THE ORIGIN AND FORM OF THE SUGGESTED ALLIANCE BETWEEN ENGLAND
AND THE UNITED STATES
I.--HOW THE SUGGESTION AROSE
Out of the conditions and events to which I have first alluded
there arose what I call a desultory, scattered, but emphatic,
sentiment among many English-Americans for a closer union, a
feeling that a permanent relation of some kind should be
established between the United States and the British Empire.
There is a prevailing opinion that our race should be more
sympathetic, that we should live closer together, know each
other better, and think and act in unison on great questions
affecting our mutual progress and welfare; in other words, that
we should interfuse in our thoughts, acts, and exterior policy.
This sentiment for union came upon us suddenly and unexpectedly;
it was natural and spontaneous. It was not the creation of man's
ingenuity; it was not the invention of diplomacy; it was an
evolution. A continuity of a chain of organisms, extending from
{49} the lowest to the highest, is an evolution. "_Tous les ages
sont enchaînés par une suite de causes et d'effets que lient
l'état du monde à tous ceux qui l'ont précédé_."[1]
The existing feeling among the people calling for a nearer and
closer relationship of the English-speaking race is the
recognition of this evolution.
The belief that steps should be taken to put this feeling into
some practicable and tangible shape does not emanate from one
country, but it comes from both. It springs not from official or
diplomatic sources; it is the spontaneous utterance of the
people of both countries.
The peculiar, isolated fact which brought this question to
light, and to the attention of the two nations, was the
Spanish-American War. The _moral_ support which England gave to
America in that struggle caused it to develop, and brought about
its further propagation. England's position in that war was not
manifested in any official or recognised diplomatic manner, but,
by some kind of language, intimation, or action known and
understood in the courts of Europe, the continental powers were
made to understand that she would permit no interference with
the United States in the conduct of the war.
Spain also had her friends. At least two great continental
powers sympathised with her in the struggle she was making
against such enormous odds, and the current belief is that if
England's {50} position in this war had not been well known,
those powers, with others in the sphere of their attraction,
would have manifested their sympathy for Spain in a substantial
and combined way. In short, the United States would have had to
oppose a European combination. It is not claimed that any such
combination was actually formed. The prevailing feeling was that
one would have been formed if England's sentiments had not been
fully known and declared. Whether this be so or not is now
immaterial. I am simply tracing the history of the movement. I
am describing the situation as it then appeared.
I find, therefore, that it was a natural condition of affairs
which spontaneously brought to the surface this thought of an
alliance between England and the United States. In the course of
events, the situation of England and the United States, standing
_vis-à-vis_ to all, or several, of the continental powers, was a
strong possibility, and it set the English-speaking races
seriously thinking about their fate under such circumstances.
The political and military horoscope of Europe was laid bare to
them, and they were confronted, for the first time in their
history, with the possibility of a war in which they might find
themselves in armed opposition to two, or more, or all, of the
continental powers of Europe. In truth, many urgent and earnest
appeals were, and are, constantly made, in desultory newspaper
articles, and in various unofficial ways, in favour of a
coalition of the continental powers of Europe against what is
termed {51} the "Anglo-Saxon race." The usual arguments are used
and the usual epithets applied. They are accused, as race
attributes, of "greed," "rapacity," "brutality," and, what is
worse, of "hypocrisy." Engaged, as we of the United States were
at that period, in a war which we believed to be righteous, we
were for the first time in a position to estimate at their
proper value such accusations when applied to England herself,
and how far they might be considered as the product of senseless
fear and blind jealousy and envy.
Before the Spanish War began, no one seriously thought of, or
considered, an alliance. It is true that the reading classes
among us generally found that in proportion as their knowledge
extended beyond one or two given points, their respect and
admiration for England became increasingly great. But in
practice it was always with some difficulty that the ordinary
affairs of national intercourse and business could be adjusted
between her and the United States. Like members of the same
family, we became easily excited, and were always ready, under
such circumstances, to say disagreeable, intemperate, and biting
things of each other.
England's covert support and open sympathy with the United
States changed our feelings towards the mother country; it
awakened our gratitude, and aroused European fear and envy. When
Manila was captured by Dewey a new scene in international
history was unfolded. The event revealed to the full gaze of
astonished Europe the tremendous power and influence of the {52}
British Empire and the United States acting in concert.
