
Democratic leader. Hanna, as Chairman of the Republican National
Committee, organized everything with his usual skill, and raised, his
biographer tells us, $2,500,000 from the important business men of the
country--one-fifth of it from two companies. The result of the election
was the choice of McKinley, whose plurality over Bryan exceeded 860,000
in a total vote of less than 14,000,000; Bryan received less support
than had been accorded him in 1896.
While imperialism as a political issue was being discussed and decided,
the history of American control in Cuba, Porto Rico and the Philippines
was rapidly being written. Economic conditions in the first of these
islands at the time of the American occupation were little short of
appalling. The streets, houses and public institutions were filthy and
in disrepair; anarchy ruled, for lack of any stable and recognized
government; and the people were half-clothed, homeless and starving. At
noon on January 1, 1899, the Spanish flag was hauled down in Havana,
the American flag was hoisted in its place, and representatives of the
former government relinquished all rights to the sovereignty and public
property of the island. General John R. Brooke, and later General
Leonard Wood controlled affairs as military governors.
The first task was to feed the hungry, and care for the sick and dying.
The customs service was revived under command of Colonel Tasker H.
Bliss and began to supply needed revenue. The penal institutions were
investigated--noisome holes in which were crowded wretched prisoners,
many of whom had been incarcerated for no ascertainable reason.
Education was reorganized, equipment provided, teachers found, and
schools repaired or rebuilt. Most remarkable, was the work of
sanitation. Heaps of rubbish were cleared away; houses washed and
disinfected; sewers were opened and streets cleaned. Scientific
investigation disclosed the fact that the mosquito disseminated the
yellow fever and steps were taken to prevent the breeding of these
pests. So successful were the efforts that in a few years the fever had
become a thing of the past.
It was seen that the economic rehabilitation of Cuba must come about
mainly through the production of sugar, and since the United States was
the chief purchaser of the product, the tariff schedule was of vital
importance. In 1901 Congress was urged to reduce the tariff on imports
from Cuba, but the opposition was formidable. The American Beet Sugar
Association complained that their industry, which had been recently
established, would be ruined by allowing reductions to Cuban growers;
the cane-sugar planters of Louisiana were allied with them; and the
friends of protection feared the effect of any break in the tariff
wall. On the other hand, the American Sugar Refining Company, popularly
called the "Sugar Trust," merely refined raw sugar and desired an
increase in the supply. Lobbyists of all descriptions poured into
Washington to influence committees and individuals, and General Leonard
Wood, then the Governor of Cuba, even expended Cuban funds in the
spread of literature favorable to a reciprocal reduction of duties. In
the meantime, a reciprocity treaty was made and submitted to the
Senate, where it hung fire for somewhat more than a year, and was
finally ratified on December 16, 1903. It provided for the admission of
Cuban products into the United States at a reduction of twenty per
cent., and a reciprocal reduction on American goods entering Cuba of
twenty-five to forty per cent.
The establishment of a policy in regard to permanent relations between
the United States and Cuba was brought about in 1901-1902. When
Congress had demanded the withdrawal of Spain from the island in 1898,
its action had been accompanied by the Teller Resolution, disclaiming
any intention of keeping Cuba and asserting a determination to leave
the control of the island with its people. After the close of the war
President McKinley and his closest advisors in Congress had determined
that the pledge should be kept, and public sentiment had been in
agreement with them. As soon, therefore, as American control was an
established fact, plans were formulated for relinquishing Cuba to the
people of the island. A constitutional convention was held, and a form
of government, modelled on that of the United States, was framed and
adopted on February 21, 1901.
While the Cuban convention was deliberating, it became apparent that
the constitution would not include any statement of a policy in regard
to future relations with the United States. The American Senate,
therefore, under the leadership of Senator O.H. Platt, passed the
so-called "Platt Amendment." Its several provisions were as follows:
the Cuban government shall never enter into agreements with other
powers which tend to impair the independence of the island; it shall
not contract public debts of such size that the ordinary revenues would
be inadequate to pay interest charges and provide for a sinking fund;
it shall permit the intervention of the United States when needed to
preserve Cuban independence and the maintenance of an adequate
government; and it shall sell or lease necessary coaling stations to
the United States. When satisfied that the purpose of the Amendment was
not to enable the United States to meddle in affairs in Cuba, but
merely to secure Cuban independence and set forth a definite
understanding between the two nations, the convention incorporated it
in the final constitution. On May 20, 1902, the control of Cuba was
formally relinquished to the people of the island, with the good wishes
of the people of the United States. Only once since that time has the
United States intervened. During the summer of 1906, an insurrection
against the Cuban government took place during which the president of
the Republic requested American assistance. A small army was
despatched, which remained until March, 1909, when quiet was restored
and an orderly election was held.
