A fertile analysis of the ideology of American expansionism and its relation to national action. The history of the moral justifications that have accompanied the development of the United States is an illuminating study of the evolution of American nationalism. "[The author] has painstakingly collected and dissected the arguments employed by American leaders to justify such annexations, beginning with Louisiana and Florida, and ending with the acquisitions growing out of the Spanish War. The object of his quest has been an understanding of the motives which have prompted the territorial growth of the United States."—New York Times "As a source book in the dicta of democracy it is indispensable."—New Republic "A clear, dispassionate light on recurring crises in American history. The book should be required reading for imperialists everywhere."—Christian Science Monitor