{"1": {"fulltext": "11^", "height": "3684", "width": "2581", "jp2-path": "proposedannexati00mesi_0001.jp2"}, "2": {"fulltext": "LIBRARY OF CONGRESS\\n019 944 340 9\\nHollinger Corp.", "height": "3434", "width": "2078", "jp2-path": "proposedannexati00mesi_0002.jp2"}, "3": {"fulltext": "Ve^^^^^^ r\\nPROPOSED ANNEXATION OF HAWAII.\\nSPEECH\\nHON. WILLIAM S^ESICK,\\nOK IvlICtilGAN,\\nHOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,\\nM:onday, June 13, 1898.\\nVSTASHINGXON.\\n1898.", "height": "3434", "width": "2078", "jp2-path": "proposedannexati00mesi_0003.jp2"}, "4": {"fulltext": "jq, Co\\n38517", "height": "3422", "width": "1986", "jp2-path": "proposedannexati00mesi_0004.jp2"}, "5": {"fulltext": "5^\\nb^\\n0(\\nProposed Annexation of Hawaii.\\nSPEECH\\nOP\\nHON. WILLIAM S. MESICK,\\nof michigan,\\nIn the House of Eepresentatives,\\nMonday, June IS, 1898.\\nOn the joint resolution (H. Res. 259) to provide for annexing the Hawaiian\\nIslands to the United States.\\nMr. MESICK said:\\nMr. Speaker: Never has this country witnessed such a rapid\\nand sweeping revolution of sentiment as has manifested itself in\\nCongress and in all parts of this country since the outbreak of the\\nwar with Spain.\\nI admit that I was conservative on the question of annexing\\nHawaii prior to the declaration of war, but, through the force of\\nunexpected events, I am to-day a stanch advocate of the proposi-\\ntion to annex these islands.\\nFrom the day that the Spanish fleet was destroyed and went\\ndown before the guns of the American squadron at Manila, which\\nsquadron was commanded by that splendid and heroic officer\\nCommodore Dewey, a new purpose took hold of the people of the\\nUnited States. We were brought suddenly to a realization of our\\npower on the seas as well as upon the land, and it now becomes\\nour manifest duty to possess the Hawaiian Islands.\\nPublic attention has been called to a question of public neces-\\nsity, and it is the judgment of the best minds and statesmen of\\nto-day that now is the accepted time to take what has been offered\\nto us.\\nThere are many good and sufficient reasons why the Hawaiian\\nIslands should be in the possession of the United States, but the\\nprincipal one is because of their strategic importance.\\nHawaii is the only spot in the Pacific, from the equator on the\\nsouth to Alaska on the north and between America on the east\\nand Asia on the west where water, food, or coal can be obtained.\\nIt is also on or near the principal trade routes across the Pacific.\\nIts unique position is what has given it the names of the cross-\\nroads of the Pacific, the key of the Pacific, and the Gibral-\\ntar of the Pacific. Hence we readily see the strategic iniportance\\nin case of war with any stronger naval power.\\nIn the possession of an enemy, they would serve as a secure base\\nfor attacking any and all of our Pacific coast cities. In our pos-\\nsession, they would shut out and bar the enemy s fleet of all oppor-\\ntunities for coaling, food, supplies, repairs, or harbor protection.\\nShall we leave these islands for some other country? The Ameri-\\n3591 3", "height": "3434", "width": "2078", "jp2-path": "proposedannexati00mesi_0005.jp2"}, "6": {"fulltext": "can people answer no. I know that I speak the sentiments of my\\nconstituency in the Eleventh Congressional district of the State of\\nMichigan when 1 say tiiat the time has now come when we should\\nno longer hesitate on this question, and that they are willing to\\naccept their share of the responsibility attending the annexation\\nof the islands and the control of them in the futiire, notwithstand-\\ning the opposition of the Democratic constitutional lawyers who\\noccupy seats in the House of Representatives.\\nThe opponents to the proposed annexation of Hawaii tell us it\\nis the entering wedge for the annexation of the Philippine Islands,\\nthe Canaries, Porto Rico. Cuba; conquest, sea power, complica-\\ntions and alliances with European nations, a billion-dollar navy,\\na large and costly standing army, new war debts, the undermin-\\ning of the Monroe doctrine, the interruption of industries and\\ncommerce, and a setback to the forward march of civilization.\\nI do not commit myself to any such policy when I give my vote\\nin favor of the pending resolution.