The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-11-26
AeuIxALpo AVID HIS GOVERNMENT.

! AGUINALDo AND HIS GOVERNMENT.
AguinaIdo is a fugitive. his army is scat
| tered and his cabinet and his congress
! have no longer an abiding place. Under the
Il circumstances il is diffiouft to see how
the war in the Philippines can last much
I longer. AguinaldO Is being pursued, and
The chances are that he will be captured.
Even II ne escapes it Will be impossi-
bic for him to get together another army
/ OF size sufficient to enable him to main
I tain himself in any part Of Luzon or any
/ other one of the Islands and make pre-
/ tense Of administering his so-ca,led gov
eminent Il is stated that some of the
members OF his cabinet and some of his
/ congressman are prisoners. According TO
dispatches from Gen. Otis they are not
anxious that the war shan be continued. II
what they say can be relied upon they
would like to have peace at once.
It is not probable that there win he any
more severe fighting. The fragments of
Aguinaldo's army will hide in the swamps
and mountains and try to annoy our sol
ders who may be placed in the various
towns TO afford protection to the people,
and a sort Of guerilla warfare may he con-
tinued fer several months, but it rocks as
II the backbone Of the instruction were
broken and The war practically at an end.
The swiftness with which our army has
moved since the beginning of the present
campaign has undoubtedly greatly surpris-
ed Aguinallo and his advisers He thought
the roads were too bad to permit of the
movement of troops and supply trains. and
hence he staid at his capital so long that
he came near being captured. He was not
prepared for the kind of a campaign that
Gems Lawton, Macarthur. Wheaton and
Young are conducting. His only expert
ence had been with the Spaniards, and he
probably expected the same sort of tactics
would be adop ed by our generals as had
been employed by the Spanish generals. He
knows now, however, that he has a differ
ent kind of an opponent to deal with
The roads are not yet in a very good
condition, but they are getting better all
the time. II Aguinaldo attempts to col
lect another army he win find so many
obstacles in his way that he win proba-
bly, become disheartened, and either sur
render or try to make his escape from the
island. There is not the enthusiasm for
him and his cause there was when he be-
gan the war by attacking our army at
Manila. Then II was believed, even by in
telligent Fifipinos that it would not be a
difficult thing to do to drive our army out
Of the islands. The Filipinos who have had
experience in the war do not now enter
tain such a belief.
1t is probable that the great majority Of
the FilDinos are now ready to accept
terms of peace. If they can be made to
understand that there is no intention of
expressing them, and that under our rule
they will have better government and a
grea er measure of liberty than they would
under a government of their own, the
islands will be pacified within a very few
months Much of course will depend upon
the men who will be entrusted with the
duty of establishing a government in the
islands. The natives are ignorant-that is
the great majority OF them are-and there
fore suspicious. 1t is probable, also, that
for years there will be prominent men hos
tile to our rule They want independence,
not for the good of their country but be-
cause they like power. and would like 10
have the great offices which would exist
under an independent government. Still,
If the men selected by the President to
manage the affairs of the islands and grad
ually establish a stable and liberal civil
government are gifted with plenty of COM
mon sense, and are inclined to do what
they know to be right, the Philippines will
not be a source of a great deal of trouble
10 US.