The task of the United States in Porto Rico was far simpler than in
Cuba. The island was small; the people homogeneous, predominantly
white, and well-disposed toward American occupation; and only slight
damage had been done by the troops during the war because of the
cessation of hostilities at the outset of the Porto Rican expedition.
The development of a system of education, therefore, the improvement of
roads and the betterment of health conditions through vaccination and
the control of yellow fever presented a problem which was relatively
simple.
On October 18, 1898, United States officials assumed control of the
island, and until May 1, 1900, the government was in the hands of the
War Department. On the latter date a civil government was established
under the "Foraker Act," an organic law or constitution passed by
Congress on April 12, 1900. Under the provisions of the Act a governor
was to be appointed by the President of the United States, to be the
chief executive officer of the island. The people of Porto Rico were
allowed a voice in the government through the power to elect the lower
house of the legislature; but control by the United States was assured
by giving the President authority to choose the members of the upper
house, and by giving both the governor and Congress a veto on
legislation passed by the island legislature. In the course of time the
Porto Ricans desired larger self-government. This was granted by the
act of March 2, 1917, which made the islanders citizens of the United
States and gave them power to elect both houses of the legislature.[3]
The first difficulty met by the United States in the Philippines was an
inheritance from Spanish rule. In 1896 the Filipinos, led by Aguinaldo,
had risen against the government in order to secure more liberal
treatment and to eliminate the influence of the Catholic friars from
politics. The "embers of dissatisfaction" were still aglow when the
American war intervened. Relations between the revolutionists and the
United States forces became strained when the former were not allowed
to cooperate with the Americans against the Spanish, and in February,
1899, open warfare followed. Not until July, 1902, was quiet restored,
and during the process enough cruelties were practiced by American
soldiers to make the anti-imperialists doubly fearful of military
control.[4]
McKinley and his Secretary of War--at this time Elihu Root--desired to
supplant military government with civil rule as quickly as possible and
to this end the President appointed the first Philippine Commission on
January 20, 1899, with Jacob G. Schurman, of Cornell University, as
Chairman. It was instructed to investigate the situation in the islands
and to recommend any action that seemed wise. The unsettled condition
of affairs seriously hampered the work of the Commission but it
gathered a fund of information which it later published. A second
Commission was sent out in 1900, with Judge William H. Taft at the
head. The instructions given to the Commission by President McKinley
embodied an enlightened colonial policy, the core of which was that the
government being established was "designed not for our satisfaction, or
for the expression of our theoretical views, but for the happiness,
peace, and prosperity of the people of the Philippine Islands." The
Commission wielded such large powers that gradually the area controlled
by the civil government increased at the expense of the military
authorities, and by 1902 only the wild Moros were under military
control.
By this time a definite form of government could be planned for, built
upon the labors of the second Commission. The Philippine Act of July 1,
1902, provided for a governor appointed by the President, with the
advice of the Senate, executive departments, and a legislature, the
lower house of which was elected by the people. From the beginning the
Filipinos, like the Porto Ricans, have desired a greater range of
self-government, and in 1916 long steps were taken in the direction
desired by them. The Jones act of that year materially increased the
powers of the Philippine government and gave the Filipinos power to
elect the upper as well as the lower house of the legislature. The
passage of the law met with enthusiastic approval in the islands.
The purpose of American rule in the Philippines has been to fit the
people for self-government, although opinions have differed as to how
soon the final outcome could be brought about. An early and bothersome
problem was found in the friars' lands, which consisted of about
425,000 acres, for the most part in the vicinity of Manila. The
possession of so great an area, together with the religious power and
the considerable political authority which the friars exercised under
Spanish rule, gave the Church a domination which might threaten trouble
after the American occupation. The solution of the problem was found in
the purchase of the lands for about $7,000,000 by the United States.
Efforts have been made to introduce a complete system of
education--physical and industrial, as well as academic--with such
success that when the Jones bill was being discussed in Congress in
1916 it was asserted that every member of the Philippine legislature at
that time was a college graduate. In 1917 the Filipino student body
numbered 647,256, with 11,822 teachers. Political education has also
been a part of the American idea. Elementary self-government was
gradually introduced, starting in the more civilized local
municipalities and provinces and confining the suffrage to the educated
people, the official classes and property owners. The preservation of
order has been more and more entrusted to a Philippine constabulary;
civil service officers and school teachers have been increasingly
chosen from the Filipinos; and the courts have been partly manned with
native judges. Work in sanitation has followed the lines marked out in
Cuba and Porto Rico. First and last over 10,000,000 vaccinations were
performed before 1914; small-pox has been controlled; attention has
been paid to the building of highways and railroads, water supply, the
disposal of sewage and allied problems. The precise time, if ever, when
independence should be granted to the Philippines is the one great
question remaining.