While there was no actual compact or treaty between the English
and Americans, the diplomats of Europe were quick to imagine
one. A spectre is always more alarming, and often more
effective, than a reality. The situation of affairs was the same
as if a treaty had actually existed. The friction, the
misunderstandings, the fretfulness, which theretofore existed
between the United States and England, and which the other
powers of Europe relied upon as a sufficient barrier to prevent
any concerted policy between them, suddenly disappeared, and
they stood before the world as friends and allies. Here was a
new and undreamed-of combination. The cards of diplomacy must be
reshuffled, and in future deals the strong possibility of the
Anglo-Saxon race being found together, solidly unified, must be
considered and provided against.
It should be remembered, that the support given to the
Americans, in the Spanish War, was not merely formal, although
not sanctioned by treaty. It subjected England to the risk of
being involved in serious complications with the other nations
of Europe. She took all the risk and responsibility of allowing
an impression to prevail that her sympathy, and support, if need
be, were with the United States. All the moral force of an
actual treaty resulted to the United States from the situation.
The position of England, in fact, was precisely the same as if
she had openly avowed {53} herself as, and contracted to become,
an ally of the United States, and the Americans distinctively
gained by it. This episode cannot now be lightly brushed aside.
It should never be forgotten by the American people. It was a
generous act on the part of the British nation openly to tender
its sympathy to the United States. It was voluntary and
unsolicited. England did not stop to discuss and analyse the
causes of the war with Spain. She placed herself by our side on
the broad grounds familiar to her own people, and gave us full
credit for the rectitude of our intentions, as proclaimed by
ourselves.
There was no qualification attached to her sympathy. It would
have been an easy task for casuists and international lawyers to
have raised an argument in favour of Spain, but it was not heard
in England. There were no public meetings in the British Empire
to protest against our war with Spain: none of her orators, or
well-known public men, or high officials, denounced our conduct
as unjustifiable or unrighteous. Not a word of that kind was
heard from any respectable quarter. There was never an occasion
in history when national gratitude was more justly due from one
nation to another. The less we say as to how this debt has been
repaid the better our feelings and manners. We must, _at least_,
candidly admit that many American criticisms of England in the
Boer War have been in a very different spirit--sufficiently
ill-bred, harsh, and unfriendly. That may be passed by.
Difference of opinion on such subjects {54} is natural, and
language is generally exaggerated in proportion to ignorance of
the subject. But a more recently developed sentiment among us is
deserving of severer censure: a few of our people are disposed
to turn the sympathy and assistance of England at that critical
moment into a ground of complaint against her; not only is her
friendship denied and denounced, but she is accused of having
beguiled us into the paths of imperialism, and our rulers share
in the denunciation, as having succumbed to her blandishments--a
monstrous and wholly unique instance of political perversity.
It must not be assumed, however, that a feeling of gratitude, on
the part of the United States, should be manifested or repaid by
making an alliance with England. This would be mere
sentiment,--commendable but misplaced. An alliance based upon
such a foundation would be built upon quicksand. Gratitude is a
noble quality, but it is more dangerous than gunpowder when
applied to political affinities.
But to return to the main subject; the _thought_ of an alliance
between the English-speaking people grew out of the
Spanish-American War, and speculations, at first limited to a
purely military view, of an offensive and defensive treaty
between the two nations, for temporary purposes, have gradually
grown and enlarged, until they have led to conjecture concerning
the whole future of the English-speaking nations, their wealth
and resources, their religious, moral, and political growth and
destiny: they have also led to researches into {55} the history
of the past; thus embracing both a backward and forward view.
