The San Francisco call., 1899-09-30
PROFESSOR scHURMAns VIEWS.

RESIDENT SCHURN1AN OF the Philippine
~ Commission has given the country some views
of Imperialism in that distant archipelago
which are OF interest and importance. Last year IN
his regular address at the opening OF the scholastic
year OF Cornell University he strongly opposed
taking the Philippines. In this years address, on
Thursday he said that having taken the Philippines,
the only question at issue IS What shall do with
them?' Proceeding, he antagonized nearly every
ground which the mperialists have assumed. lie de-
clared that our assumption of sovereignty over the
Philippines is entirely unlike previous national
expansion. Our development from the Atlantic TO
the Pacific was over practically uninhablted terri
tory while the Philippines already densely peoped
with Maayans in a physical environment unsuited TO
the white man. and are resentfu of the intrusion OF
other races. This is a fiat and frank admission OF
the whole foundation of anti-mperialism. Imperial
expansion is novelty before unknown and foreign to
our policy, and with no parallel in national ex-
perience It reaches out for country to which white
men cannot adapt themselves. Therefore the only
races that can live there are those who there
These are resentu OF the intrusion of other races,
thus presenting at the start all the affecting elements
OF race prejudice and pride, the most difficult OF all
things to overcome. All of these grounds have been
held and freely stated by The Call, and now
supported by the president of McKnleys Philippine
Commission He said further that ito treat the ISL
ands as our possession, with which may do as we
please is too barbarous to be taken seriously; it is
not merely callousness of heart it is only muddle-
headedness" The terms Ownership and possession"
he denounced as "a barbarous survival when applied
to any relation between one people and another"
This rebukes the free use by imperialists of the
terms Subject and subject people" applied to the
Filipnos From the beginning of the unfortunate
affair until now those people have been treated our
subjects over whom we have the sovereignty, which
Spain had exercised because we bought it and paid for
it It only by considering them as subjects that we
can justify characerzing them rebels and stigma
tie their opposition to the flag. Professor Schur-
says that our relations with the Philippines will
be misrepresented long retain that fatal con-
fusion OF government and property"
This being So the whole argument of the imperial
lists in justification of their position must be aban-
doned. They have not leg left which to stand
it. nor shred in which it may be clad
The professor after cutting every bit OF ground
from under them, offered his opinion that are to
educate and elevate the Filipinos and aid them in
governing themselves in fraterna cooperation with
the natives whose dearest ideals are the political
traditions Of Americans" This dspaces one discus
sion for another The country will wait for the pro-
fessor's calm judgment upon the effect of our CO.
operation and aid offered to a resentful of the
intrusion Of other races, and whose dearest ideal is
our traditions" formed before took their SOW
ereignty by purchase from power they hated and
had expelled, and appeared among them to assert our
sovereignty by fire and sword, with demand for ur-
conditional surrender. He said: although Ameri-
can sovereignty must be established by force shall
dream of the policy of exterminaton?' We
answer that, taking his statement of the case
our demand for unconditional surrender is nothing
short of threat of determination.
Nowhere yet in the history Of man have conquer
ofs aided the conquered in such cooperation as he
looks for If he correct in his estimate of their
dearest ideals nothing is left but determination
His views have increased the narrowing nature of the
situation. They obsolete the hard commercial view
expressed by DENLY and Carter and propose to re-
tire it as a motive For it he substitutes the belief
that follow slaughter by elevation, which is
obviously incompatible with his conception of the
dearest ideals of the people whom he proposes shall
be born into liberty by the Caesaran operation.