The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1900-01-12
ONE QUESTION SETTLED.

In their endeavor to maintain their po
sition in the Philippines the imperialists
have in the past year resorted to a
beautiful variety Of arguments. There
has been no attempt to render the argu-
ments reconcilable. Each has answered
it's immediate purpose; and beyond the
immediate present the administrationists
never appear to look They never an
nounce a settled policy; and that which
would be intolerabIe today is advocated
by them with all the convincing force Of
accomplished fact six months from today.
On the Filipino capacity for self-goyern-
ment, for instance, there has been ex-
pressed by high imperialist authority,
from time to time every conceivable view,
from that of fiat denial of such capacity,
In every graduation UP to the freest ac-
Acknowledgement of that ability. 1t used to
be the fashion to denounce the Spanish
friars for all the woes Of the Filipinos.
Then the Spanish officials it was who
made Filipino life a burden. Now it is
the innate cussedness of the little mig
ger" himself which furnishes the expla-
nation of all the tribulations which have
befallen him.
1t is naturally a little confusing to try
to distinguish what the abiding position
of the imperialists on this and cognate
subjects is, even If that position may be
said ever to assume final determinate
form But for all present purposes, at
least, the declarations made by Senator
Beveridge, of Indiana, in his notable
| speech a few days ago, may be accepted
as the imperialist administration gospel
on the subject The Indiana orator on
this subject made during his speech these
| statements
"The Filipino is. the South Sea Malay,
put through a process of three hundred
years of superstition in religion, dis
honesty in dealing, disorder in habits of
| industry and cruelty, caprice and corrup-
| ton in government. 1t Is barely possible
! pelago are capable Of self-government in
| the Anglo-Saxon sense. My own belief is
! that there are not one hundred men
Anglo-Saxon self-government even means;
and there are over 100000 people to be
| governed
This statement has in a singular de-
gree the merit Of clearness. There is no
mistake about what the man who made
it means. The view is the view of the
administration. Senator Beverages
speech is certain to become a very text
book of Imperialism. The Filipinos are a
| 0p1 o,.I 1o,, ID he
eminent and control of them with a
clear understanding Of the fact. Neither
now nor hereafter Is there any sense in
| talking about self-government in connec-
ton with such race. We must govern
them as England governs the negroes of
| the West Indies, or the Mohammedans
of Egypt, or the natives Of the East In
| dies So much at least is settled.
But how about the superstition Of
which Senator Beveridge tells us in the
above extract? Do we understand i'm
perialism to commit itself to the PROPOSE
ton that the state religion of Spain, rep
| resenting a church as old as the Chris
tan era itself, is mere superstition? Per-
| haps it is that Senator Beverage Is alone
responsible for this remarkable view, and
that it is not to be adopted even par
| TALLY as a part of the imperialist pro-
! gramme Of Christian civilization. How
| ever this may be, it certainly is, in any
| event, a somewhat staggering prospect
which the eloquent Indianian presents to
| us of the problem of human govern
ment which we have taken UP 1000 miles
away from our chief base of civilizing
| and Outstanding supplies.