Life — November 16, 1899 — page 4: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

“ While there is Life there's Hope.” XIV, NOVEMBER 16, 1899, No. 886, New Yorn. reday. $500 a year in ad~ ign countries tn the Postal jear extra. Sinwle current coples, three months from No contribution will be returned unless accompanied by stamped and addressed a illustrations in Live are copyrighted, not to be reproduced without speciat arrangement with the publishers, Trompt notification slould be sent by mub- scribers of any change of address. ‘THERE has been an elec- tion the results of which cannot be reviewed in this number of Lire, but it was not much of an election, and the sig- nificance of its results promises to be hurd to settle. Every where it was, a local election into which national issues either did not enter at all, or entered in so confused A way as not to be fairly tested by results. A yood many dissatisfed per- eons have been feeling that an election which should yield such results as would be most advantageous to the country would be one that would effectually withdraw William McKinley and W, J. Bryan from the consideration of future presidential conventions, abate in some measure the excessive din of Governor Roosevelt's gospel of strenuosity, and put hoops on the doctrine of expansion, However the recent election bas gone it will take a skilful interpreter to rend any of these resultsinits returns, though if Ohio has gone Democratic and Nebraska and Kentucky Republican, it will not help the future presidential chances of either McKinley or Bryan. Bryan is 8o hopelessly identified with free silver coinage and sundry other fatuitics that it would be a great relief to sce the Democratic leadership pass away from him and into better hands. But there might be a change which would be no advantage, for a good many Democrats who have little patience with some of his doctrines still maintain that he isa man ‘LIF E* of convictionsand patriotism, and that it would involve serious moral loss to have his leadership pass to a Croker, a Goebel, a McLean, or even to an astute politician like Gorman, As for the Major, he will not be brought before the judgment seat for six months yet, and in that time a good deal of luck may come his way. The report of the Philippines Commission is the most helpful document he has recvived since Secretary Alger sent in bis resignation. It tells us a great deal that we wanted to know and tells it pretty clearly, It justifies in great measure both our intentions and our actions in the Philippines, and will help to put a great many readers on better terms with their consciences, The report will carry weight because Admiral Dewey and Dr, Schurman have put their names to it, The other Commissioners are doubtless also good men, but the Admiral especially is a tower of strength just now to any policy that he consents to indorse. SSS p IF our brethren in Great Britaia think the Americans are entirely on their side in their fight with the Boers, they delude themselves, It is probable that there has never been in America so strong a sentiment of kinship with the British as there is to-day, but that does not make us blind partisans of the Queen's Govern. ment in any fight it may undertake with any people. It only makes us friendly critics instead of hostile ones of any detail of British policy we question or disapprove, There never was $0 little twisting of the lion’s tail in the American pewspapers as now. We simply look upon England's course in South Africa with the same dubious attention that we have bestowed on the course of our own Administration in the Philippines. Both countries are very far away, and we have not all been sure that we fully understood the rights of the dispute in either, but as tothe South African mélée, we feel ut least this. that if might is to make right, we can afford to wait a little tosee whose might is most effectual before we declare whose right is most to be respected. We confess that when the Boers succeed in pulling one or two of the lion's tecth as they did at Ladysmith, though it interests us mightily, we feel neither anguish nor exultation, but regard it simply as @ strong argument alvanced by Boers in support of their claim that they ought to Le allowed to run their country in their own way, When the British win some con- siderable advantage, as they doubtless will presently, we shall regard that as an argument on their side. Surely we are entitled to watch the debate before reaching our conclusion. Moreover, we suspect that a considerable continuance of the discussion may not be a bad thing for those concerned, even though it involves a large expenditure of energy and many details of pain and loss that we deplure, There are results that ought not to be achieved too early, cven though they are good. This combat in the Transvaal is procceding according to the rules for such disputes, There bas been no gouging or brutality, and such constancy and courage has been shown on both sides as to make us proud to remember that between both disputants and ourselves there exists a tie of blood. Indeed, they may well be proud of one another, and it may be they are, Itis true that the English newspapers attribute the Boer scoop at Ladysmith to the treachery of the British mules and believe that these obstinate creatures have a natural sympathy with Dutchmen, but we must not pay too much respect to that, for stampeding the other fellow’s mules is part of the game of war, and entitled to credit when successfully done. We did not lay it to ill-luck when Aguinaldo’s typhoon drowned three hundred patriot mules of ours, every one of which was known to be in complete sympathy with Gencral Otis. We merely put it down us an argument for Aguinaldo. 80 our cousins must do about the mules that withdrew their powder at Lady- smith. Pail we are to be quite fair towards the strenuous life, we must put down to offset the men who are permanently injured this fall in football, the case of the Yale professor who was caught the other day in a pitiable offense and turned out to have become demented from overstudy. It happens so some- times. This poor man was valedictorian of his class at Yale, comicbooks.com