The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1900-09-17

ands which have come under our guardianship
rs q result OF the most righteous foreign war
that has been waged within the memory OF the
present generation. They must he administered
in the interests of their inhabitants, and that
necessarily means that any question of personal
or partisan politics in their administration must
be entirely eliminated. We must continue 10
put at the head, Of affairs in the different islands
such men as General Wood, Governor Allen and
Judge Iaiti and it Is a most fortunate thing that
We are able 20 illustrate what ought to bo done
in the way Of sending officers thithcr by point.
INK out what actually has been done. The minor
places in their administration, where It Is i'm
possible to MI them by natives, must he filled
by the strctcst application Of the merit system.
1t IS very important that in our own home ad'
ministration the merely ministerial and admins.
trltiye Offices, where the duties are entirely non.
political, shall he filled absolutely without refer
cncc TO partisan affiliations; but this is many
times more important in the newly acquired isl.
ands The merit system is in its essence as demo.
cratic as our common school system, for IL simply
means equal chances and fair play for all.
Self Government
1t must be remembered always that governing
these islands in the interests Of the inhabitants
may not necessarily he to govern them as the
inhabitants at the moment prefer. To grant self
government TO Luzon under Aguinado would be
like granting selfgoyenmcnt to an Apache reser-
walton under some local chief; and this IS no more
altered by the fact that the Filipinos fought the
SpaniardS than it, would be by the fact that
Apaches have long been trained and employed in
the United States army and have rendered signal
service therein; just as the Pawnccs did under the
administration of President Grant; just as the
Stockbridge Indians did in the days of General
Washington, and the friendly tribes Of the Six
Nations in the days of President Madison
There are now in the United States commun.
ties Of Indians which have advanced so far that
it has been possible TO cmbody them as whole
in our political system all the members Of the
tribe becoming United States citizens There
are other communities where the bulk Of the
tribe are still too wild for it TO be possible to
take such step. There are individuals among
the Apaches, Pawnees IroquoiS, Sioux and other
tribes who are now United States citizens, and
who are entitled to stand and do stand, on an
absolute equality with our citizens Of pure white
blood. Men Of Indian blood are now serving in
the army and navy and in congress and occupy
high positions both in the business and the politi-
cal world. There is every reason why as rapidly
as an Indian. or any body of Indians, becomes
tit ior self government, he or il should be grant
cd the fullest equality with the whites; but there
would be no justification whatever in treating
this fact as reason for abandoning the wild
tribes to work out their own destruction. Exact
lv the same reasoning applies in the case OF the
Philippines. To turn over the islands TO Aguinal-
do and his followers would not ~ be TO give self
government to the i,andcrs under no circmn-
stances would the majority thus gain scf-govern.
| ment. They would simply be put at the mercy Of
a syndicate OF Chinese half.breCdS, under whom
corruption would flourish far more freely than
ever il tlouriShcd under Tweed while tyrlnnical
oppression would obtain to degree only possible
under such an ogarchy. Yours truly,
Theodore Roosevelt.