Culture

When asked in February 1899 by an American reporter about the nascent work of US empire-building in Cuba and the Philippines, British imperialist, Rhodesia governor, and diamond magnate Cecil Rhodes declared, ‘You are taking to it like mother’s milk’. Rhodes endorsed the American imperial project ‘with the greatest delight’ whilst on board the steamship Hapsburg, which was crossing the Mediterranean on its way to Egypt, where he was to work on the Cape to Cairo Railway and Telegraph. Impressed by the progress of the new imperial nation, Rhodes predicted that, within a century, the United States would certainly rule the entire western hemisphere, with the exception of Canada. He railed against critics of US imperialism, whom he dismissed as ‘selfish’, and claimed, ‘It is the duty of civilized nations to take charge of the barbarians and give them a white man’s government. The United States is one of the great powers, and cannot escape this duty.’ And so, as a representative of the leading imperial nation, Rhodes spoke for mother Britain as he urged the fledgling United States on its newfound imperial path. ¹