The Caucasian. (Clinton, N.C.) 188?-1913, 1899-12-14

~NAA mas uUpDsSu-
THE PHILIPPINES.
a ,etssldssabie to.sion rf III. ines
sage is devoted to the Philippine Isl
andg- The President reviews the man
ner in which we acquired possession of
these islands, and says he had every
reason to believe and stil. believes that
this transfer OF sovereignty was in ac-
cordance with the wishes Of the aspira-
tions Of the great mass OF the Philip
pine people. From the earliest moment
no opportunity was lost Of assuring
the people OF the islands Of our ardent
desire for their welfare and OF the in
tention OF this government to do every
thing possible to advance their inter-
ests. The President quotes from his
early orders to the commanders Of the
forces OF occupation to impress this
fact upon the people and reviews at
some length the appointment and work
Of the Philippine commission. from
whose report he quotes. A copy OF the
report is transmitted to Congress- The
claim of the rebel leader that he was
promised Independence by any officer OF
the United States in return for his as
sistance. has no foundation in fact and
is categorically denied by the very wit
nesses who were called to prove II. The
most the insurgent leader hoped for
when he came back 10 Manila was the
liberation of the islands from Spanish
control, which they had been laboring
for years without success to throw of"
Continuing the President says:
THE REBELLION MUST BE PUT
DOWN.
The rebellion must be put down.
Civil government cannot be thoroughly
established until order is restored.
With devotion and gallantry
worthy Of it's most brilliant
history, the army, ably and
Loyalty assisted by the navy, has car
| ried on this unwelcome, but most right
| eous campaign, with richly deserved
success. The noble self-sacrifice with
which our soldiers and sailors, whose
terms of service had expired, refused
to avail themselves of their right to re-
turn home as long as they were needed
at the front, forms one of the brightest
pages of our annals. Although their
operations have been somewhat inter-
lupted and checked by rainy season
| Of unusual violence and duration, they
have gained ground steadily in every
| direction, and now look forward conf
IDENTIFY to a speedy completion Of their
| task.
! PROSPERITY AND FREEDOM COM
ING.
| "Everything indicates that with the
| speedy suppression Of the TagalO re-
! bellion life in the archipelago will soon
| resume its ordinary course under the
| protection of our sovereignty, and the
people Of those favored islands will en-
joy a prosperity and freedom which
| they have never before known. Already
hundreds Of schools are open and filled
with children. Religious freedom is sa-
credly assured and enjoyed. The courts
. are dispensing justice. Business is be-
ginning to circulate in its accustomed
channels. Manila, whose inhabitants
fn fho f1~xs fo
months ago, is now a populous and
thriving part Of commerce. The earn
est and unremittiHg endeavors of the
| commission and the admiral and major
general commanding the Department
of the Pacific to assure the people of
the benefcent Intentions Of this gov
ernment, have had their legitimate ef-
feet in convincing the great mass of
them that peace and safety and pros
perity and stable government can only
be found in loyal acceptance Of the
authority of the United States
ABANDONMENT OF THE PHILIP
PINES IMPOSSIBLE.
The future government Of the Phil
ippines rests with the Congress of the
United States. Few graver responsi.
bilties have ever beer confirmed to US
II we accept them in a spirit worthy OF
our race and our traditions a great op'
portunity comes with them. The isl
ands lie under the shelter of our flag
They are ours by every title of law ant
equity. They cannot be abandoned. Il
we desert them we leave them at once
to anarchy and finally to barbarism
We fling them, a golden apple Of dis
cord, among the rival powers, no ont
of which could permit another to seiz,
them unQuestioned. Their rich plain:
and valleys would be the scene Of end
less strife and bloodshed. The adven
Of Dewey's fleet in Manila Bay, instead
of being, as we hope, the dawn of {
have been the beginning of an era o
misery and violence worse than an!
which has darkened their unhapp,
past. The suggestion has been mad
that we could renouEce our authorit!
over the islands and. giving them inde
pendence, could retain protectcrat
over them. This proposition will not b
found, l am sure, worthy of your sc
rious attention. Such an arrangement
would involve at the outset crue
breach of faith It would place tn
peaceable and loyal majority. who asl
nothing better than to accept our au
thority, at the mercy of the minorit
Of armed insurgent leaders. 1t woul
: make us responsible for the acts o
the insurgent leaders and give u
no power to control them. 1t woul
charge us with the task Of protectin
, them against each other, and defend
ing them against any foreign powe
with which they chose to quarrel. L
short, it would take from the Con
gress of the United States the power G
declaring war and vest that tremen
, dous prerogative in the Tagal leader Q
the hour.
, HOW THE PHILIPPINE GOVERN
MENT SHOULD BE BUILT UP.
1T does not seem desirable that
= should recommend at this time a spe
cifc and final form of government fo
these islands. When peace shall be re
9 stored it will be the duty Of Congres
> to construct a plan of governmer
= which shall establish and maintai
@ freedom and order and peace in tn
:, Philippines. The insurrection is sti
= | existing, and when it terminates fun
ther, information will be required as
. the actual condition of affairs befoI
a | inaugurating a permanent scheme
y civil government. The full report Of til
: commission, now in preparation, wi
;, contain information and suggestion
q which will be of value to Congress- an
which I viii transmit as soon as it
. completed. AS long as the insufrectio
continues, the military arm must nj
. cesSarily be supreme. But there is \
= reason why steps should not be take
g from time to time to inaugurate go'
:, ernments essentially popular in the
- form as fast as territory is held an
q controlled by our troops. To this en-
+ A PROGRAMME OF GOOD WORI
$ mo effort will be spared to build L
s the waste places desolated by war ar
by long years of Inisgovernment.
shall not wait for the end of strife
y begin the beneficent work. We sha
y continue, as we have begun, to ope
j. the schools and the churches. TO set II
/ courts in operation, to foster industl
= and trade and agriculture. and in ever
3 way in our power to make these Pc
d pie whom providence has brought witt
d in our jurisdiction feel that it is the
l. liberty and not our power, their weha
n and not our gain, we are seeking
d enhance. Our flag has never wave
d over any community but in blessing.
II believe the Filipinos will soon reco
/ nize the fact that it has not lost
ID gift of benedictiOn in it's World-wl
t journey to their shores"
u TEE uAW ATTAN ISLANDS.