\\nThe value of the Hawaiian Islands to this country for military\\nand naval purposes, it seems to me, is beyond a question of doubt\\nand can not satisfactorily be denied.\\nI quote from a letter written by GJ-eneral Schofield, of the United\\nStates Army:\\nLetter from J. M. Schofield, of St. Augustine, Fla., to Hon. John T. Morgan,\\nrelative to annexation of the Hawaiian Islands.\\nOur national interests should be secured by the exclusive right to occupy.\\nImprove, and fortify Pearl Eiver Harbor so as to insure our possession of that\\nharbor in time of war.\\nTo illustrate my views on this subject. I have likened that harbor to a\\ncommanding position in front of a defensive line which an army in the field\\ni compelled to occupy. The army must occupy that advanced position and\\nhold it at whatever cost, or else the enemy will occupy it with his artillery,\\nand thus dominate the main line. If we do not occupy and fortify Pearl River\\nHarbor, our enemy will occtipy it as a base from which to conduct operations\\nagainst our Pacific coast and the isthmian canal, which must of course in due\\ntime be constructedgand controlled by this country. The possession of such\\na base at a convenient distance from our Pacific coast would be a great temp-\\ntation to an unfriendly nation to undertake hostile operations against us.\\nOne of the greatest advantages of Pearl Eiver Harbor to us consists in the\\nfact that no navy would be required to defend it It is a deep, landlocked\\narm of the sea, easily defended by fortifications placed near its mouth, with\\nits anchorage beyond the reach of guns from the ocean. Cruisers or other\\nwar ships which might be overpowered at sea, as well as merchant vessels,\\nwould find there behind the land defenses absolute security against a naval\\nattack. A moderate garrison of regular troops, with the militia on the island,\\nwould give sufficient protection against any landing jmrties from a hostile\\nfleet. Of course an army on transports, supp(jrted by a powerful fleet, could\\nland and capture the place, but that would be an expensive operation, one\\nmuch less likely to be undertaken than the occupation of an undefended har-\\nbor, as a necessary preliminary to an attack on our coast or upon our com-\\nmeroe.\\nThe value of such a place of refuge and of supplies for our merchant marine\\nand our cruisers in time of war can hardly be overestimated, yet the greatest\\nvalue to us of that wonderful harbor consists in the fact that its possession\\nand adequate defense by us prevents the possibility of an enemy using it\\nagainst us.\\nSo far as I know, the leading statesmen, no less than the military and naval\\nauthorities of this country, have always been in accord on this subject. While\\nat has not been proposed to interfere with the continued occupation by for-\\neign nations of their military strongholds in this hemisphere, it has been\\npublicly and emphatically declared that none of those strongholds shall ever\\nbe allowed to pass into the possession of any other nation whose interests\\nmight be antagonistic to ours. Now for the first time the occasion has\\narisen for carrying into effect our long-declared national policy.\\nA little State like Hawaii can not stand alone among the great nations, all\\nof whom covet her incomparable harbor. She must have the protection of\\nthis country or some other great nation. But a protectorate without sov-\\nereignty is the last thing this country could afford to assume. In the ab-\\nsence of authority to regulate and control the intercourse between the", "height": "3434", "width": "2078", "jp2-path": "proposedannexati00mesi_0006.jp2"}, "7": {"fulltext": "islands aud other countries controversies must arise wliich would lead to\\nwar or to the loss of our invaluable military possession in the islands. No\\nhalfway measures will suffice. We must accept the islands and hold and\\ngovern them or else let some other great nation do it. To fail now to carry\\ninto effect our own great national policy upon the first occasion offered to us\\nwould, in my judgment, be one of those blunders which are worse than\\ncrimes.