The first attempt to revise the customs laws in the Philippines was
made by the Commission during the governorship of William H. Taft.
These schedules were revised in Washington in such a way as to
discriminate against Philippine interests, but they had remained in
force only a short time when Congress passed the act of March 8, 1902,
allowing goods grown or produced in the Philippines to enter the United
States under a twenty-five per cent. reduction. In 1909, the tariff
makers were induced to relent to the extent of allowing the free
importation of goods grown, produced or manufactured in the
Philippines, except that only a specified annual amount of Philippine
sugar and tobacco might be brought in. In 1913 the wall was entirely
removed on all trade between the United States and the Philippines in
articles made or grown in either of the two countries.
While Congress and the President were concerning themselves with the
practical problems of military control, sanitation and the like, the
Supreme Court was laboriously considering the less tangible but equally
perplexing question of the constitutionality of the several acts which
the legislative and executive departments had committed. The power of
Congress to acquire territory and the right of the executive to control
new territory under the war power had long been conceded. Admittedly,
however, government under the war power was temporary and transitional.
In earlier times such acquisitions as those effected by the Louisiana
purchase and the annexation of Texas had been consummated with the
distinct understanding that these regions should immediately or
eventually become territories or states in the Union. The status of
Porto Rico and the Philippines was novel. "The civil rights and
political status of the native inhabitants of the territories hereby
ceded to the United States," ran the words of the treaty of peace
closing the war with Spain, "shall be determined by the Congress." Did
this mean that Congress might govern the new acquisitions independently
of the Constitution? Could it abridge freedom of speech, and permit
cruel and unusual punishments, or establish slavery? Could Congress
permanently govern these lands without giving their citizens the rights
of citizens of the United States, and with no intention of ever making
them territories or states? On the other hand, if Congress must act
within the limits prescribed by the Constitution, would the wild Moros
of the Philippines be the beneficiaries of the amendment preserving the
right of trial by jury? In the popular language of the day, did the
Constitution follow the flag?
It was not long before the Supreme Court was called upon in the
"Insular Cases" to express itself upon these constitutional questions.
The first case was De Lima _v._ Bidwell. It was a suit to recover
duties paid on goods sent from Porto Rico to the United States during
the interval between the cession of the island and the passage of the
Foraker Act. The duties had been paid under the Dingley law, which
levied customs of specified amounts upon all goods imported "from
foreign countries." Was Porto Rico a "foreign" country? The majority of
the nine members of the Court thought that it was not foreign, that
there was scarcely a "shred of authority" for the view that a "district
ceded to and in the possession of the United States remains for any
purpose a foreign country." Since Porto Rico was not a foreign country,
the duties were wrongfully collected and must be returned. The
remaining four justices dissented. One of them delivered a dissenting
opinion in which he held that Porto Rico occupied middle ground between
that of a foreign country and domestic territory. As such its status
could be determined by Congress only and therefore its products were
subject to duties levied by the Dingley act.
In Downes _v._ Bidwell the Court was compelled to determine the
constitutionality of the part of the Foraker Act which provided for a
tariff between Porto Rico and the United States equal to fifteen per
cent. of that levied by the Dingley act. Again the Court divided five
to four. Mr. Justice Brown delivered the majority opinion. It was to
the effect that the Constitution applied only to States; that Congress
possessed unlimited power over the political relations of the
territories; that Porto Rico was a "territory appurtenant to and
belonging to the United States"; and that the part of the Constitution
which says that duties shall be uniform throughout the United States
did not apply to Porto Rico unless Congress so willed. Hence the
customs clause of the Foraker Act was valid. Four of the majority,
however, who agreed with Mr. Justice Brown in his conclusion that the
tariff clause of the Foraker Act was constitutional did so for reasons
which they asserted to be "different from, if not in conflict with,
those expressed" by him.
From the point of view of constitutional law, the decisions were
unsatisfactory, because of the balanced division of opinion. Yet to
have declared all the provisions of the Constitution in force in all
the acquisitions would have been embarrassing. Logic and the
Constitution went to the winds, while the executive and legislative
departments administered the territories on the convenient and flexible
theory that certain constitutional provisions must be heeded and that
others need not.
