July, 1901, and again the President's will triumphed, with only a brief delay, while the solidarity of the party was maintained.

Much was said, about this time, on the question, "Does the Constitution follow the flag?" It was claimed that free trade between the States would be automatically extended to annexed territory by the operation of the Constitution. Many lawsuits of importance hinged upon this question, and were taken to the Supreme Court of the United States for decision. That tribunal, on May 27, 1901, sustained the position of the Administration and of Congress as to the Constitutionality of the so-called "Foraker Act" of April 12. The opinion of the majority of the court made the important distinction, that "Porto Rico is a territory appurtenant and belonging to the United States, but not a part of the United States within the revenue clause of the Constitution."

CHAPTER XXXI

CHINA

HE summer of 1900 brought a new train of

TH

anxieties to the Administration, the burden of which fell with unusual heaviness upon the shoulders of the President because of the serious illness, during the period of greatest strain, of the efficient Secretary of State, John Hay. Disturbances arose in China which required, first, swift action to protect the lives and property of foreign residents and, later, skillful diplomacy to preserve the integrity of China herself. It afforded a new opportunity to show to the world a "magnanimous and too novel example of a people always guided by an exalted justice and benevolence." McKinley pursued a policy marked by moderation and self-restraint in sharp contrast to the rapacity exhibited by some of the European nations. The close of the Spanish War found the United States stronger in the family of nations than ever before. The former coolness of Great Britain had been changed to a warm friendship. The Treaty of Paris had been signed with the tacit agreement of all Europe to let the United States and Spain settle 1 See ante, p. 192.

their own quarrel. The firmness of President McKinley in insisting upon control of the Philippines and Cuba, pending permanent settlement of their ultimate destiny, had won for him the respect of all the nations. The growing importance of the Far-Western States, the recently discovered riches of Alaska, the prospective opening of a waterway through the Isthmus of Panama, the acquisition of Hawaii and the Philippines, and the opportunity for enormous extensions of commercial enterprise in the Pacific, had brought the United States nearer to the coasts of Asia than the original colonies were to the mother country. As with the Philippines, a problem not of our seeking was thrust upon us. Whether we liked it or not, the country had outgrown the "period of exclusiveness," and although the injunction of Washington, to avoid entangling alliances or interferences in the political affairs of foreign states, was still scrupulously observed, a certain responsibility to stand shoulder to shoulder with the more enlightened nations for the development of the world had been assumed and could no more be avoided than a boy of twenty-one can escape the responsibility of manhood.

Following the close of the war between China and Japan in 1894-95, the nations of Europe suddenly developed an appetite for some of the choice morsels

to be had for the asking along the Chinese coast. Prior to 1897, the only foreign possessions were those of the British at Hongkong and the Island of Macao owned by the Portuguese. It is true that by the treaty of peace Japan had acquired the Island of Formosa and a part of the Liaotung Peninsula which commands on the north the entrance to the Gulf of Pechili, the gateway to Peking; but the jealousy of Germany, Russia, and France intervened to prevent the acquisition of the latter and so the mainland remained intact. In the latter year there were twenty-two open ports in which about ten thousand Europeans and Americans were allowed to live and enjoy the right of owning property under conditional titles, of governing themselves and of exercising special privileges in judicial matters. This, however, was only an appetizer. The next three years were marked by a scramble for concessions.

In November two German missionaries were murdered and in retaliation the Imperial Government promptly seized the port of Kiaochau and held it until the Chinese granted a lease of the port and adjacent territory for ninety-nine years, together with the right to German subjects of exploiting the whole province of Shantung with railroad and mining enterprises. In the spring of the following year the murder of a "French" missionary

- who was probably a Chinaman-gave France an important railroad concession. By summer time the battle of concessions, as Lord Salisbury described it, was on in full force, Russia, Great Britain, France, Germany, and Belgium securing valuable rights. Then they began to covet territory. Russia wanted Talienwan and Port Arthur and got them both, against the protest of Great Britain. The latter demanded and received Wei-hai-wei, on the opposite side of the Strait of Pechili. Thus the merry war for the partition of China went on until December, 1898, when the Chinese Government called a halt.

At this juncture the United States stepped in to exercise its newly acquired international influence, and the Secretary of State, John Hay, accomplished the most brilliant achievement of his career. Notes were addressed to the Governments of Germany, Great Britain, and Russia, suggesting the common agreement of these nations to the policy of "the open door" for China. That is, the nations having certain "spheres of influence" in China were to refrain from interference with the treaty ports or the special interests of other powers, to permit Chinese duties to be collected by the Chinese Government, and to make no discriminations against other nationalities in harbor duties or railroad charges. Subsequently, similar notes were sent to France, Italy,