Chapter 52 Glorious America

The United States, once a melting pot of immigrant cultures struggling with its own identity, had now secured its first colony—a hallmark of any true global power. No longer could America be dismissed as a nation built by uneducated lower classes or mocked with derogatory slurs like "Amerimutt." The acquisition of a colony marked its arrival among the great powers of the world.

The day after President McKinley's announcement, every newspaper in the nation featured Admiral Dewey on its front page. The headline read: "The Great USA."

The praise for Dewey wasn't confined to American shores. European journalists, too, were captivated by his swift conquest of the Philippines, a Spanish colony that had taken decades to establish, yet had fallen in just two days.

"'The Great Commander,' they're calling me now. Some papers even call me the last Napoleon of the 19th century. This is absurd!" Dewey muttered, shaking his head as he tossed aside an article.