While the colonial policy of the United States was being developed, the
possession of the Philippines added interest in the United States to an
unusual international situation in China which immediately involved
several European nations and eventually affected America. The
Chinese-Japanese War, which came to a close in 1895, had uncovered to
the world the weakness of China as a military power and had weakened
the hold of the reigning monarch upon the people of the Empire.
Thereupon the leading commercial nations of Europe began to seize
portions of China in order to extend their trade relations in the Far
East. Russia first attempted to obtain a seaport, but retired when an
uproar of protest arose from the remainder of Europe. Not long
afterwards, two German missionaries in the province of Shantung were
murdered. The outrage formed a sufficient pretext for aggressive
action, as a result of which China leased Kiaochau to Germany for
ninety-nine years, including in the grant railway and mining privileges
and an indemnity; Russia then renewed her attempt and succeeded in
leasing Port Arthur and Talienwan for twenty-five years. Great Britain
followed with the acquisition of rights in Weihaiwei similar to those
of Russia in Port Arthur; Japan found its share in the province of
Fukien, and France in Kwangchaouwan. In each case, moreover, the
leasing power designated a large area around its holdings as a "sphere
of influence," in which its economic and political mastery was
complete. In this way, thirteen of the eighteen provinces of China,
including the most desirable harbors, waterways and mines, were
partially controlled by the powers.
American foreign affairs had been, since October 1, 1898, in the
skilful hands of John Hay, who was possessed of an intimate knowledge
of conditions in Europe. Hay perceived the danger to American
commercial interests in China, and accordingly in September, 1899, he
addressed a circular note to the powers requesting each of them to give
formal assurances that in its sphere of influence: (1) it would not
interfere with any treaty port or vested interest; (2) it would agree
that the Chinese tariff should apply equally to all goods shipped to
ports in the spheres, and be collected by the Chinese officials; and
(3) it would charge no higher harbor and railroad rates for citizens of
other nations than for its own. The powers having agreed more or less
directly, Hay informed them by a note of March 20, 1900, that all had
acceded to his propositions and that the United States considered their
assent as "final and definitive." There could be, of course, no
effectual guaranty that the powers would fully observe this "Open-Door"
policy, but the economic penetration of China, which would soon result
in complete political possession, was at least retarded for the moment.
Domestic affairs in China, meanwhile, had been seething under the
surface. An ill-starred reform movement, initiated by the Emperor, had
failed, the government was discredited, and the Empress Dowager seized
the throne for herself. All China interpreted the event to presage a
return to the old order of things--a general anti-foreign movement.
Economic distresses, bad crops, a disastrous flood and hatred of
foreign missionaries, combined with a deep resentment at the European
partition of their country, caused the Chinese to break out in a score
of scattered attacks on the hated aliens. The culmination was the Boxer
Rebellion. The Boxers was a society which had long existed in China for
various religious, patriotic and other purposes. It took up the cry
"Drive out the foreigners and uphold the dynasty." Government officials
by their disinclination to quell the Boxer uprising, showed that their
sympathies were with the rioters.
The climax of the outbreak came in and around Pekin, the capital of
China. The railroad from the city to the coast was seized, telegraphic
connection cut off, and the representatives of the foreign powers were
compelled to fortify themselves within the city. On June 19, 1900, all
foreigners were ordered to leave within twenty-four hours, and the
German minister was shot when he attempted to visit the proper officer
in order to protest. The Chinese army poured out to surround the
quarter of the city where the legations were situated and cut them off
from the rest of the world. All foreigners fled to the British
legation, where they constructed bomb proof cellars, raised barricades
and planted artillery.[5] The powers, including the United States,
combined to send a punitive expedition to Pekin, while the legationers
settled down to a state of siege, determined to hold out as long as
possible. At last on August 14, when the surviving foreigners were
reduced to eating horse flesh and when scores had been killed or
wounded, the relief column reached the capital. It was high time. The
foreign quarters and much of the business portion, the banks, and the
theatres had been burned, and the entire city threatened with
destruction.
