Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1900-11-08
WANT A TREATY
FILIPINO LEADERS WANTTREATY
WITH THE ARMY.
SURRENDER, THEN HAVE PEACE
Hoped That the Civil Commission
Would GO Contrary to the
Army.

Correspondence of the Associated Press.)
Manila, p. l., Sept. 9.-There is nothing
visible here in the immediate political
future to presage a radical change in the
status of the revolution. The conditions
which require the United States to have
"a, 90 troops in the islands can be main
tanned by the Filiphnos for 8; long time
to come. should they want to DO 50.
With the commissions advent into the
field of governmental control there were
hopes among the Fflip4nos CT a change OF
American policy and particularly of con-
cessions to themselves. Today the in
tentions and purposes of the civil COM
mission are better understood than they
were three months ago, and it is SLOWLY
being realized that Judge Taft Will not
declare the Filipino people 10 Zoe indie
pendent, and that he does not carry IN
his vest pocket a proclamation granting
them the fulfiiment OF their widest and
most idealistic hopes and ambitions. Be
fore the commission arrived at Mania,
it was awaited by certain Filipino poll
ticians with an unexpressad intention 90
aseertaining how gullible the new crowd
might zoe. Today the commission mas
shown itself as both hard to deceive and
dS a lliuh Al'Ro
administrations policy.
The Filipinos have been slow to learn
that the commission acts in accord with
the army; these two branches OF gov
errlln control cooperate in the ful-
filment cf the same idea.
NEGOTIATIONS between the army and
the Filipinos during the last eighteen
months can be described briefly as fol-
lows: The army has always said: sur
render first and then we will talk, while
the Filipinos I've continually said to the
army, LET us first talk and then mayDe
we'll step fighting With each party 70
the negotiations firm in it's attitude moth
| ing could he, nor has been, accomplished.
The fact that the commission maintains
the army's position on this question or
negotiations is being forced with convic-
ton into the minds of certain ambitious
native leaders, and the truth is disap-
pointing. to their cherished 1ntrigues.
They had hoped the commission would oe
arnenalble to their ways of doing business,
and for an example OF this Is cited Ia
terno's efforts, with his "love feast" in
commemoration of the amnesty procla-
nation. by which he tried to get the COM
mission to lend the color of their pres
ence to statements and conditions dis
llICLly l 0lSAAo
ed. in dragging the army into
this clever trap; but he learned
the commission could not be easily de-
ceiyed, and the knowledge has been a
sore disappointment, not only to Paterno'
but to others of his kind.
The commissioners methods and ways
of entering upon those duties or govern
ment clearly outlined in it's instructions
from President Mckinley, nave been dis
appointing to those F%ilipinos and for
eigners who expected the millennium on
the first of September. In the admins
tration of Philippine civil affairs by the
army, there has always been noticeable
the fact that the army has known It's
civil duties to be incidental ana tenn
porary; that it would sooner or later be
relieved from these duties by a properly
constituted civil authority, and conse-
ouently the army is said to have in
dulged in expedient and makeshift. AS
an example of this reference Is made to
the Philippine municipal code and the
revision of the criminal code issued by
General Otis just prior to his departure
for the United States, and made law by a
stroke of his pen. Both these reV1Slons
bear trace of hasty and temporary work;
of being makeshifts and it is now evil
dent that General Otis hammered them
out hastily at the last moment in order
to get on record as having taken on his
own initiative these radical steps toWaru
the establishment of a civil Philippine
government These two codes of General
Otis are today being thoroughly revised
by the commission, which is the prop
erly constituted civil authority that
General Otis, representing the army.
knew would succeed him in civil ad-
ministration Army measures in the
past, having been more or less in the
nature of temporary expedient n
without wise consideration of future
effect are distinctly opposed to the course
of action now being pursued by the COM
mission The measures taken by the
commission consider the eventual estab-
lishment of a Central Philippine civil
government, with the needed details Of
provincial administration, and they are
as lasting as anything that can be done
in these islands until the time when con-
gress shall determine the future of the
Philippines The commissioners, in TAX
ing specific action, consider it's advisa-
bility n it's effect upon the completed
fabric of government they are instructed
to erect They build for all time, and
hence they build carefully and with due
consideration of the effect of every stone
thew put into their structure; nor can
they afford to indulge in expedient and
makeshift The commission became the
supreme law-making power in the archi-
pelago Sept l., and there is no one to
question the proprietye of the measures
they adopt nor their right to enac laws.
This is their beginning, and thus they
nave put themselves upon a firm footing
. for their future work By this action of
Sept / the commissioners have estab-
lished the beginnings of government in
which they are empowered to determine
and settle the questions of Oriental
complexity which will constitute the
good government of the Philippines. II
the commission is to do good work, 1t is