\\nTo my mind what may be regarded perhaps as the sentimental aspect of\\nthe question is entitled to consideration. A colony of intelligent, virtuous,\\nand patriotic Americans have rescued a country from barbarism and raised\\nit to a high state of civilization and prosperity, until in the natural course of\\nevents the government of that country has fallen entirely into their hands.\\nThey now ask the privilege of adding that country to their own native land;\\nof returning with their new possessions to the parental fold. Can they be\\nturned away to seek a home among strangers? Not without violating one of\\nthe most sacred laws of nature and incurring the penalty which must, sooner\\nor later, necessarily follow.\\nI am, dear Senator, with great respect, sincerely, yours,\\nJ. M. SCHOFIELD.\\nHon. John T. Morgan,\\nUnited States Senate, Washington, D. C.\\nIt is not possible to tell where a war will take the victor. For\\nthe defeated and vanquished there is disappointment, loss, and\\nlong, dreary j^ears of povertj^ and bankruptcy. But with the\\nsuccessful it is different. With success come new conditions and\\nnew issues and more extensive opportunities.\\nThe people of the United States did not enter upon war for con-\\nquest. They did not have the remotest idea of such a thing. It\\nwas in the interest of humanity and not for conquest, but as a\\nnatural consequence we will be confronted with important ques-\\ntions pertaining to the disposition of the fruits of war.\\nSuccess will be ours, and we will come into possession of Porto\\nRico, the Philippines, and probably other colonial possessions of\\nthe enemy. And when that time does come. I have faith in the\\nwisdom, patriotism, and state.smanship of our people to arrive\\nat a proper solution of the question. You may always trust the\\nAmerican people to meet every emergency, and this one will be\\nmet promptly, fairly, and justly.\\nI represent a district in the middle of the State of Michigan,\\nwhich has no fear of cannon shot from a man-of-war. Yet the\\npeople of my district are fully as much interested in building up\\nthe American Navy as their more exposed neighbors along the\\nAtlantic and Pacific coasts.\\nNever in our history has the American Navy been nearer to the\\nhearts of the American people than at this day.\\nJohn Adams once said that naval power is the natural defense\\nof the United States.\\nOur Navy has been neglected, and when it became necessary to\\ncall it into action we presented a sad spec acle racing all over the\\nworld for any kind of ships to press into the service.\\nThe Republican party, in its national platform adopted at St.\\nLouis in 1896, pledged itself to the building up of the American\\nmerchant marine in these words:\\nWe favor the early American policy of discriminating duties for the up-\\nbuilding of our merchant marine and the protection of our ships in the for-\\neign carrying trade, so that American ships, the product of American labor\\nemployed in American shipyards, sailing under the Stars and Stripes, and\\nmanned, officered, and owned by Americans, may regain the carrying of our\\nforeign commerce.\\nWe need a navy to protect our seacoasts, to protect the rights\\nof American citizens in every port and harbor, and to protect our\\ncommerce along our coasts and with foreign countries.\\nDuring the past year our foreign commerce reached the sum of\\n3591", "height": "3434", "width": "2078", "jp2-path": "proposedannexati00mesi_0007.jp2"}, "8": {"fulltext": "$3,000,000,000. It is impossible to btiild up a commerce on the\\nhigh seas and retain it without a navy to protect it. The Navy is\\nits natural ally.\\nAt the present time the condition of our merchant marine is deplorable.\\nIn 1825 Webster said: We have a commerce which leaves no seas unex-\\nplored, and navies which take no law from superior force. At that time 93\\nper cent of the foreign carrying trade of this country was borne in American\\nships; in 1830, 90 per cent; in 18:35, 85 per cent; in IS-tO, 83 per cent; in 1845, 81\\nper cent; in 1850, 73 per cent: in 1855, 75 per cent; in ISiiO, before the war, 66\\nper cent; in 1865, only 28 per cent, a loss of 38 per cent in those five years.