By the time that the uprisings in Pekin and elsewhere had been
suppressed, it was evident that the powers would have a stern
accounting with China. Hay had already openly announced the policy of
the United States in his note of July 3, 1900; it was that the United
States would seek a solution which should bring about permanent safety
and peace to China, preserve the territorial entity of the country,
protect the rights of friendly powers and insure an equal opportunity
for all nations in the commerce of China. Hay continued through the
negotiations to urge joint action on the part of the powers, and
procured from them a statement disclaiming any purpose to acquire any
part of China. At length in December, 1900, the demands upon China were
formulated, to which that unhappy nation was compelled to accede. The
most important were, punishment for the guilty rioters, safeguards for
the future, indemnities for losses and the improvement of commercial
relations. The financial indemnity finally placed upon China was
$333,000,000, of which $24,000,000 was for the United States. The
latter sum proved to be more than sufficient to satisfy all claims and
China was relieved from the payment of about $11,000,000. As a mark of
appreciation for this act, the Chinese government determined to use the
fund in sending students to the United States for education.
While the problems concerning China and the colonial possessions of the
United States were reaching a settlement, on September 6, 1901,
President McKinley attended the Pan-American Exposition in Buffalo,
where he was shot by a young fanatic. He died eight days later and
Vice-President Roosevelt succeeded him.
BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE
The framing, contents and ratification of the treaty of 1898 are well
described in Chadwick, Latane and Olcott. The treaty itself is
conveniently found in William MacDonald, _Documentary Source Book of
American History_ (new ed., 1916).
On imperialism: L.A. Coolidge, _An Old-Fashioned Senator, O.H. Plat_
(1910); G.F. Hoar, _Autobiography of Seventy Years_, contains a strong
argument against imperialism; A.C. Coolidge, _United States as a World
Power_ (1916).
The best accounts of the election of 1900 are in Stanwood, Croly and
Latane.
The island possessions have given rise to a considerable body of
special volumes of a high order. Especially useful are: (Cuba), Elihu
Hoot, _Military and Colonial Policy of the United States_ (1916), by
McKinley's Secretary of War; L.A. Coolidge, _O.H. Platt_ (1910); A.G.
Robinson, _Cuba and the Intervention_ (1905); C.E. Magoon, _Republic
of Cuba_ (1908), by the provisional governor during the second
intervention. (Porto Rico), W.F. Willoughby, _Territories and
Dependencies of the United States_ (1905), by a former treasurer of
Porto Rico; L.S. Rowe, _United States and Porto Rico_ (1904). The most
complete work on the Philippines is D.C. Worcester, _Philippines: Past
and Present_ (2 vols., 1914), by a member of the Commission; the
valuable report of Commissioner Taft is in _Report of the Philippine
Commission_, 1907, part 3, printed also as _Senate Document 200_, 60th
Congress, 1st session, vol. 7, (Serial Number 5240).
The legal and constitutional aspects of imperialism are best followed
in the _Harvard Law Review_, vols. XII, XIII; W.W. Willoughby,
_Constitutional Law of the United States_ (2 vols., 1910); C.F.
Randolph, _The Law and Policy of Annexation_ (1901); the "insular
cases" are in _United States Reports_, vol. 182, pp. 1, 244.
The most complete account of affairs in China is P.H. Clements, _The
Boxer Rebellion_ (1915); J.B. Moore, _Digest_, vol. V (1906), is
useful, as always; J.W. Foster, _American Diplomacy in the Orient_
(1903), is clear and concise; W.R. Thayer, _John Hay_ (2 vols., 1915),
is disappointing.
* * * * *
[1] The American commissioners were W.R. Day, Secretary of State;
Whitelaw Reid, editor of the New York _Tribune_; and Senators C.K.
Davis, W.P. Frye and George Gray. Senator Hoar remonstrated with
McKinley for placing senators on such commissions as this, on the
ground that the independence of the Senate was thereby lessened when
the question of ratifying the treaty came before that body. He declared
that McKinley admitted that the practice was wrong. Cf. _Autobiography_,
II, 46-51.
[2] Of the President's party, T.B. Reed, the powerful Speaker of the
House, retired from public life for personal reasons and because of his
dissent from the imperialist policy of his party. McCall, _Reed_,
237-8.
[3] Under the provisions of the Foraker Act only fifteen per cent. of
the usual duties were to be paid on goods passing between the island
and the United States, and since July 25, 1901, complete free trade has
existed.
[4] The Philippine group is about 7,000 miles southwest of San
Francisco; the chief island, Luzon, is almost exactly the size of Ohio,
40,000 sq. miles; the largest city, Manila, contained over 250,000
people at the time of the American occupation.
[5] It was on the occasion of despatching troops to avenge the death of
Von Ketteler, the German minister, that the Emperor gave instructions
to "give no quarter and to (act) so like Huns that for a thousand years
to come no Chinese would dare to look a German in the face."