The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1899-10-19
FUNSTON SEES HONEY
In the Retention of the Philippines
bY This Country.

San Francisco. Oct. 19.-Brigadier Cen
eral Funston left no doubt as to his ex-
pansion sentiment in speech made IN
Oakland. He believes that if the Philip
pine Islands are retained by this country
and the people given a government such
as only the United States can give them,
in less than ten years we will derive an
income of between so and 100 million dol
lars a year from the islands. This and
more the Kansan said in his address to
the Mems league of the Union Street
Presbyterian church in West Oakland.
General Funston was introduced to the
large audience by the Key. D,Wlght l. L
Potter, the pastor OF the churcn, VINO IS
an old schOoImate of Funston General
MY reception somewhat overwhelms
me. for I did not come here tonight ex-
bouquets Ny talk will be short and in
formal, for did not even prepare q
say to you will not be of the campaign or
the fighting in the islands, for, try as
might, I could not tell you On2-half as
much as is printed in the daily papers
And, right mere, must compliment the
correspondents for their reports OF the
campaign and Of the nghtlnS are most
accurate and truthful
Il believe that what the people want to
try for which we are now giving battle
] was in ignorance of its character, and
] do not believe that any of US were or
are too well posted on the subject now.
I investigated existing conditions as fully
as possible. To begin with, the pOpula-
to get an idea owing to the great num-
Der of islands and the small amount of
work that has been done along the line
of exploration. We know, however, that
there are in the archipelago about IA. 900
square miles of the richest lands on the
face of the globe, and that while some of
this land has been under constant culti-
walton for 200 years, growing immense
crops Of rice and sugar annually, not one
bushel OF fertilizer has ever gone into the
From an aged Scotchman who has liv-
ed for years in LuzOn and who is re-
garded a most trustworthy man,
alone the hard wood forests viii yield $50
million dollars. When we take into con-
s1deratiOn the fact that the price paid
Tor these islands was 20 million dollars
folly? The price of human lives can not
be Inquired in dollars and cents, for all
worth the zoo lives forfeited there. nor
yet the many more we may lose before
II IS all settled. You can not figure that
way. You might as well say that the
the lives sacrificed in the war of the re-
worth fighting for.
Looking upon this as a question of
collars against dollars, I venture to say
that in less than ten years. if we keep
the tslands-and we will keep them-they
viii De bringing IN an income of between
81 ana 100 million dollars annually.
IN closing 1 want to deny a statement
! nave seen published recently to the ef-
rect that OF the 40 600 soldiers in the Phil
1pplnes at the present time the majority
are hoodluTns, drunkardS, ruffians and
thieves. It is untrue. Possibly some of
our men are not what they should be-
out all are soldiers: there is nothing in
the tales of tOrturing enemies no f01ln-
datlon for the stories of the slaughter
q lnnocent ones L have been among
them and know whereof I speak
me meeting closed with the singing of
the Star Spangled Banner