Happily, the thought of an alliance has sunk deeply into the
minds of many serious people, who realise that in a seemingly
accidental, certainly unpremeditated, way, a great historical
truth has been uncovered, which, in its full growth and
maturity, may lead to the greatest epoch in the history of the
English-speaking race. The Spanish-American War, lamentable as
it was in some of its aspects, inevitable in others, surprising
in all, may hereafter be regarded as an event of supreme
importance in the history of England and the United States, just
as the accidental discovery of the _Corpus Juris Civilis_ was to
the world of that period, in enabling it to form new conceptions
of law, and through these conceptions to advance many steps in
its progress from barbarism to civilisation; or, to bring the
illustration closer home to us, as the accidental assembling of
a few enterprising men in a London inn gave rise to the
undertaking of Sir Humphrey Gilbert, and that, in its indirect
results, to the enormous possibilities inherent in the fact of
the establishment of the Anglo-Saxon race on this continent.
II.--THE INDEFINITENESS OF THE FORM OF THE PROPOSED ALLIANCE
Although much has already been said and written upon this great
subject in the United States and England, the suggestions
respecting closer relationship have been most general and
indefinite; and, {56} with a single exception,[2] so far as I
can discover, no one has ventured to outline a plan by which a
tangible result can be reached. It is agreed that a "better
feeling," a "better understanding," a "better knowledge" of each
other, a "closer union," more "intimate relations," an
"_entente_," should exist between the people of the two
countries.
But what is meant by these terms, or, when defined, how to carry
them into practical effect, is left in total darkness. It is
impossible to make any real progress in the discussion of the
question, unless some accurate landmarks are made; a
starting-point must be fixed, from which arguments I may
proceed, and upon which conclusions may be established.
To an intelligent discussion of any subject, a definition is a
_sine qua non_. What is meant by "alliance," "union," a "better
understanding," a "closer relationship," "interfusion," an
"_entente_," and terms of like import? It is in vain that the
citizens of both countries may _wish_ or _hope_ for a better
understanding, or that a better feeling, or a closer relation,
or union, should exist between them. It is said that idle wishes
are the most idle of all idle things.
In what does closer relationship consist? And how shall it be
brought about and cemented? What is the thing to be
accomplished? What are the reasons for its accomplishment? And
by what {57} methods can it be accomplished? These are the
salient inquiries.
In search of light upon this question, I have taken as a basis
of discussion a resolution adopted by the "Anglo-American
League," a society formed in London in the summer of 1898,
consisting of representative individuals, chosen from all grades
of social, political, civil, and commercial life, which was as
follows[3]:
"I. Considering that the peoples of the British Empire and of
the United States of America are closely allied in blood,
inherit the same literature and laws, hold the same principles
of self-government, recognise the same ideals of freedom and
humanity in the guidance of their national policy, and are drawn
together by strong common interests in many parts of the world,
this meeting is of the opinion that _every effort should be
made, in the interest of civilisation and peace, to secure the
most cordial and constant co-operation between the two
nations_."
Here is a clear and well-defined presentation of the subject:
first, the _postulate, i.e., _the people of the two countries
are closely allied in blood, inherit the same literature and
laws, hold the same principles of self-government, recognise the
same ideals of freedom and humanity in the guidance of their
national policy, and are drawn together by strong common
interests in many parts of the world; second, the _motive, i.e.,
_in the interest of civilisation and peace; third, the
_conclusion, i.e., _every effort should be made to secure the
most cordial and constant co-operation.
{58}
This resolution crystallises the combined thought of all the
orators and writers who have contributed to this subject; and
furnishes a clear text for a full discussion of the whole
question. The facts contained in the resolution, that we are
"closely allied in blood, inherit the same literature and laws,
hold the same principles of self-government, recognise the same
ideals of freedom and humanity, . . . and are drawn together by
strong common interests in many parts of the world," are
sufficiently serious to justify and support the conclusion that
"every effort should be made . . . to secure the most cordial
and constant co-operation between the two nations,"--especially
as the high and noble motive which impels this effort is "in the
interest of civilisation and peace." Here is a "motive and a
cue" which should enlist, not the Anglo-Saxon race alone, but
the sympathy of the whole Christian world.
But how, when, and by whom are such "efforts" to be made, to
secure this "most cordial and constant co-operation between the
two nations "? The resolution, speeches and articles referred to
give little or no light on these important points. No plan is
laid down; no ways or means suggested by which objects so highly
extolled and so important, shall be accomplished. The public men
of both countries advocate an _entente_, a "cultivation of
better relations" between the two peoples. They shudder at the
mere suggestion of a written treaty or executed alliance. In
these respects their advice and acts are conservative. But is it
{59} safe to leave the subject in this indefinite condition?
