Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1899-03-28
THE 4. OIL. PROTEST.


| That there is in this country a very
lively appreciation of the truth and the
| extent of the administrations mon
strous Philippine blunders, is evidenced
, by the following brief excerpts from an
address just issued to the knights OF
Labor from their national headquar-
tiers in Washington, by General Secre-
| tary- Treasurer John w. Hayes:
The Philippine Islands are about 100 in
number, situated nearly 10,C00 miles from
the United States composed of numerous
scattered tribes (such as Negrtos. Malays,
Visayas, Moras, Igorotes and Mestizesl,
zenship in the United States; none of them
speaking our language, and most of them
half civilized, but all of them fighting for
freedom and. the right to form republic.
,, These people are now being shot, bounded,
! and prosecuted by the United States
troops because they refuse to recognize
The question naturally arises what right
have we to send our soldiers to the
Philippines to shoot these people? The
constitution of the United States provides
that Congress alone has the power to de-
clare war. No right or authority what
ever is vested in the President on this
the part of the Congress the President
assumes the entire responsibility and in
doing so has violated his constitutional
powers, for W hi oh he ought to be i'm
peached: but at this time impeachment
proceedings would be a useless undertake
ing owing to the tremendous personal,
political and financial powers welded by
the men who surround and support him.
After discussing the status of the
Philippines and their people if admitted
to the union, Secretary Hayes again
reverting to the President says:
But instead of acting honestly with the
Filipinos the President tries to throw the
responsibility on Providence, and prays
TO God Tor assistance TO enable him TO
govern them, and IN doing so is using the
| old saw credited to oliver Cromwell. when
| he said to his soldiers: Boys, put your
| trust IN God, but keep your powder dry
While at the same time the Filipinos, I'M
| der their own forms and methods Of wor
Shipping God, are trusting in the same
! Providence and praying to the same oGd
| Tor assistance TO keep the American
| army from stealing their country and
from numbering and shooting their people.
From a reference brief OF Prof. Wor-
! cester on the sanitary conditions at
Manila, l quote the following:
Manila $ entirely without any adequate
system Of drainage. With the
coming of the dry season sinking black
mud IS uncovered beneath these huts and
IN the canals, and fever follows. -
| Nlth these conditions staring US in the
lace 1t is foregone conclusion that of the
| $500 or more soldiers already in the
| philippine Islands more than a majority of
! them Will die of disease, and for what
| purpose this dreadful sacrifice of human
lie IS to be made no one seems to know
| or care.
General Agoncillo says in his plea to
| the President for his people:
If it cost you $50 lives to take Santiago
Ph M1 Sst T9 be 49 lives f to TAKE ths
States would be fighting in a strange
country for conquest. We would be
batting at home for independence. We,
| t.1 y.
| independence. Surely to Americans this
| should not seem great crime
IN view OF these facts. we should de-
mand of our members of Congress that
! they insist on the calling of an extra SEES
| sion Of Congress Immediately, that steps
may be taken to set aside the action of
stitutional authority in declaring and car
| rying on war without the consent of the
| War-making powers. Otherwise oud SOL
diers will die of disease before we can get
| them home.
But the administration can not now
think of bringing the troops home.
On the contrary more and more must
be sent 1t has embarked on it's policy
of conquest and it is too late to with
| draw. 1t must go ahead. Already,
and as if in confirmation of the warn
ing of Secretary Hayes of the X. of L.,
| the President is told that $4,000 more
| troops will be necessary in the Philip
pines. Fifty thousand more sacrifices,
maybe, to be offered up on the altar of
Wall Street greed! Fifty thousand
more splendid young American lives to
be jeopardized by being sent to the
islands in the face Of the rainy season
so deadly to white men under the best
of circumstances, but especially deadly
| to large bodies of troops.
There will be many echoes to this
demand of American labor that a halt
be called.
| Our OWN rainy season is about to