Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-05-16
American Rule in Philippines Dis
tasteful to the Order.
FREE SPEECH and PRESS TABOOED
Urgent Need for Modification of
the Censorship.
ALUE OF MIN A N A o

Correspondence of the Associated Press
MANILA April 1.-THE most sensational
of the events of the past week mas peeh
the general distribution by the Jesuits OF a
pamphlet in which is set forth truths
which Christians must observe. Among
the things most strongly condemned In this
pamphle. are religious tolerance and rec
ognition of civil marriage. Consequently
this act of the Jesuits is considered by
many to be an attack upon the American
administration. The pamphlet in question
says:
Il. The commands of the church must
be obeyed in the same manner as the law
of God
SEQ You must subject your own judgment
to that of the church and think exactly as
the church thinks. for the church cannot be
overcome.
-. You must reject ana condemn the Ma
s mic sect. SO frequently rejected and con-
deinned by the supreme pontiffs.
II. You must also reject and condemn I'D
erty of worship. liberty of the press. liberty
of thought and the other liberties of perdi-
ton condemned and rejected by the church.
You must also reject and condemn
liberalism and also modern progress and
civilization being false progress and
false civilization.
Must Abominate Civil Marriage.
"6. You must utterly abomina.e civil
marriage and regard it as pure concubin-
age.
-. You must also condemn and reject the
interference of the civil authorities in any
ecclesiastical affairs, so much in vogue
nowadays.
-. Finally. you must hold the belief that
the church by It's origin has a divine and
supernatural authority. and is moreover
superior to the civil authority, and reject
,t,;,
is independent or ought to separate itself
from the state Children must be brought
up in the above views. condemning what
ever the church condemns; and children
must be educated solely in Catholic schools,
by genuinely Catholic teachers. and not on
any accoun. In unsectarian schools, which
are strictly forbidden by the church,
The foregoing commands backed by
rSny quotations from the Bible, ecclesiasti-
Gals. syllabus and letters from different
r"pes- This pamphlet was issued without
duly expressing church authority, and until
the organ of the Roman catholic Church in
Manila. "A Spanish newspaper called the
Liberastus, admitted the fact that the
Jesuits had published. and with every right,
the pamphlet in question. considerable
doubt was entertained as to its authority.
Hope for Reform in Censorship.
The Manila editors and the correspond
en,s of American newspapers here are hop
ing that the arrival of the civil commission
will result in a reform Of the present CEN
so1ship methods. Ca5lesrams announcing
the appointment OF the commission were
received by two of the Manila newspapers.
but the censor forbade them to print this
news He has asserted that he EuDpr-SSeS
only that news ''inimical to the interests
of the military government
Frequent friction arose between the cor
respondents and the previous censor while
the Schurman commission was here. over
messages relating to the commission, and
there was sometimes much trouble In get
ting through news which the COMMISSION
had given out for publication.
The editors of the local newspapers COM
plain bitterly and unanimously that the
censorship. as it is MANAGED iniiic's upon
them wholly needless hardships and great
financial loss The only Filipino paper
v hich supported the American ain1inistra-
ton has suspended publication on account
Of the censorship. and the editor # he old
est and most respectable and friendly Span
iSh Journal announces that he intends to
Close his business and leave Manila because
il is impossible to publish a newspaper
under the restrictions imposed by ,hc pres
cnt government.
The editors argue that the publication of
newspapers which support the governments
policy. as all of the Manila papers do. is -tn
cr.terpr:Se that should be encouraged rather
than harassed; that they pay almost pro
hibi.ive rates to secure cablegrams: that
they are served by reputable and conserra-
tive press agencies and that their own tinan-
correspondents not to throw away money
or cablcGrams which could not be pub
liShed. They argue that no correspondent
could possibly foresee that such news as
Ia Dor strikes or the appointment of a com
mission to the Philippines would he con-
sidcrcd inimical to the interests of The gov
crnncnt and that, moreover the news
which comes to them is not suppressed, but
merely postponed. because the Filipinos re-
ceive the leading newspapers from the
United States and read them with the great
est care.
Mindanao IA Valuable Island.
The Americans are Just beginning to re-
alize that in the Island of Mndanao, until
ro Gently merely a big blot the map, they
have wonderful empire potentially the
most valuable of all the Philippine posses
sions. Although nearly large an island
az Luzon, with a much better climate ard
capable OF being made a second Cuba in
commercial value, the Spaniards never real
~ controlled nor even explored IT.
They lived in deadly fear of the natives
and frittered away enough lives to have
made the conquest OF an empire without
gathering possession of more than fringe
of coast towns. With two regiments-the
31st, which he recently distributed among
the towns on the southern and eastern
coast, and the 4oth, which he has just es-
tabished in the north-General Bates ac-
Quired for the United States as much terri
tory Spain held, and, what Spain could
never get. the friendship Of the tribes
which the Americans have encountered.
tempered with wholesome fear. Indeed,
experience with the MoroS of Mindanao
has convinced many officers that the treaty
with the Sultan of Sulu was "A mistake in
that ii conferred upon that picturesque
person a fictitious appraisal of his impor-
tance which may be productive of more
trouble than "A display of the mailed fist
would have been. They do not think the
Moros such terrible warriors against mod
In some of the most important garrisons of
Minlanan nntah bly, lam hna he direct