Should we not advance another step or two in the direction of a
real national fraternity? The question should not be allowed to
remain in this doubtful and unsatisfactory state. The noble
purposes of this resolution cannot be attained by _mere words.
Acts_ must follow the _wishes_ and _declarations_. Every
assertion of this resolution should be clearly and explicitly
proven; the objects to be accomplished by co-operation
demonstrated; and the plans by which they shall be carried into
effect determined, and, if practicable, enforced.
At present we have advanced no farther in the question than
this: It appears that many persons on both sides of the Atlantic
have a wish, a feeling, a sentiment, a belief, a conviction,
that it is for the mutual benefit of the British Empire and the
United States that co-operation, interfusion, union, should be
permanently established between the two countries.
This is the first step in the movement. Discussion, argument,
controversy, properly precede acts. A spirit of scepticism, as
Buckle says,[4] certainly a spirit of inquiry, must arise
previous to actual steps being made in any great movement. But,
if the statements contained in this resolution are correct, it
is the duty of every citizen of England and the United States,
in fact, the duty of citizens of all countries, to commence the
agitation of the question; to bend their energies to its
solution, and to {60} aid in the quick and complete consummation
of co-operation. If the purpose of co-operation is to secure
"civilisation and peace" to the inhabitants of the world, it is
not merely the business of Englishmen and Americans to see that
it succeeds, but it is a matter in which all mankind is
interested. The question is not limited to those of the
English-speaking family; it is as broad as humanity itself.
No reason has been assigned why the consummation of this
important subject should be postponed or evaded. On the
contrary, existing conditions require that it should be pushed
to a solution. It has come to stay--to be solved. Great events
cannot be ripped, untimely, from the womb of history. They are
born at regular periods of political gestation, and when thus
ushered into the world, become ripe for discussion and action.
They cannot be smothered. They must be met and settled. Of
course, the professional politicians, especially those of the
United States, will not touch this great subject of "union."
They will await events. They will gauge its popularity. They
will study its effect and influence upon the Irish and German
vote. They will play with it until it becomes a burning,
absorbing, national topic, and when the wind of popular approval
blows that way, they will outrival each other in its advocacy.
The politicians are born for the hour. A learned, thoughtful,
and dispassionate advocacy of any public question, by a
professional politician, would be a _rara avis_ in national
life. The inherent strength, reason, and justice of great public
questions, are never considered {61} by these nimble
gentlemen--in fact, perhaps they never were. The business of
politics involves only the present. The motto of the politicians
is "Policy," "Expediency"; not "Truth," "Reason," and
"Stability." In the primitive stages of this discussion,
therefore, it is left in the hands of the independent,
non-partisan thinkers. This class must mould it into tangible,
practical shape, before it can be brought into the realm of
ordinary politics.
III.--DEFINITION OF CO-OPERATION, ALLIANCE, UNION, OR COMPACT
Our first aim, therefore, is to discover what kind of
co-operation should be established between the two nations. And
this may be accomplished by stating what is _not_ meant to be
included in the term.
I take it that the sincere advocates of co-operation, union,
interfusion, do not mean, by these or kindred terms, an
"offensive and defensive" treaty, or alliance, between the
United States and the British Empire, for the mere temporary
purpose of commercial or material aggrandisement, or conquest,
or for military or naval aggression, or defence. If that be the
scope and limit of this movement, it might as well be dropped,
as utterly and wholly impracticable. In fact, an offensive and
defensive treaty, in its common acceptation, has already been
discarded by the advocates of union. The great end and purpose
of the resolution, to "secure civilisation and peace," cannot be
attained {62} by such means. To ascertain the source from which
co-operation and interfusion between the English-speaking people
arises, to distinguish Anglo-Saxon union from other forms of
international alliance, it seems a necessary prelude to the
discussion of the subject to recall the primary ends of
government. In whatever form it exists, its ends may all be
summed up in the idea of benefit, or advantage. It is so in the
most arbitrary despotism that ever existed among men; it is so
in the most enlightened free system; the difference being that
through progressive development in the several succeeding
conditions of society, the free government confers greater
benefit and advantage. We need not now consider the former; we
have to do with the latter only. As it is, in the modern sense,
its _raison d'etre_ is the harmonious blending of all classes of
society; the preservation of the essential interests, wisely
understood, of the people; the preservation of an open field for
the exercise of every virtue and every talent, and, subject to
these, the performance of every duty enjoined by good
neighbourhood, and the encouragement of every tendency and
impulse which points to the amelioration of mankind, at home or
abroad. Such is the idea of a commonwealth, constructed on true,
liberal principles, and sanctified by Christianity.
