The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1900-03-13
Continued from last week.)

unpopular in the extreme, cannot
enter into relations with an es-
tablished government for the
pretended reason that it does not
represent all the people, while it
does represent very important
part of them, and would probab-
ly soon represent all if we did
not constantly throw obstacles
in its way-aye, if we did not
seek to extinguish it in blood.
Was there ever false pretense
more glaring
But the ghastliest argument of
all in defense of the Presidents
course is that he had to extend
American sovereignty over the
whole archipelago even before
the ratification of the treaty, and
that he was, and is now, obliged
to shoot down the Filipinos, to
the end of restoring order" and
preventing anarchy" in the is
lands. We are to understand that
if our strong armed hand did not
restrain them from doing as they
pleased-that is if they were left
free and independent-they
would quickly begin to cut one
another's or other peoples
Threats, and to ravish and des-
troy one another's or other peop-
les property. We may reason
ably assume that if this were
sure to be the upshot of their be-
ing left free and independent,
they would have shown some
such tendency where they have
actually held sway under their
own revolutionary government.
Now for the facts. We have
the reports of two naval officers
and of two members of the Sig
nal Corps who travelled extern
sively behind Aguinaldo's lines
through the country controlled
by his government. And what
did they find ? Quiet and order
ly rural or municipal communit-
les, in all appearance we'll organ
lied and governed, full of enthu-
siasm for their liberty and indie
pendence, which they thought
secured by the expulsion of the
Spaniards, and for their leader
Aguinaldo, and at the time-it
was before President Mckinley
had ordered the subjugation of
the islands-also for the Ameri-
cans, whom, with childlike conf
dence, they still believed friend
ly to their freedom from all for
eign rule. We may be sure that
If any anarchical disturbances
had happened among them, our
imperialists would have eagerly
made report. But there has been
nothing at all equivalent to such
things of our own as the famous
battle of Virden'' in Illinois, or
the race troubles in our own stat
es, or the numerous lynchings
we have Witnessed with shame
and alarm in various parts of our
republic. The only rumors of
so-called anarchy" have come
through a British consul on the
island of Borneo, who writes that
bloody broils are occurring in
some of the southernmost regions
of the Philippine archipelago,
and that the Americans are
wanted there. But the Ameri-
cans are engaged in killing ord
erly Filipinos-Filipino soldiers
of just that Filipino government
which, on its part, would prob
ably soon restore order in the
troubled places, if it had not to
defend itself against the "crim-
inal aggression" of the Ameri.
cans.
The imperialists wish us to be- |
lieve that in the Philippines
there is bloody disorder where
our troops are not. In fact, after
the Filipinos had expelled the
Spaniards from the interior of
their country. bloody disorders
began there only when our
troops appeared. Here is an ex-