The Morris County chronicle. [volume] (Morristown, N.J.) 1877-1915, 1900-09-14

tmtlSHI government lncluOlng militia
and constabulary." They ARE preparing
a stringent civil service law giving equal
opportunity to Filipinos and Americans,
with preference for the former where
qualifications are equal, to enter at low
est rank and by promotion reach head of
department. Forty-fve miles of railroad
extension under negotiation will give ac-
cess to a large province rich in valuable
minerals, a mile high, with strictly tenn
perate climate. Railroad construction
will give employment to many, and com
munication will furnish market to vast
stretches Of rich agricultural lands"
They report that there are "calls from
all parts of the islands for public schools,
school supplies and English teachers
greater than the commission can provide
until comprehensive school system is
organized. Night schools for teaching
English to adults are being established
in response to popular demand Native
children show aptitude in learning Eng
lish Spanish is spoken by small frac-
ton of people, and in a few years the
medium of communication in the courts,
public offices and between different tribes
will be English. Creation Of central gov
eminent within 10 months, under which
substantially all rights described in the
bill of rights in the federal constitution
are to be secured to the people of the
Philippines, will bring to them content
ment, prosperity, education and political
enlightenment"
This shows to my countrymen what
has been and is being done to bring the
benefits Of liberty and good government
to these wards of the nation.
Every effort has been directed to their
peace and prosperity, their advancement
and well being, not for our aggrandizc-
nent nor for pride Of might, not for
trade or commerce, not for exploitation,
but for humanity and civilization and
for the protection of the vast majority
of the population, who welcome our SOW
ereignty against the designing minority,
whose first demand after the surrender
of Manila by the Spanish army was to
enter the city that they might loot it and
destroy those not in sympathy with their
selfish and treacherous designs.
Nobody who will avail himself of the
facts will longer hold that there was any
alliance between our soldiers and the in
surgents or that any promise of indie
pendence was made to them. Long be-
fore their header had reached Manila
they had resolved if the commander of
the American navy would give them arms
with which to fight the Spanish army
they would later turn upon US, which
they did murderously and without the
shadow of cause or justification. There
may be those without the means of full
information who believe that we were in
alliance with the insurgents and that
We assured them that they should have
independence. To such let me repeat the
Fna n H. =
miral Dewey was instructed by me to
make no alliance with any party or fac
ton in the Philippines that would incur
liability to maintain their cause in the
future, and he replied under date of June
6, 1898: Have acted according to spirit
of departments instructions from the be-
ginning, and | have entered into no al
lance with the insurgents or with any
faction. This squadron can reduce the
defenses of Manila at any moment, but
1t is considered useless until the arrival
OF sufficient United States forces to re-
tain possession"
Dewey Said No Alliance Existed.
| In the report Of the first Philippine
commission, submitted on Nov. 2, 1899,
| Admiral Dewey, one of its members,
said, mo alliance of any kind was en-
tered into with Aguinaldo, nor was any
promise of independence made to him at
any time"
| General Merritt arrived in the Philip
pines on July %, 1893, and a dispatch
from Admiral Dewey to the government
at Washington said: Merritt arrived
| yesterday Situation is most critical at
Manila. The Spanish may surrender at
any moment. Merritt's most difficult
problem will be how to deal with the in
surgents under Aguinaldo, who have be-
come aggressive and even threatening
toward our army" Here Is revealed the
| spirit of the insurgents as early as July,
1898, before the protocol was signed.
while we were still engaged in active
war with Spain. Even then the insur-
| gents were threatening our army.
On Aug. IL Manila was captured, and
of this and subsequent events the Philip
pine commission says When the city
of Manila was taken, Aug. 10, the Fill
! pinos took no part in the attack, but
came following in with view to looting
| the city and were only prevented from
doing SO by our forces preventing them
| from entering. Aguinado claimed that
he had the right to occupy the city, ne
demanded of General Merritt the palace
of Malacanan for himself and the cession
Of all the churches of Manila, also that
part of the money taken from the
| Spaniards as spoils of war should be
| given up, and above all that he should
be given the arms of the Spanish prison
ers. All these demands were refused"
Generals Merritt, Greene and Ander-
son, who were in command at the be
ginning of our occupation and until the
surrender of Manila, state that there
was no alliance with the insurgents and
no promise to them of independence. On
Aug. II, 1893, General Merritt was in
structed that there must be no joint oc-
cupation of Manila with the insurgents
General Anderson under date of Feb. 10.
1890, says that he was present at the
interview between Admiral Dewey and
the insurgent leader and that in this in
terview Admiral Dewey made no prom
iseS whatever. He adds: "He (Agui-
naldo) asked me if my government was
going to recognize his government. l
answered that l was there simply in a
military capacity, that l could not ac-
knowledge his government because had
no authority to do So"
The Only Course Open.
Would not our adversaries have sent
Dewey's fleet to Manila to capture and
destroy the Spanish sea power there, or,
dispatching it there, would they have
withdrawn it after the destruction of the
Spanish fleet, and if the latter, whittier
would they have directed it to sail?
Where could it have gone? What port
in the orient was open to it? Do our
adversaries condemn the expedition I'M
der the command of General Merritt to
strengthen Dewey in the distant ocean