The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-08-24

| In the military situation. Fully eleven
twelfths Of the native population is Of
Malayan blood. In northern Luzon. this
has been crossed with Chinese and Japanese
blood, and in many islands with Negrito.
The Tagalos, OF central and southern
Luzon, a comparatively pure Malayan type.
have been the instigators and cause OF the
present Filipino outbreak. The Visayans,
whose language Is more widely spoken than
any other, are moro Industrious, more gen.
tie and more adaptable than the Tagalos,
and the feeling between the two people Ia
not altogether friendly. Most Of the
people Of Mindanao and the Sulu group
are OF the Mohammedan faith, and are
known as Morros. "They are OF mixed
Semitic and Malayan stock, and evidently,
in past centuries, invaded and overran the
islands from Borneo. Between them and
all other tribes there has been continual
warfare, and they are treacherous, indo-
lent. fanatical," and given to piracy and
robbery.
Lieut.. NrBnAcK reckons that in all there
arc "about fifty dialects and native Ian
guaRes," and says that the dream OF a re-
public is only the ambition OF few design
ing and well educated Tagalos, who have
an eye on custom house receipts, and edo
not In any sense represent the natives"
Since the latter are not homogeneous peo-
pie, their government must come from an
exterior source. But with the collapse OF
the instruction, the building OF railroads
and the establishment OF an army of occu-
patton, tho problems in Luzon will be
solved. When onco the extra military cx-
penses are stopped, tho Philippines will
pay us well, for among their products are
sugar hemp, cordage, hats, mats textiles,
cotton, rice. tobacco, coffee, copra, wax,
sapan wood, various sorts OF timber, in
digo, spices, horses, cattle, swine, hides,
marble, sulphur, kaolin, iron, coal, lead,
mercury platinum, copper, silver and gold,
while in the Sulus pearls are found
As to the naval requirements Of the Philip
pines, these are small craft and auxiiaries.
Lieut.. NIBLACK holds that the islands
should be made separate division Of the
Asiatic fleet, leaving the larger ships TO
cruise In general on the station as formerly.
With naval stations at Cavite, lilo no and
Port Isabel, there would be central points
of supplies and communication for the dis
tricts already described. Lieut.. NIBLACK
thinks that two years Of naval patrol duty
in the Philippines is about the maximum
for the best results for officers and men,
considered physically and also profession
ally, it being then desirable to vary the
service. He also advises that on the
Asiatic station our Commander-in-Chief
should be Vice-Admiral, so that he may
not hold rank inferior to that Of other
foreign flag officers on the station.
But Lieut.. NIBLACK does not believe
that the squadron Of the Philippines will be
costly to maintain. The Castine, Concord,
bennington, Yorktown, Wheeling, Helena
Princeton, Don Juan dc Austria, Isla de
Cuba, Isla de Luzon, Manila, Leyte and
Callao would, II supplemented by the gun
boats purchased by the Army, be enough,
even with the petty warfare in Mindanao
and tho Sulus which we must expect for
some time.
The general impression gained by Lieut.,
NIBLACK was that OF "the amazing fertility,
tho great promise and the substantial
value" Of the Philippines, and his observa-
tions made on the spot, are certainly in