, 1900-09-13

If Others would shirk the Obligations
imposed by Ii war and treaty, we
must decline to act further with them'
and here the issue is made. III is our
purpose to establish in the philippines
a government suitable to the wants
and conditions of the inhabitants, ana
to prepare them for self-government'
and 10 give them self-goVernmeht
when they are ready for it. mat l
am aiming to do under my constltu-
tional authority and will continue TO
do until Congress shall determine the
political status of the inhabitants of
the archipelago.
The American people are asked by
| our o%pponen to yield the sovereignty
of the islands of the Philippines TO a
small fraction of the population, a sin
| gle tribe out of eighty or more inhabit-
| ing the archipelago, a fraction which
| wantonly attacked the American troops
in Manila while in rightful possession
| under the protocol with Spain, await
ing the ratification of the treaty of
| peace by the Senate, and which has
since been in active, open rebellion
| against the United States. We are
asked to transfer our sovereignty TO Il
| small minority in the islands without
consulting the majority, and abandon
| l1p the liiStSl Ibl vi III bNbui'
ton. which has been loyal to us, to the
cruelties of the guerilla insurgent
bands. More than this, we are asked
TO protect this minority in establish
ing a government, and to this end re-
| press all opposition of the majority.
We are required to set up a stable gov
eminent in the interest of those who
have assailcd our sovereignty and fired
upon our soldiers, and then maintain
ii at any cost or sacrifice against its
enemies within and against those hav-
ing ambitious designs without.
This would require an army and
navy far larger than is now main
tanned in the Philippines and still
more in excess of what will be neces-
sary with the full recognition of our
sovereignty. a military support of au-
thority not our owl, as thus proposed,
is the very essence of militarism,
which our opponents, in their platform.
oppose. hut which by their policy
would of necessity be established in its
most offensive form.
Neither Congress nor the executive
can establish n stable government In
these islands except under our right
of sovereignty and under our authority
and our flag. This we are doing. We
could not do il as n prOtectorate power
so completely or so successfully as we
are doing it now. As the sovereign
power we can initiate action and shape
means to ends, and guide the Filipinos
to acknowledgment and ~self-govern.
ment. As a protectorate power we
could not initiate action, but would he
compelled to follow and uphold n PEG
pie with no capacity yet to go ii alone.
In the one case we prevent both our
selves and the Filipinos from being in
volved. in dangerous complications: in
the other we could not protect even the
Filipinos until after their trouble had
come. Besides. if we cannO establish
any government of our own without
the consent of the governed. as our OPP
ponents contend. then we could not es.
tahlish n stable government for them
or make ours n protectorate without
the like consent, and neither the major
ity Ofthc people nor n minority have i'll
vited us to assume II. We could not
maintain a prUtectorate even with the
consent of the governed without giving
~prOvocatiOn for conflicts II possibly
costly wars. Our rights in the Philip
pines are now free from outside inter
ference. and will continue so in our
present relation. They would not be
thus free in any other relation. We
will now give up Il w to guarantee
another sovereignty. Our title Is good.
Our peace commissioners believed they
We're receiving a good title when they
concluded the treaty. The executive
believed II was "A good title when he
submitted 1t to the Senate of the Unit
ed States for its ratification. The Sen
ate believed if was u god title when 1t
gave 1t their constitutional assent. and
the Congress seems not to have doubt
ed its completeness when they appro-
priated $4,000. 900 provided by the
treaty. If any who favored its ratifi-
cation believed it gave us ii bad title,
they We're not sincere. Our title is
practically identical with that under
which we hold our territory acquired
since the beginning of the government
and under which we have exercised
full sovereignty and established gov
eminent for the Inhabitants.
''ThOse who profess to distrust the
liberal and honorable purpose of the
administration in its treatment of the
philippines are not justified. Imperial
ism has no place in its creed or col
duct. Freedom Is the Ock upon which
the Republican party was builded and
now rests. Liberty is the great Iiepub.
lican doctrine for which the people
went to war, and for which 1000, OOC
A'f'H ~ ~ INV AAhA'AF VI W.
lars expended TO make ii the lawful
legacy of all without the consent of
the master or slave. There is n strain
of ill-concealed hypocrisy in the anX
iety to extend the constitutional guar.
antees to the people of the Philippines,
while their notification is openly ad
vOcated nj home. Our opponents may
distrust themselves, but they AVE nc
right TO discredit the good faith and
patriotism of the majority of the PEG.
pie who are opposed TO them; they MAJ
fear the worst form of Imperialism
with the helpless Filipinos in their
hands; but If they do. it is because
they have parted with the spirit and
faith of the fathers and have lost the
virility of the founders of the party
which they profess to represent.
The Republican party does not have
to assert its devotion to the declara,
ton of Independence. That immortal
instrument of the fathers remained un.
executed until the people under the