Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-06-03
THE PHILIPPINES.
A Manila View of the Result of Ma
tive Independence.

From the Manila Times.
In Mindanao, the withdrawal of the
small, scattered Spanish garrisons has been
the signal for intertrihaI wars never quite
suppressed, to burst into new life" This
is the key with which alone the Philippine
problem can be solved. Spain, weak and
corrupt, perhaps, managed, at any rate to
preserve some semblance of order in the
Philippines. Spain has now been driven
out by Admiral Deweys victory, and, pri-
marily, by that alone. 1t is, therefore,
imperative that the United States must
establish some authority in place of the
Spanish. The question is, what authority
is best to be chosen? The whole Philip
pine problem is narrowed down to the one
question-who should govern the islands
and how?
OF the numerous answers suggested one
is disposed Of by this news from Mindanao
Natives cannot govern. The removal of
Spanish authority, poor as that was. is
the re-establishment of primeval anarchy
II may be less marked in some islands than
in others, but the fact remains that in all
the islands some substantial authority re-
qUires to be set up and no native govern
ment is strong enough In Negros the
native leaders had sufficient intelligence
to know this and sufficient honesty and
moral courage to say so. In Cebu almost
the same. In Panay natives We're fighting
against natives, aborigines and tulisanes
and kaupunescos were dsputing and
wrangling and occasionally cutting each
others threats unOfficially long before the
Spaniards. besieged in IlOiIo. had ESCAPED
to ZambOanga. In MindorO and Paragua it
Is the same as in Mindanao-primeva saw
agery, let loose from the weak bands of
Spanish suZerainty. The cOur " is as bad
ly smashed, its social, CONNER cial and ad-
niSfF iy1t iaH lot, Nv
knocked to pieces as the machinery Of the
sunken Rcina Christina. To reconstruct
either would be a task of inordinate diff
Guilty, and probably not very profitable
The native government say in Mindanao
can no more pull itself together than could
the poor wrecked hulk off Punta Sangley
The hulk can be left as she lies to cost
nobody anything more than an inexpensive
sigh of pity. Can populOus islands be left
to sink in the slough of savagery? Can
millions of human beings who have seen a
glimmering of civilization, who have in
clpient industries that should benefit the
whole world, who have more or less
Christianity among them-can these be left
as they are, to cost nobody anything more
than an anti-expansion argument?
DaVos is small coast town, exactly like
what Batavia once was. and Batavia now
is like what DavOs may become some day
DaVos, however, has two rival Aguinal-
dams fighting for the presidentship, while
the wild Mohammedan Moras from the
town, and the fierce sea rovers from all
the piratical coasts Of the southern seas
are marrying the shore. Machinery of gov
eminent" evidently may be an Internal
machine. Possibly the Fuipinos may do
better in some places than in Davos They
need to, for worse could not be.
But the varying degrees of anarchy pre-
Vaillng in various places cannot shake the
| accuracy of the argument. We know from
Aguinaldo's own official gazette that the
northern provinces of Luzon are being raid
| ed by armed bands Of fighting men hostile
| to his authority.
Can the country be left to native rule
| Ihat would save the United States a good
zeal OF trouble, money and men. The
| deaths of soldiers may reach many thous-
| ands, though we fervently hope not The
| money may reach big figure, though that
| is comparatively unimportant The United
States having destroyed what little there
was III the way of orderly rule must face
| the task honestly and honorably whatever
the cost may be. The one argument of the
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES. that the natives should
| rule the Islands, is refuted by the exa nple
| OF these Islands already suffering from a
premature independence.