Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1900-06-12
OTIS HOLDS CONFERENCE.
PRESENT AND FUTURE OF PHIL
IPPINEs DISCUSSED.
Filipinos Desire to Be Educated-Pres-
ent Army in Islands Sufficient
The Ladrones.

Washington. June 12.-During Gen
eral Otis afternoon at the war depart
ment in conference with the heads of
the various departments in regard to
the condition and needs of their de-
partments in the Philippines, he had
many questions to answer in his inter-
course with his friends respecting the
present and future conditions in the
Philippines, and of these he talked quite
freely. He made one statement, in par
ticular. which came as a distinct sur
prise, in view of the fact that he has
spent a year and a half in fighting the
Filipinos, for he declared that these
same Filipinos were without question
the very best of any of the Asiatlc races
living on the Pacific coast and Islands.
| He paid a high ribute to their acqulsl-
t~iveness, saying that young and old
were alike anxious to learn from the
! Americans. and quick to do so If given
an opportunity. The demand for schools
on the American plan was Unsuitable. 1t
had not been possible to secure a sui
fcient supply of Spanish-American text
books, the market having been denuded
of such.
When book-hungry Filipinos We're told
this they begged for American school
books and declared that their children
| could learn from them even without the
Spanish text and translations. General
Otis found to his establishment that
such was the case, and says that In the
course of a very few months the FIJI
ipino children pick up a fair knowledge
of English. Ever the old natives study
the text books in the effort to fix En-
glish phrases in their minds There was
a dearth of teachers, too. General Otis
often had recourse to the soldiers In his
ranks Who know a little Spanish. and sc
were suitable for detail as teachers.
General Otis said he looked upon this
educational movement as the only solu'
ton OF the Philippine problem and was
confident that the spread of American
ideas through the Filipino schools woult
in the end make good citizens of thu
Filipinos.
General Otis was positively of thu
opinion that the American forces in thu
Philippines at present We're sufficien
for ali needs. Of course. le said, Gen
eral MacArthur's present army coult
not furnish a guard to protect ever.
Filipino household in the L~adrones: t.
do that would require a force of no les
than 200, 900 troops, and even the tasl
, would occupy many years. AS a matte
of fact. he said, Spain had spent severa
centuries in the effort to stamp out tn
Ladrones in the Philippine group, ant
there was reason to believe that thos
%brigands are scarcely more numerou
now than they were during the Span
ish occupation, when the ISLANDS "er
, nominallv at peace with Spain.
= General Otis was confident, however
: hat conditions would steadily improve
hat little bv little these robber band
. would be driven away. n
!. admitted that it was often dangerou
| for Filipinos of the better class who's
: interests naturally lay in American SOW
:, ereignty to admit their preferences, 70
l they were subject in that case to assas
4 sination. to the loss of property and :
:, persecution. instigated by various ele
n ments in the population to whom Amer
: lean occupation was obnoxious.