Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-06-19
ton at Washington under whose orders the

ton at Washington under whose orders the
government is conducted.
The future of nations. however like the
future of man. is hid from mortal VISION
ana, no more than man, may a nation
choose Its own duties. When this war
ended and we faced our victory in all it's
completeness, We found eight millions of
people living upon uncounted islands de-
livered into our hands. Abandonment Of
them would be confession that while the
oppression by Spain Of million and a
half half of Cubans demanded our armed inter-
ference, greater barbarity and cruelty to
millions of Filipinos. less able to protect
themselves. was a subject of no concern
to us. No civilized nation in the world, no
Christian nation, could have turned these
people back to Spain. Our commissioners,
when they insisted upon our retention of
the Philippines, voiced the sentiments and
wishes of the American people; and this
nation has assumed with open eyes and
with full realization of the difficulties which
may be encountered the grave RESPONSE
bilities Imposed upon us by the treaty of
Paris.
We are told that the islands are rich
in all the products of the tropics. in min
eral wealth and in the possibilities Of their
future development. SO much the better.
But If they Were barren as the Libyan
desert, we would have taken them just
the same.
We haven't been there long, but long
enough to reach two conclusions: One is,
that the first thing we intend doing is to
suppress the Tagal insurrectfon and to
tablish law and order throughout the arch-
pelago. That is the first thing we shall do.
tend doing, is to consider. even for mo-
ment, the question of giving up or of
abandoning these islands.
Owners of the Philippines.
We are actually owners of the Philippines
by an undisputed and indubitable title. We
are there the necessary and logical out
come of our victory over Spain. There are
upward Of a thousand islands sprinkled
upon that southern sea, peopled by more
than eighty tribes of differing race and lam
guage, and having absolutely nothing in
common with each other. Most of these
tribes welcome coming and are CRATE
full for our protection. The Tagal tribe,
hostile not only to us but to most of the
native tribes, are in instruction against
our authority. They have neither a govern
ment nor the capacity to conduct one. and
are waging predatory guerrilla warfare
which would be turned against the other
native tribes If let them alone. What
would the democracy have do? Give
them up to rapine and bloodshed and leave
the islands as flotsam and jetsam on the
face of the waters? There are parallels in
our own history. We purchased Florida
from Spain in 1921. when 1t had 1900 white
settlers, for five millions Of dollars and 9TH
valuable considerations The SeminoleS,
natives of the SOIL brave, resolute, having
far greater Intelligence and character than
the Tagals. disputed possession. We
sent Andrew Jackson down to fight them,
and it took us twenty-one years to subdue
them and send what was left of them west
of the Mississippi
The obstacles to the establishment of
civil government In the islands are many,
but we shall overcome them. Mistakes will
undoubtedly be made, but we shall remedy
them. We shall in time extend over that
archipelago the aegis of our protection and
of free government, and we shall gradually
but surely lift these allen and savage races
into the light of civilization and Christian
ity. Meanwhile American enterprise and
ingenuity and push may be depended upon
to develop the resources of the Islands and
make them an added source Of wealth to
our country. The wise craftsmanship Of the
President and our able Secretary Of State
has already brought from the countries Of
Europe a recognition of our right to share
in the vast commercial advantages which
will follow the opening of the Chinese en-
pire to foreign trade; the Nicaraguan canal
will soon be constructed; Hawaii, with its
valuable harbor. is ours; we possess the
best of the Samoan Islands, with Its mag
nifcent roadway: the Philippines are al
most at the door of China, and If coun-
sells of fear do not prevail this generation
will see the American nation girdling half
the globe with it's flag extending its foreign
commerce to the uttermost parts Of the
earth and taking Its place among the great
world nations a power for good, for peace
and for righteousness.