The people's journal. (Pickens, S.C.) 1891-1903, 1899-01-26
WHAT THE PHILIPPINES ARE,

WHAT THE PHILIPPINES ARE.
Ex-senator Edmunds, of Vermont
Gives Ills Views ON the Question of
tho Day.
Hon. Geo. It. Edmunds, the ablest
Statesman OF the Republican party,
and for many years the leader OF the
Senate, in letter to the New York
World states very clearly his views
against Imperialism, and makes the
following points in regard to the
Philippines and our connection with
thcm:
l. These 1900 islands, moro or less,
are in the heart Of the tropics and oc-
cupy region Of seas nearly 900 miles
long north and south and 800 miles
wide. They are about 1000 miles dis
tant from, our Pacific coast aud are
about $4,000 miles distant from our
Atlantic ccast via the Suez Canal, con-
trolled by. q foreign power. Only O
few of tho islands are large enough to
play any important part in the pro-
blem. These are Luzon, Camarines,
Mlndoro' Samar, Leyte, Panay, Min
danao and Palawan. The latest ency-
clopaedias estimate the area at about
ll4,UOO square miles and tho popula-
tion at 100000.
z. They have all the climatic evils
and diseases of tropical countries and
are frequently af1l cted by violent hurri-
canes and earthquakes. They are, as
ali human experience has prov ed
absolutely incapable Of being colonized
and built up into communities of
Americans or OF any OF the people of
cool clim ates.
3. Thy are already inhabited, as
already stated, by about 100000 OF
people-being more than 60 to the
square mile'of the whole area of all
the islands. The population, there
State OF Michigan. The population Is
composed of Spaniards, other Euro
ac&aG, English and Americans, half
castles, Chinese, Malays, Japanese and
aboriginal natives. OF the total o! all
this conglomerate Of races the Euro.
.peans and Americana compose less
thS4. per cont. after moro than two
hundred years Of European occupation,
and very few Of these were born there.
Even in Manila The capital, 81 per
cent. Of the Inhabitants are Maiays,,
80 per cent. are ChinesS. and hall.
breeds, Spaniards; Spanish haN> oreeds
and creoles per cent. oniy, ana OF
other white men only trace, a 40 OF
white women substantially none. :,
q. The five or six islands Of the
group OF any considerable size are al.
ready fully populated by the races ald
mixtures above mentioned.
s. They are people who never have
been and mover can be In need Of or the
consumers of American productions to
any appreciable extent.
+. The islands are very fertile and
produce principally the fibre known
as Manila hemp, coarse tobacco, coffee,
sugar and tropical fruits and they
have extensive forests of tropical
woods analogous to those of the vast
forests Of Central and South America.
7. These resources comprise the
only value of the islands except that
OF furnishing location for fortresses
and naval stations for q nation ambi.
tious to become the political and mill
tary mistress of the world. A new
Alexander or Napoleon, If he possessed
inexhaustlble resources OF men and
money, might wish for them for this
purpose.
8. The sincerely professed and sole
purpose OF tho war WAS to make Cuba
free and independent state. Admiral
Dewey did not GO to Manila for pur-
poses of conquest at all. He went
there with his gallant little fleet to
capture or destroy, If he could, the
Spanish fleet. He did it in O. way that
astonished the naval powers OF the
world. But he only acquired military
control OF the bay and city Of Manila
and its environments. Nearly all be-
yond that was in possession Of an Or
ganized rebellion against Spain.
8. At that time, and long before, on
active and powerful rebellion was In
progress in the islands, and 80 far as
present information goes 1t now h >lds
sway over d large part OF Luzon and
quito or nearly the whole of Panay
and OF other large districts of these
principal islands. 1t appears to be
true that the rebels co-operated with
our forces in the overthrow OF the
Spanish rule at Manila under the i'm
pression that our oper tlone at Manila
were not to help Spain to put down the
rebellion and then take possession for
ourselves, but were only to cripple the
Spanish power as an incident Of war in
bringing Spain to ren0unce It's control
OF Cuba, which Congress had said in
It's declaration in respect to Cuba was
It's sole purpose.
10. That the people of the islands
who were carrying on the rebellion In
order to be free and independent do
not desire to- be annexed and t6tbecOme
a territorial dependency OF the United
States OF any kind, and that they In
tend to resist annexation appears to be
indisputable. =
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Bo as we say Apply to the seat of the