Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1899-12-29
A EilIPlNO VIEW,

a
In a recent number of the Independent,
Sixto Lopez, who was the secretary OF
the Filipino commission, which left
Washington suddenly just before the
commencement of hostilities between the
United States forces and the fllipinos,
writes from London to ask why the war
in the Philippines is so relentlessly pro-
secuted is it," he asks. "because the
Filipinos will not agree to the form OF
government by which the United States
intends to govern them? This cannot be
so. for the simple reason that the United
States administration has never given
definite expression Of its intentions with
regard to the Philippines, nor formulated
any concrete me hOd or system OF gov
eminent for the islands. AS far as l
know, up to the present no attempt has
been made officially to discover what the
Filipinos are or are not prepared 10 ac-
cept. II the administration had stated
its terms definitely and clearly to the
Filipnos, and if the Filipinos had refused
absolutely to accept such terms, then
the policy of force would have become
at least rational, even if no moral right
existed. But as matters now stand the
Filipinos can hardly be charged with re-
iecting that which has never been pro-
posed.
SIS the mailed fist turned against us
because-as President Mckinley alleged
we have sassailed the sovereignty of
the United States in the Philippines? III
the FilipinOs had assailed American
sovereignty they might with justice
, claim that they were right in assailing a
sovereignty the scope and meaning OF
which had never been made clear. But
the truth of the matter is that the Fill
pinos were not aware that the United
States claimed sovereignty over the
/, Philippines. Such claim would NEAR
that the Philippines hal already beer
. annexed by the United States, and from
r first to last the Filipnos never under
= stood that America came to the Phillp
a pines for the purpose of annexation. Oh
the contrary, we understood that the In
PREVENTION of the United States was solely
with the intention of putting an end tt
the intolerable mlsrule of Spain-a mis-
+ rule which was declared, and concur il
the declaration, to be blot upon civil
zation. Il speak not says Presiden
Nick iniey in his mess re TO congress o
the l1th of April, 1888, of forcible al
nexation, for that cannot be thought OF
That by oar code of morality would b
criminal aggress ion We, Fi'ipinos
take that deliberate declaration of pole
as the word of one whose word Is hi
bond and who will not alter his pole
or shift the position without at least giN
ing notice to those whom it may concern
Consequently, IL there has been no al
= nexatiOn there can be no sovereignty
q and if there is no sovereignty, then thu
n which does not exist cannot have bee
n assaied.
h "If, however, it is urged that the pres
: dents declaration referred to Cuba an
n Porto Rico and not specially to the Phi
ippines, then the reply is that that whic
u is criminal aggression in the Easter
~ hemisphere, is equally criminal In II
,r Western. There are no circumstance
A, geographically or political, which coul
IS possibly alter the case In reference
IS the Philippines.
he "What, then, is the casus belli? n
u one as far as | can discover, seems
~ know; or, If the knowledge is possesse
~ by any one, 1t has never been made pu
Z lie. In the meantime In the absence
this knowledge, the Filipinos are simpl
he defending themselves against what seen
n to them a meaningless-but what II
r. president has declared to be "crimina
d aggression.
a. snow in the name of humanity al
=, ~ civilization-in the name q say it vii
is all reverence) of God, is it not incumbe
ne upon the United States administration
re state definitely what its Intentions are