The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1899-09-14
And Their Astonishing hg-
gIomeration of Peoples.
THE EDUCATED TAGAL0S
THEY WILL COMP ARE FAVOR
ABLY WITH ANY RACE.
CONGRESS MAY SOLVE THE PROBLEM
1t Might Give the FiIipinos Demonstration of
Free Government on The American
Plan by Establishing
II There

it There.
Ithaca, ~ Y, Sept I3-President
| Schurman returned today to his office
in Cornell University. He gave out the
following statement to the Associated
Press on Philippine affairs:
1T is very important that the public
should know the actual facts of the
situation. Things are what they are,
and the American public should under
stand them, whether they agree with
or run counter to the public's wishes
First it requires some effort to real
ze the yastness of the archipelago,
which extends in triangular form from
| FormoSa to Borneo and Celebes,
! through sixteen degrees of latitude.
Never going out into the Pacific ocean
on the east nor the China Sea on the
west, | made a circuit of two thousand
miles all south of Manila This gives
| some idea of the difficulty of maintain
| ing IN effective blockade as the coast
| line of all the islands embraced in the
archipelago is many more thousands of
miles.
Second, the multiplicity and hetero-
| genous nature of the tribes is something
| astonishing. Over sixty different lam
guages are spoken III the archipelago,
| ard though the majority of the tribes are
| SMALL there are at least half dozen
/ having quarter of a million members
| The languages of these people are as dis
tant from one another as French or
/ Spanish or Italian, so that the speech
of any one tribe is unintelligible to it's
neighbors. These tribes are all civil
i lied, and Christianized, bus small UNI
! civilized tribes, among whom the Igoro-
| ties seem best known in America, In
4 habit the mountains in Luzon and form
| 4 large part of the population of Min
danao. Ins this island also there is a
large Mohammedan population, which
| is independent of the Mohammedans in
the neighboring Sulu archipelago
Third, it is the Tagafos inhabiting
some of the province, anout Manila
who are resisting the authority of the
United States. Other civilized Filipinos
are neutral, except where they are Co
creed by armed bands of Tagaios who
| seized upon their Governments during
| the making and the ratification of our
peace treaty with Spain 1t would be
Incorrect to assume, however, that these
| tribes are allies of ours. They are not
| Indeed, they are not without suspicion
Of the white race. of which they have
had experience only through Spain. But
| there are men of intelligence and prop
| erty. and the masses when not stirred
UP by the Tagalos, recognize the advan-
tage to them Of American sovereignty
| and so remain neutral. although robher
bands from time to time descend from
the mountains to plumber and burn
the estates of the peaceful inhabitants
on the plains.
Fourth, the insurrection, though Sc
rious enough as experience has proven,
Is not national uprising Indeed.
there is no Philippine nation. As
have already said, there is a multifa-
rious collection of tribes having only
TINS - common, that they belong to the
Malay race. The inhabitants of the
archipelago no more constitute a nation
| than the inhabitants of the continent
| OF Europe do.
Fifth. The United States having
lassumed by treaty of peace with Spain
| sovereignty over the archipelago be-
came responsible for the maintenance
of peace and order, the administration
of justice, the security of life and prop
erty among the tribes of the archipelago.
This is an obligation which intelligent
/ Filipinos, not less than foreign nations,
expect us to fulfill. Nor will the nation
al honor permit us ITO turn back. In
taking the Philippine Islands we annex
ed great responsibility. The fact that
the responsibility is heavier than most
people supposed it would be is no ex-
cuse for failure TO discharge it. | re-
peat that the Filipino question is essen
italy question of national honor and
obligation"
In reply to an inquiry whether any
thing was now left but TO fight it out
President Schurman said:
In my opinion, much good would be
done by a declaration of the part OF
Congress Of the form of Government TO
be established in the islands. or better
still, let Congress establish a govern
ment for the Philippine Islands and
have it put in force in all parts and
among all tribes hostile to the United
States. This would serve several pur-
poses 1t would distinguish between
our friends and enemies, and treat the
former according to their deserts. 1t
would also give to our enemies demon
| stration of free government on the
American plan, a very important point
when it is remembered that the Tagalos
claim to be fighting for their liberty.
| And | had better call attention to the
fact that the Government which is best
adapted to one tribe may need consider
able modification to be available for
/ another"
| Asked about the capacity of the Fill
Pine people to govern themselves, Presi-
dent Schurman replied that they had
no experience in self-government, ex-
cept in municipal affairs and even these
were subject to the control of the Span
ish authorities. He thought, however,
that each tribe might, subject to The
supervision of a wise general govern
ment manage in the main it's own NUM-
capal and provincial affairs. Supervi-
sion from Manila would vary with the
position which the different tribes occu-
pied in the scale of civilization.
President Schurman seemed firm in
the conviction that some form IF homo