\\nThese facts testify to the truth expressed by Sir Charles Wilson, an Eng-\\nlish authority, when he stated: If there is one point clearer than another\\nin the history of commeice.it is this, that when a State can not effectually\\nprotect its carrying trade in time of war, that trade passes from it and does\\nnot return.\\nIn 1870 our ships handled 35 per cent otf the carrying trade; in 1875. 26 per\\ncent: in 1880, 18 per cent; in 1885, 17i- per cent; in 1890, 13 per cent; in 1895,\\nnearly 12 per cent, and in 1897 we reached the lowest figure, of about 11^ per\\ncent.\\nClosely identified with holding up our Navy and merchant ma-\\nrine is the importance of annexation of Hawaii and the building\\nof the Nicaragua Canal.\\nAs to the departure from the policy of our forefathers, of which\\nthe opposition have so much to say and so often quote, I have to\\nsay this: Americans revere the names of Washington, Madison,\\nJefferson, and Monroe. They were wise men in their day and\\ngeneration; patriots who shaped and established the fundamental\\nprinciples of our great institutions. They builded well, and the\\nfree people enjoy the blessings that have grown from the seed they\\nsowed, have placed their names in the American temple of fame,\\nand have siirrounded them with imperishable garlands of patri-\\notic remembrance. But they have passed from the scene of ac-\\ntion; their good works live after them, but much of their wisdom,\\ndiplomacy, and national policy is not for these days, when we are\\nengaged in a war with Spain, and should be revised and readjusted.\\nThe war with Spain will develop a new policy and overturn\\nmany ancient ideas of national policy and bring the people of the\\nUnited States i:5to a broader view of their own national affairs as\\nthey bear upon the progress of the world.\\nThe traditions of our fathers do not fit into the whirl of\\nmodern events or adjust themselves to the world s modern progress\\nanymore than the flintlock miiskets of our Revolutionary fathers\\nwould now prevail against the Mauser rifles of the Spanish army,\\nor the battle ships of 1812 against the modern battle ships of to-\\nday which are engaged in the Spanish- American naval war.\\nThe people of this country, under the guidance of Divine Provi-\\ndence, are making history. They are prosecuting a war that\\nshakes the world from center to circumference and is fraught\\nwith stupendous possibilities. This is a righteous war. It in-\\nvolves the disinthrallment of millions of our fellow-beings from\\noppression, the overthrow of the haughty dynasty, and the rais-\\ning of this great Republic to a position of power among the na-\\ntions of the world. That position once gained, as gained it will\\nbe, must be maintained. The American nation is powerful\\nenough to maintain itself wherever it plants its flag.\\nThat flag is an emblem of what we are and of what we hope to\\nbe, and when it is planted over the Hawaiian Islands, as it will be\\nin the near future, it will mean universal edncation. light for\\nevery mind, knowledge for every child. It will mean that every\\ncitizen of those islands, native or otherwise, must be protected at\\nhome, in every State abroad, in every land, on every sea, and in", "height": "3434", "width": "2078", "jp2-path": "proposedannexati00mesi_0008.jp2"}, "9": {"fulltext": "every port and harbor. It will mean that all distinctions based\\non birth or blood have perished from our laws, that our Govern-\\nment shall stand between labor and capital, between the weak\\nand the strong, between want and wealth, and give and guarantee\\nsimple justice to all. We are bound to gain a great victory for\\nour rights; let us hasten that victory by the annexation of the\\nHawaiian Islands.", "height": "3434", "width": "2078", "jp2-path": "proposedannexati00mesi_0009.jp2"}, "10": {"fulltext": "iiiiiiil\\n019 944 340 9 1", "height": "3434", "width": "2078", "jp2-path": "proposedannexati00mesi_0010.jp2"}, "11": {"fulltext": "", "height": "3434", "width": "2078", "jp2-path": "proposedannexati00mesi_0011.jp2"}, "12": {"fulltext": "LIBRARY OF CONGRESS\\n019 944 340 9\\nHollinger Corp.\\npH8.5", "height": "3507", "width": "2102", "jp2-path": "proposedannexati00mesi_0012.jp2"}, "13": {"fulltext": "8 9 10\\nJ 13\\n40", "height": "3434", "width": "2078", "jp2-path": "proposedannexati00mesi_0013.jp2"}}