The Hickman courier. [volume] (Hickman, Ky.) 1859-current, 1899-11-10
THEIR REPORT.
Philippine Commissioners Tell tns
President About the Islands.
q Statement Of the Capacity Of the yns-
pinos for rAsy Lack
In Previous Training and Espsr-
ience and Need Tutsisgs.

IN EreVto0s eos
isncs and Need TuteIsgs.
WASHINGTON, Nov. SIN accordance
with the understanding reached ut the
conference at the white house We'd
nesday the Philippine commissioners
Thursday submitted to the president
the preliminary report which IL had
promised TO prepare. The report ap
pears to be compact summary OF con-
ditions on the islands rs the commits
sion left them; OF the historical events
which preceded the Spanish war and
led to the original Filipino instructions;
Of the exchanges between AZ m. Dewey
and the other American commanders
and the insurgents; the breaking out
and progress of the present insur'
rection. and finally. a statement OF the
capacity of the Filipinos for self.gov'
eminent notable feature OF the re- !
port is n memorandum by Adm. Dewey
explanatory OF his relations with
Aguinaldo The report is very volum'
nous.
The report says:
"peplorabe as war is, the one in
which we are now engaged was una
voidable by us. We were attacked by
a bold, adventurous and enthusiastic,
army. No alternative was left u.s. ex-
cept ignominious retreat IL is not
to be conceived OF that any
American would have sanctioned
the surrender of Manila TO the
insurgents Our obligations to 9TH
er nations aud TO the friendly
Filipinos and to ourselves and to our
dag demanded that force should be
met by force. Whatever the future of
the Philippines may be there is no
course open to us now except the pros
ccution of the war until the insurgents
are reduced 20 submission. The com
mission is of the opinion that there
| has been no time since the destruction
of the Spanish squadron by Adm.
Dewey when 1t was possible to with.
draw our forces from the islands either
with honor 60 ourselves or with safety
10 the inhabitants"
The report sums up the fruitless eff
| forts OF the commission TO negotiate
terms OF peace with the Filipinos Ms
follows:
mo better proof could be furnished
that tine pr mary object of his (Agui-
naldo'sl struggle is not, as is pretend
ed. the liberty of the Filipino people.
but the continuance Of his own arbi-
trary and despotic power. In any
event, the American people may fee,
con tdent that no effort was omitted
ful end Of the struggle. but the oppor-
tunities they offered and urged were
all neglected. II not indeed spurned y
The chapter devoted TO capacity for
self government" is the result the re-
port states, of d.ligent inquiry for
several months, in the course of which
q great number OF witnesses were ex.
amined. OF all shades of political
thought and varieties Of occupation.
tribe and locality. The most sirik-
ing ana, perhaps, the most
signfica fact in the entire
situation is the multipl city of tribes
inha biting tine arch pelago, the diver
sity of their languages (Which are mu-
,ually unintelligiblel and the multi.
farious phases OF civilization ranging
oil the way from the highest To the
lowest.
"Asto the general intellectual capac'
tiles of the Filipinos, the commission
is disposed to rate them high. But
excepting in a limited number of per
sons these capacities have not been
developed by education or experience.
The masses of the people are unedu-
Gated. That intelligent public opinion
on which popular government: rests
does not exist in the Philippines, and 1t
can not exist until education has ele'
waited the masses, broadened their in
tellectual hori ron and disciplined their
faculty Of Judgment And even then
the power OF self government can not
be assumed without considerable pre-
vious training and experience under
the guidance and tutelage OF an en-
lightened and liberal foreign power.
For the bald fact is that che Filipinos
nave never had any experience in gov
erning themselves
/