The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1900-12-08
VANDALISM IN THE PHILIPPINES.

VANDALISM IN THE PHILIPPINES.
A special telegram from Milwaukee
to the Chicago Chronicle gives an ill.,
tcrview with Father ]. ]. lleogh cn.
the subject of church dissertation in
Luzon by the American soldiers. IF
these reports be true he said, then
l do not blame the Filpinos for rerus-
ing to be paciticd. And in measure
know them to be true, because my
self have seen brought to Milwaukee
articles which 1 know could not have
been sold, since no priest or bishop has
authority to permit them to be sold.
1t is the worst sort of Dissertation and
it is the worst feature of our admins
tration in the Philippines
1t is only two weeks ago that DR.,
Beck, of ST. Paul, who accompanied
the Thirteenth Minnesota to the Phil.
ippines, was interviewed in Milwaukee
about vestments in his possession, and
h" had no hesitation in advertising in
the dispatch appearing in the Mime
apolis Times that he had them for
sale. About Il year ago he sent from
the Philippines to a friend in this city
Il splendid set of episcopal robes
which the writer was permitted to ex-
anime.
a member of the same regiment re-
Gently Informed us that he had many
church articles which he purloined
while in the service in Luzon, includ-
ing gorgeous chasuble which he
wore as a blanket on chilly nights
when on duty. He is now quite eager
to dispose of the loot" but can find
no purchasers.
In view of these facts it is refresh,
ing to read what FIR. M'I<innon, for
merly the chaplain of the California
regiment, but now the superintendent
Of public instruction for the Philip
pines, has to say on the matter in a
letter to FIR. Vattman, chaplain at Fort
Ill. III. h AluAou 10 ttll
peralst with n big 1 and says that it
is to the interest of the church that
the islands be kept by tine United
States, and that only a small fraction
of the natives are opposed to Ameri-
can rule.
This carpet bag priest or McKin-
ley's administration Is entitled to as
much credence when writing of the
Filipinos as Giraldus Cambrensis, or
Gerald Barry, who accompanied
Strongbow to Ireland in 1172, was
when writing of the Irish of the
twelfth century. Cambrensis, the
Welsh priest, had no qualms of con-
science in eliminating the Irish of
that PERIOD though later in life he
made rccantatiOn Of his ISLANDERS and
rendered an apology to the people he
had grossly misrepresented. 1t may
be that M'NinnOn, when he loses his
job some day. may retract what he
now says of the Filipinos. In reply
to Il question by FIR. Vattman, the Cal
ifornia priest says:
with regard to your second ques-
ton concerning dissertation Of church
es, do not think can more fairly
answer than by giving you quotation
from letter written by the archbisll-
Op of Manila on this subject. While
he says, L have evidence that some
few of your soldiers desecrated church
cs, vet they were the exceptions, and
in my heart have nothing but graf
itudc for the many noble deeds ac-
credited to your troops, especially their
treatment of the rescued friars when
they were released by your soldiers
from their long imprisonment Loot
crs were punished by from five to ten
years imprisonment at hard labor
That the loOtcrs We're punished. as
stated by FIR. MKinnon. is something
we have never heard before. Many
of them returned to the United States
without undergoing any penalty for
stealing. and now they brazcnly advc:-
tise their booty for sale, like Or. Beck,
of st. Paul. 1t is safe to say that Fr.
M'Kinnon will never bring any of the
lootcrs to Justice, and we very much
doubt that he has the confidence of
the outraged people to "a greater ex-
tent than any one who ever visited the
archipelago" If what he says is true,
then the Filipios are very unsophisti-
Gated and are far from being the keen.
intelligent. discerning people we have
thought them to be-