The argument of our duty to lower races has been cunningly handled by those whose motive is commercial gain. They first appeal to the conscience of the nation, but when conscience and humane instincts have been roused and the people have adopted their counsels for the good of humanity, another side of the case is brought out to congeal the public conscience again and restore apathy, whereupon the commercial class can go ahead and do what they please. They have gained their point, the laws they wanted have been passed, and the people forget to repeal them when the commercialists correct themselves and announce that humanity in that instance would be wasted.

Laying aside cant, let us admit that our commercial classes are magnificently indifferent to the well-being of any natives, and will resent and thwart the first move to hinder them from consuming the natives as 'labor' and reducing their strength and life to 'profits.'

Anglo-Saxonism is set forth to be a higher form of civilization than any other race can bring to the conquered continents, and it is plaintively alleged that England's struggle is ours and that the spread of Anglo-Saxonism, its lofty realities and loftier ideals, is the sacred affair of every English speaking man. They reproach us with standing idly apart from the great world's affairs too long, shirking our magnanimous responsibilities in the stupendous drama of international evolution, and Senator Lodge sadly discerns the "humiliation of the United States in the eyes of civilized mankind" if we do not pluck the ripe fruit of imperialism, and the stain upon us of being "incapable of great affairs or of taking rank where we belong as one of the greatest of the great world powers." With all this pathos, the trade-bedizened prize of China is mixed up.

Mr. Labouchere.... said: "The great illusion of the present day was to suppose that an increase of territory meant an increase of trade. As a matter of fact, as could easily be proved by figures, it did not mean any such thing. All the annexations we had made of late were a commercial fallacy, and even the doctrine of the open door had been much exaggerated. The mania at the present time was to spend money in any place excepting England....When he saw the proposal for the establishment of a school in Khartoum to teach little Arab boys English, he could not help thinking what a wonderful people his countrymen were to spend money on such an object as that instead of supplying food and clothing and education to the thousands of poor little English boys at home." (speech at Montrose, Jan, 1899)

The speech of the new Lord Curzon at the luncheon given in his honor by the directors of the Peninsular and Oriental Steamship Company on the Eve of his departure [December, 1898] to rule India....the occasion was significant, he was speaking to great commercial men.
'Among the chief advantages of the imperial connection between England and India he included the possibility of the improved development of India. [The usual flourish of duty and disinterestedness]...The chairman had incidentally referred to India in the interests of business men as a field for commercial enterprise. [Transition to the motive of avarice begins.] He could not help thinking, although desirous to avoid prophecy, that there would be great developments in that respect. (Hear, hear.) [Warm commercial respons]...If we could establish in India anything like stability of exchange--a great problem to which any outgoing Viceroy must turn his attention--he believed that confidence would revive, and that British capital would flow more freely to India. It might perhaps be regarded as a counsel of perfection to look at the case from any other point of view than that of expediency and self-interest, but in all matters connected with India he believed the point of view of duty and of obligation was paramount. (Hear, hear.) [Another blast on the trumpet of pharisaism with fine commercial appreciation.]....But here, as business men, they might pardon and sympathise with him if he looked at the matter also from the sordid point of view of the L.s.d. [Now preliminaries are over and Curzon gets down to business.] Let them look at the trade of India and compare it with the trade of our colonies.

First, England shows no inclination to go adventuring in those countries where there is magnificent opportunity for unselfish philanthropy and little or none for profit.