Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1899-08-03
THURSDAY, AUGUST 8, 1899.
UNFIT FOR SELF GOVERN MENT

The only reason, worth Il moment $
consideration. given bv the defenders OF
the NcHanna administration for the
trem ,rdous expenditure of American
blooI and money now going on in the
PnilIjpines is. That the natives OF the
Archpeligo.are unfit to maintain an In
den, n lent government, and administra-
ton apo,ogists are fond OF quoting every
thint that is written TO prove lh2 IN
capacity OF the Fillipinos for self govern
m,n.. One OF the latest col tributors in
this line-who is quoted TO prove their
incapacitv by .the leading apologist in
this state, the Seattle Postlntelligencer
lisa Can't. Wells, who writes to tie
NV York Evening Post that;
"The greatest source OF error on the
part OF ouripeople is ignorance OF the
Filipino character, and from this the Of
ticials at Washington are by no means
exempt. All they have learned in their
negotiations with Spain rs to durlicity
and insincerity they must apply to tie
Filipino. and then add to it 100 per cent.
There is nothing whatever truthful or
sincere about Il Filipino. BY instinct
and training he is untruthiul, tricky and
treacherous. The only thing to be de-
pended upon in negotiating with him is
to assume as a: certainty that what he
says is not true, and that the reasons he
assigns for his conduct are not the real
ones. This, OF course, makes an unsub-
stantial basis for negotiations, but it is
only basis possible with the Filipino"
Upon which the P.-I. is led to The con.
clusion that:
at is automatic that no people is en-
titled to self-government which is incap-
able OF elt-government. Col. Bryan de-
MES it, or, rather, ignores it, but high
sounding phrases and. bombastic oratory
cannot alter the essential truth and OBJ
vous common sense Of that statement.
Ii the Filipnos are unfit to maintain a
republic, or other Independent g vern-
ment, it would be cowardly and infam-
Gus for the United States to withdraw its
military POWER from the islands, and to
abandon its inhabitants to certain an
archy, or, at the very best, to inefficient
and oppressive government. The ulti.
mate OF the whole anti-expansion argu-
nlent must be demonstration that the
Filip:nos are fit to be free, and not a
mere declamatory abstraction that they
ought to be Free"
Meanwhile the Filipnos are to be shot
down with dum-dum bullets every time
they endeavor to supply the required de-
monstration. This is not "cowardly and
infamous;' according to the McHanna
code.
Again, the:P.-I. quotes the Capt:
"Whatever we may think Of the capa-
city for self-government of people who
without even the form OF trial, execute
their fellow citizens who differ from them
on matters OF public policy, it does not
change the fact that these are the
methods used by the insurgent leaders
to stamp out all opposition to the insur-
rection on the part OF any OF their coun-
trymen."
This portion OF the contribution is
evidently intended for use north of the
Mason and Dixon line as this sort of
thing would hardly suit in the land Of
lyncling bees;
1t not infrequently happens that the
news columns of the state apologist are
at variance with the editorial page, and
this occurred on the day the editorial
writer was drawing his conclusions from
Capt. Wells. In the news columns was
letter to the Associated Press from a
volunteer officer in the PHILIPPINES who,
after giving his opinion that 100, 900 SOL
diers should be there by November TO
subdue the insurgents, gave his opinion
OF the state OF civilization in the Islands.
He said:
"The 100000 people OF the PHILIPPINES
are as highly civilized as the 10000. 900
of Mexico. If the American people will
immagine the United States to have &C
quired Mexico against her will and to be