Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1900-02-09


therein, such as sovereignty, right of cession,
and those which directed immediate occupa-
ton, etc, though most admirably employed
and tersely expressive of actual conditions,
might be advantageously used by the Tagalo
war party to incite widespread hostilites among
the natives. The ignorant classes bad been
| taught to believe that certain words, such as
| sovereignty protection etc., had peculiar
meaning, disastrous to their welfare and sig
ni6cant OF future political Nominations"
The ignorant people of America have been
taught to believe just such things. | have
seen such things in the writings of Washing
ton and Adams and Jefferson, of Whittier and
Garrison and Nathan Dane and Rantoul, and
others of the men of Essex. Now General
| Otis goes on to say:
at was my opinion, therefore, that would
be justified in so amending the paper that the
benefcent object of the United States govern
ment would be brought clearly within the COM
prehension of the people"
Whereupon General Otis proceeds to amend
the presidents proclamation by striking out
everything in it which contains purpose to
assume sovereignty protection, and which
was significant of future political nominations;
and, instead thereof, he issued, on the 4th day
of January, ISoo,-less than eight weeks be-
fore the outbreak of hostilities,-a procama-
ton, which he gives in report, in which he
suppressed all these utterances and assured
them that it is the purpose of the people of the
United States to give them, Gin every possible
way, the full measure of individual rights and
liberty which is the heritage of a free people, "
And he adds:
81 am convinced that it is the intention of
the United States government to seek the es-
Enlistment of most liberal government for
the islands, in which the people themselves
shall have as full representation as the mainte-
nance of law and order will permit and which
shall be susceptible of development, on the
lines Of increased representation and the be-
stowal Of increased powers, into government
as free and Independent as is enjoyed by the
most favored provinces Of the world"
That assurance which General Otis gave to
the people Of Manila is Just what have al
ways wanted and all have always wanted to
give them. But unhappily, General Otiss
proclamai, was frustrated. In the mean
time he had sent copy Of the PRESIDENT
proclamation to General Miller, who was lying
opposite Iloilo, burning for a light, and who
much to General Otiss distress, as his des-
patches show, published it. So you had the
commanding general denying all purposes Of
domination or Of interfering with their indie
pcnolcnce on the one hand, and the president
of the United States on the other asserting
that purpose; and the Flipinos were naturally
alarrA ed and shocked.
GENERAL Otis goes on to tell how Aguinaldo
appealed to his people to stand by their indie
pendenr &c, how the Filipino newspapers took
| it up IN angry articles, and how the people,
who va beginning to be paciied and hope
full, we excited again, and Justly.
Now Put yourselves, men of Essex, IN the
places Of these people What would your
fathers have done if General Gage and Lord
North had been the actors? What would any
people on the face of the earth, whose bosoms
are capable of holding the sentiment of liberty
have doneo Is it not infamous for anybody
to turn around and tell you that the men who
believe that the Filipinos should have been as
,.sured just what General Otis tried to assure
them of are responsible for the outbreak of the
war? General Otis SAYS that the proclamation
which actually came out. through General
NIiler's departure from his Intentions was
calculated to cause, and did cause, the hostili-
ties, and excite alarm and indignation in the
bosoms of that freedom.seeking people.
| do not know what other men may think or
what other men may say. But there is not
& 10, = T.
ing in my heart that does not respect weak
people struggling with strong one.
Some of our friends tell us that the Filipnos
are not people President Mckinley says
they are, and that he desires lin every posi-
bic way to insure them the full measure of in
dividual rights and liberty is the heritage
Of free people" General Otis says they are,
and that it is the intention of the United
States government to appoint the representa-
tive men of the Philippine islands to civil po
sitions Of trust in government "as free and
independent as is enjoyed by the most favored
provinces of the earth"
When Patrick Henry was making his great
speech in the old courthouse in Virginia, end
ing with the words, "Give me liberty or give
me death, he was interrupted by somebody
with shout Of "rreasonn He finished his
sentence, and replied, as every Essex school
boy knows, "If this he treason, make the most
of it, am unworthy to loose the latchet of
the shoes OF Patrick Henry but claim to love
human liberty as well as he did, and believe
the love of human liberty will never be held
to be treason by Massachusetts.
There were five of my name and blood who
stood in arms at Concord bridge in the morn
ing of the Revolution, on the 10Th Of April,
I775 My grandfather stood with John Adams
and Thomas Jefferson and BENJAMIN Franklin
when they presented to the Continental con-
gress that great paper, the bringing in of which
was the foremost action Of human history,
which declares that the Just powers of govern
ment rest upon the consent Of the people, and
that, when people desire it, the laws of ma
ture and the laws of God enttle them to take
a separate and equal station among the nations