As an individual is endowed with intellectual, moral, and
physical functions for the purpose of ennobling his own
existence, benefiting his fellow-men, and reaching by these
means a higher plane of moral and religious life, so government,
{63} as we now understand it, is organised to place it within
the power of men to enjoy to their fullest extent, religious,
civil, and political liberty; or, to express it in another way,
to give an individual those rights, privileges, and liberties
which the true and purest thoughts of the past ages have
determined as the best rule for his real happiness.
The peculiar and striking characteristic, or virtue, of the
Anglo-Saxon people is, that they understand the objects for
which governments are instituted more directly, and apply them
more successfully and broadly than other peoples. They keep more
closely in view the origin and aim of political society in its
relation to individuals, and to other nations--to the world at
large. Montesquieu frankly made this admission in 1748, when he
said: "They know better than any other people upon earth how to
value at the same time those three great advantages, _religion,
commerce,_ and _liberty._"[5] And Mommsen made the same
admission when, with evident reference to the English race, he
said, it knows how to combine "a love of freedom with a
veneration for authority."
And Mr. Webster uttered the same thought:
"I find at work everywhere, on both sides of the Atlantic, under
various forms and degrees of restrictions on the one hand, and
under various degrees of motive and stimulus, on the other hand,
in these branches of a common race, the great principle _of the
freedom of human thought, and the respectability of individual
character_. I find, everywhere, an elevation of the character of
man as man, an elevation of the individual as a component part
of society. I find everywhere a rebuke {64} of the idea, that
the many are made for the few, or that government is anything
but an _agency_ of mankind. And I do not care beneath what zone,
frozen, temperate, or torrid; I care not what complexion, white
or brown; I care not under what circumstances of climate or
cultivation, if I can find a race of men on an inhabitable spot
of Earth whose general sentiment it is, and whose general
feeling it is, that government is made for man--man as a
religious, moral, and social being--and not man for
government--there I know, I shall find prosperity and
happiness."[6]
In the foregoing we have the motive and justification for a
combination of the Anglo-Saxon people.
The words "to advance civilisation" have been very frequently
used in the discussion of this topic as a motive for alliance or
relationship. This word "civilisation" is an easy word to invoke
to cover false policies, and is often flippantly applied without
a real idea of its scope. It is important therefore, to have a
clear understanding of its meaning. It means, primarily, _to
reclaim from a savage or semibarbarous state_. This, then,
presents the first step in the efforts of a nation--I may say
its first duty--to those within and without the fold of its
sovereignty--to reclaim mankind from a barbarous and savage
state. The conquests of savage tribes and nations have been many
times justified upon this broad principle; such historical
events as the conquest of America and of British India can
perhaps only be supported on these grounds. The {65} attainment
and diffusion of civilisation is not accomplished without much
suffering and loss, but this is as natural as the growth of a
plant from the seed. Pain and suffering are the inevitable
concomitants of birth and growth. Man is ushered into the world
through the travail of his mother, and the birth of civilisation
is not excepted from the rule which applies to particular
individuals.
To _introduce order and civic organisation_ among those
reclaimed from a savage or barbarous state is the secondary
meaning of the term "civilise." Order is a necessary element in
the formation and development of society. To understand and
apportion among men their respective positions in society; to
define all the rights and duties of individuals and put them in
their proper places, is the great aim of government; and as
order is "Heaven's first law," so it is the corner-stone of
human association. As nothing is more pleasing and striking to
the human eye than a well-regulated and orderly household,
everything in its place, clean, refined, and harmonious, so
nothing is so necessary to a good government as simple, proper,
well-defined, orderly rules of conduct for its citizens. A
nation which invades and conquers a savage tribe, or uncivilised
nation, and in place of the chaos, confusion, and at times
unspeakable cruelties which there prevail, introduces order,
civic government, and humanity, is creditably fulfilling its
ambition and national purposes.
