The sun., 1900-10-09

along the path to independence as rapid
ly as her own citizens are content that
she should go.
Of course the presence of troops in the
Philippines during the Tagal insurrection
has no more to do with militarism or inn
| perialism than had their presence in the
Dakotas, Minnesota and Wyoming dur
ing the many years which elapsed before
the final outbreaks of the Sioux were def
nitely put down. There is no more mill
tarism or imperialism in. garrsoning Luz
zon until order is restored than there was
Imperialism in sending soldiers to South
Dakota in 1890, during the Ogallala out
break. The reasoning which justifes our
having made war against Sitting Bull
also justifies our having checked the out
breaks Of Aguinaldo and his followers, di.
rected. as they were, against Filipino and
American alike.
No Abandonment.
The only certain way of rendering it
necessary for our republic to enter on
career of ''miitarism" would be to aban-
don the Philippines to their own tribes,
and at the same time either to guarantee
stable government among these tribes
or to. guarantee them against outside in
terference. A far larger army would be
required to carry out any such policy
than will be required to secure order
under the American flag; while the pres
ence of this flag on the islands is really
the only possible security against outside
aggression.
The whole argument against President
McKinley's policy in the Philippines be-
n nheurd yybnp n ie 1aI hat l4yn
should, to quote the language of the Kan
sas City platform, give to the Philip
pines first a stable form of government
If they are now entitled to independence,
they are also entitled to decide for them
selves whether their government shall be
stable or unstable, civilized or savage, or
whether they shall have any government
at all; while it is, of course, equally evil
dent that under such conditions we have
no right whatever to guarantee them
against outside interference any more
than we have to make such guaranty in
the case Of the Boxers (who are merely
the Chinese analogues Of Aguinaldo's fol-
lowers).
II we have a right to establish a stable
government in the islands it necessarily
follows that it is not only our right but
our duty to support that government un-
til the natives gradually grow fit to sus-
tain it themselves. How else will it be
stable? The minute we leave it, it ceases
to be stable.
Now Question of Contraction.
Properly speaking, the question is now
not whether we shall expand--for we
have already expanded-but whether we
shall contract. The Philippines are now
part of American territory. To surren- |
der them would be to surrender American
territory. They must, of course, be gov
erned primarily in the interests of their |
own citizens. Our first care must be for |
the people of the islands which have
come under our guardianship as a result |
of the most righteous foreign war that |
has been waged within the memory of |
the present generation. They must be |
administered in the interests of their in
habitants, and that necessarily means
that any question of personal or partisan
politics in their administration must be
entirely eliminated
We must continue to put at the heads
of affairs in the different islands such
men as Gen. Wood. Gov. Allen and
Judge Taft; and it is most fortunate
thing that we are able to illustrate what
ought to be done in the way of sending
officers thither by pointing out what ac-
tually has been done. The minor places
n their administration, where it is i'm
possible to fill them by natives, must be
illed by the strictest application of the
merit system.
1t is very important that in our own
lone administration the merely minis
erial and administrative offices, where
he duties are entirely non-political, shall
De filed absolutely without reference to
PARTISAN affiliations; but this is many
lines more important in the newly ac-
Iuired islands. The merit system is iii
ts essence as democratic as our COM
non school system, for it simply means :
'qual chances and fair play for all.
Parallel with Indian Government.
1t nuts be remembered always that
governing these islands in the interest of 8
he inhabitants may not necessarily be 1
0 govern them as the inhabitants at the /
1oment prefer, to grant self-government \
o Luzon under Aguinaldo would be like :
ranting self-government to an Apache r
under some local chief; and +
his is no more altered by the fact that +
ne Filipinos fought the Spaniards than {
would be by the fact that Apaches .
ave long been trained and employed in /,
lie United States army and have rem
cred signal service therein; just as the !.
awnees did under the administration of !.
resident Grant; just as the Stockbridge !
ldians did in the days of Gen. Wash +
Igton, and the friendly tribes of the six =
ations in the days of President Madison. =
There are now in the United States :.
Of Indians which have ad- ),
lnced so far that it has been possible :
embody them as n whole in our po- +
teal system, all the members of the :.
ibe becoming United States citizens. =
here are other communities where the 2
llk of the tribe are still too wild for it "
be possible to take such a step. There
e individuals among the Apaches, Paw. "
'es, Iroquois, Sioux and other tribes Il
ho are now United States citizens and Is
no are entitled to stand, and do stand,
an absolute equality with all our citi- "
ms of pure white blood. Men of Indian rc
ood are now serving in the army and Of
Wy and in Congress and occupy high g
sition both in the business and the DO. III
ical world.
FiIipinos' Hope of Liberty. :,