The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-04-28

things that are warranted by consider
atoms which high-minded citizenship
can applaud. The best you can do il
| to say that We must regulate these
Filipinos, precisely as we had to reg
| ulate' the Sioux, or the Crows-more's
| the pity that, after decades of war.
| fare with our own American savages
| we involve ourselves in an obligation
| to discipline millions of uncivilized
| Orientals living in the uttermost part
| of the earth
In this business the American peg
! pie will not be exposed to censure If
presently they betray Impotence. 1t
| was given out by the recognized oraclas
of the administration at Washington
that at Maloos the islanders would
surely make their last stand; when the
| march was taken up against Calumpit
that place, in turn. was to be the for
lorn hope of these enemies. While it is
right and patriotic and manly to take
the hopeful view, it nevertheless is true
that it will be no wonder il this Philip
pine struggle is long kept up. Al
ready, in patronizing talk, the English
press is reminding us that England
was long at it in the conquest of ISL
ands or provinces in the Orient. Our
domestic experience is that we were
engaged constantly for more than forty
years in the effort to bring to a peace
footing our own Indian tribes, surely
not more than three hundred thousand
beings all told, who lived, for the most
part, within sight of our civilization
and all of them within our borders. We
now have, at arms length, not less
than eight millions of beings to deal
with.
Yesterday mornings dispatches de-
scribed how the people of the war de-
partment We're engaged in the jealous
study of the map, in their effort to
keep track of the movements Of our
troops. No doubt that the department
is kept busy in its study of geography;
SO utterly foreign to us is all this bust
ness that the American people have
next to no idea where their country
men are fighting. We believe it to be
true that if to-day the census could
be taken it would be found that not
two per cent. of the intelligent, news
aper-reading public in this country
has any clearer view of the localities
in which our soldiers have been fight
ing than they have of the whereabouts
of the mountains on the moon-if the
nj tai
idea where Manila is. but beyond that,
we believe it to be true that to ninety
eight per cent. of our own public the
Philippine map IS chaos. That hap
pens because after all of these months
during which a certain element in the
United States has Doomed" imperial
ism with the energy and the noise of
50 many real-estate auctioneers-after
all these months, it is found to be
simply impossible to persuade intelli.
gent American citizenship that We
want the Filipinos or covet the Phil
ippine islands.
IT may be that the recent added
contributions of American blood will
find their happy sequel in the fact that
the natives have made their last
stand" Those who question the accu
racy of this prophecy have warrant
for their doubts: those who are looking
to see more soldiers sent and more
millions spent and more American
blood split are pretty sure to have
their expectations met. Be all that as
it may, we are engaged in an under
taking which the American public it
self does not seriously look upon as a
state of real war. 1t wearies the pub
lie; presently it will wear out the pub
lie patience. Perhaps it is no time now
to argue the wisdom or the folly of
our cOurse--if this business runs on
much longer no man will need to ar
que in order to convince his fellow cit
liens of the folly of it. The one thing
by some favoring providence, the
fighting may soon cease and the gov
eminent at Washington be afforded an
opportunity, in way creditable to it
self to get out of the Philippines and
to keep out.
There's no complaint about the con-
duct of the Philippine campaign-for
all the public knows it is right and
praiseworthy. But if you read the
signs of the times you will discover
that public opinion in this country is
Fastening to the conclusion that these
islands from whose soil a wide sea
separates us and with whose people
we cannot possibly affiliate, are not
worth, all told, to us, the price of any
good American citizens blood.