In the noble words of Cicero "nothing earthly is more acceptable
to that first and omnipotent {66} God who rules the universe,
than those Councils and assemblages of men (duly ordered) which
are called States."
But following the reign of law, the profound significance of
which I will not now pause to dwell on, there is a third meaning
attached to "civilise": it means to _refine_ and _enlighten;
elevation in social_ and _individual_ life. In the second and
third meanings of this term, we have the guarantees of liberty,
justice, equality, fraternity. After the first step, therefore,
of conquest, reclaiming people from a semi-barbarous or savage
state, there comes the second state of civilisation,--order and
civic government,--followed by the third degree,--refinement and
enlightenment, elevation in social and individual life. These
different stages of national growth are all illustrated in the
progress of civilisation.
Now, the history of the English-speaking race shows a constant
advance from a semi-barbarous state to a high degree of
civilisation. It has never gone backwards in its march from one
degree of civilisation to another. At times, it is true, it has
been diverted; at other times, generally from the pressure of
external causes, it has apparently paused, and it has seemed as
if its mission were at an end; but it soon resumed the forward
movement, until to-day it leads the van of civilisation; _i.e._,
barbarism has disappeared to give way to order and civic
government, and refinement and enlightenment pervade, create,
and elevate social and individual life. One can trace the
progress of the English nation as plainly as the {67} growth and
development of a human being; from weak, puerile infancy into
strong and sturdy manhood; suffering all the diseases that flesh
is heir to, but eventually overcoming them, and advancing with
renewed vigour and health in the march of its destiny.
I mean no offence to other nations--all modern European
governments have shared in a general way in the same movement;
all may have their specific excellences, but we know our own
best, and are justified in thinking that it is more indigenous,
better built and better founded, follows surer methods, and is
more conspicuously entitled to gain the applause and fulfil the
expectations of mankind.
I therefore lay it down as a basis of an alliance, or union,
that the British. Empire and the United States mean, in all
sincerity and good faith, when they establish co-operation, to
work for civilisation and peace; to move harmoniously and
sympathetically together for the accomplishment of this great
object--namely, the benefit of mankind. This, then, is the
central, true, deep, absorbing purpose of their alliance, an
interfusion of ideas, principles, sympathies and thoughts of the
people of both countries; acting, working together, and
co-operating to accomplish a common purpose, mission, and end.
We must mingle together in thought, and in sentiment; we must be
allies in the noblest sense of the word; not friends merely in
aggressive and selfish enterprises, but locked together in a
common thought and common purpose to achieve the {68} great and
glorious object of civilisation. And let this purpose be
broadly, clearly, and comprehensively stated, in some
declaration, _in some writing, perpetuating the compact of
union--let us write a second Magna Charta, or a second
Declaration of Independence; commemorate our joint purpose in
some imperishable instrument, upon which may be written
declarations so clear and convincing that the world can never
mistake our purposes or misconstrue our motives_.
[1] Second Discours en Sorbonne in _Œuvres de Turgot_, vol. ii.,
p. 52. Quoted in Buckle's _History of Civilisation in England_,
vol. i, p. 597.
[2] See article of Professor Dicey, _The Contemporary Review
Advertiser_, April, 1897, p. 212, recommending the establishment
of a common citizenship.
[3] The Chairman of this League was the Rt. Hon. Jas. Bryce,
M.P.; the Hon. Treasurer, Duke of Sutherland; the Hon.
Secretaries, T. Lee Roberts, Esq., R. C. Maxwell, Esq. LL.D.,
Sir Fred. Pollock, Bart.
[4] Vol. ii., _History of Civilisation_, etc., p. 1, note.
[5] _Spirit of Laws_, vol. ii., p. 6.
[6] From speech delivered on the 22nd of December, 1843, at New
England Society of New York, on the Landing of Pilgrims at
Plymouth, Webster's _Works_, vol. ii., p. 214.
{69}