Daily Kennebec journal., 1898-04-27
HORRORS IN PHILIPPINES.
Sickenlng Details Of Spanish Barbarties
Given by a Conservative Authority.


The Philippines lie wholly within the
| tropics, reaching at the south to within
louf ana half degrees Of the equator
Big and little they number some sly
hundred, varying in size from Luzon
with IT'S 10000 square miles, to tiny is
let's hardly worthy Of the name.
Extreme poverty is the rule among
the civilized natives, and it's cause 10
found in the heavy burden of taxation
imposed upon them by their Spanish
masters. Every person over eighteen
years of age is required to produce an
nually a creduIa personal. or docuroe,+
of identification, the charge for which
varies from $50 to s2J, ACCORDING to
/ the means Of the applicant. ShouId
| THESE sums seem insignificant il rnust
De remembered that the average native
mas little or no opportunity to work
Tor hlfe, that II he does succeed in 60
curing employment his wages are Of
ten not more than five cents per day
ana that he is usually una bic to djsnose
Of his farm products for cash, being
compelled to exchange them for other
commodities. In addition TO this ner-
sonal tax there is a tax on c0coanut
trees, a tax on beasts Of burden, a tax
on killing animals for food a tax for
keeping a shop, a tax on mills or OIL
presses, tax on weights and meas
ures, q tax on cock fighting. and so ON
70 the end Of the chapter. At every
turn the poor native finds himself face
to face with the dire necessity of paw
ing tribute; and he frequently spends
his life in an Intellectual effort to meet
the obligations thus imposed.
Delinquent taxpayers are treated
with the utmost severity The first
step is usually to strip them to the
waist, tie them to bench or post. and
beat them unmercifully / have seen
women subjected to this treatment. If
this does not suffice Imprisonment fol-
lows, While pressure is brought to bear
on relatives and friends Daughters
are not infrequently offered an oppor-
tunity to secure the liberation of a par
ent at the expense of their own honor.
should none of these methods prove eff
fectiVe, deportation follows, with con-
fScation of property and the leaving of
women and children to Shift for them
selves.
once saw A men deported from
Equijor, because they owed taxes vary
ing in amount from 81 to $40 I was
informed that they would be allowed to
return to their families, if they could
find them. after working out the
amount Of their several debts. The
wages allowed them We're TO be six
cents per day. Board was to be fur
nished them al a cost of five cents per
bfV n fIn he
ter themselves! In other words. their
amounted to deportation for
life
The great power in every native viii
age is the padre or village friar.
t'riars belonging to orders not allowed
to hold parishes in any other part Of
he world have no difficulty in securing
hem here. Recruited as they are from
he lower classes in Spain, their ignor-
ince is in many cases almost beyond
,elicf. l once found myself in danger
If a personal alteration with one of
hem because l insisted that there were
It that time more than 13 states in the
) nion, This learned divine, in the
ourse of his conversation. informed me
hat Philadelphia was near Mexico, and
eferred feelingly to the visit of George
to Spain,
\ sharp distinction should be drawn
the friars and priests Among
he Mohammedan fanatics of the
outhern islands are to be found Jesuit
priests engaged in genuine missionary
work. One cannot but admire their
elf-sacrifcing and intrepid courage
md their devotion to duty. So far as
ny observation went. their lives We're
lbove reproaCh; and it would be
'leSsed thing for the Philippines should
he day ever come when the friars were
lriven out and their places taken by
nen like these.
Naturally the Philippine native is a
'eaceable. easy-going fellow. Under a
lecent form of government he would
i've little trouble No one familiar
With existing conditions can doubt that
spanish rule has been a curse to these
and it would be a happy day
or them should some civilized power
AXE possession of them. Their largest
titles are well-nigh defenceless. and
ould be readily captured unless de-
ended by a powerful naval force
Professor Dean of Worcester. in the