Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1899-04-14
rnE PHILIPPINES SITUATION.

TIE Philippine SITUATION.
At least a dozen times has the CEN
sored cable told us that 'the backbone
of the instruction has been broken. :"
Each succeeding battle been de-
scribed as practically "the finishing
blow" Time and again have the in
surgents been dispersed beyond the
possibility of rallying again in force,
according to the cable, while Aguin-
aldo has been reported without fol-
lowing and the Filipinos as laying
down their arms and coming within
our lines.
And still the fighting goes on as
heavy as ever After having been re-
peatedly broken the insurrection seems
to rapidly mend, and each succeeding
finishing blow is followed by a dozen
other finishing blows" 1t is remark
able how the Filipinos seem to get to-
gether after having been finally dis
persed to the four winds. Likewise,
Aguinaldo seems to remain in the lead
despite the number of times his fol-
lowers have turned him down.
The censored cable is doubtless all
right for war purposes, but the people
of this country who wish to intelli-
gently understand the situation must
bear in mind that the news from that
quarter is censored and that we get
only such news as the military au-
thorities send out themselves or choose
to permit to be sent out. All unpleas-
ant facts that might be used to the adj
vantage of the enemy are suppressed
as an advisable war measure.
Private letters from our soldiers and
from newspaper correspondents sent by
way of Hong Kong, together with illus
brations of battles tell very different
story from the censored cable.
The Filipinos are not like the Gu
bans; they are better fighters. They
do not make sudden guerilla attacks and
then scurry away without loss. They
attack en- masse and fight desperately
and fearlessly and to the DEATH I'm
censored reports tell of hideous slaugh-
ter dealt out by our machine artillery
from which these people did not finch.
For they are fighting for liberty and
that is dear to men the world over and
regardless of the color of their skin.
So far is this wretched war from be-
Ing ended that the fighting goes OH as
heavily as ever and though our ma
chine guns continue to NOW down the
dusky ranks of the natives like gigan-
tic scythes, an army officer on the spot
Is quoted as saying with the approval
Of majority, if not all, the American
officers there, that there will be 100,-
600 American troops in the Philippine
archipelago before there is an end to
the war;
In the meantime the rainy season is
at hand and that will be the severest
test OF all for it means months of dread
tul discomfort and pestilence.
The other day the War Department
received an ominous message from the
American consul at Hong Kong con-
tanning the single word Plague" con-
strued to mean that the plague had
reached the Chinese coast and to be
prepared to hear of it spreading to the
Philippines, where are so many prec-
ious lives of brave young Americans.
There is no sense in shutting our eyes
to unpleasant facts, which must force
themselves upon us sooner or later,
while the longer the truth is suppressed
the greater must be the shock caused
by it.
This is the delightful situation which
the admins ration has purchased from
Spain at cost of $2O,OO0,OOO of good