BoletiÌn mercantil de Puerto Rico. (San Juan, P.R.) 18??-1918, 1901-11-07
Our Teachers h The Tar East

tI suppose we have stationed 800 local
newspaper correspondents in the Philippi-
nssu, remarked an sfmyo ficer, wearily, this
morning. as he digested letter from
ssYankee schoolma'amn in the archipelago,
| published in the Lewiston (Me.) Journal.
| The letter is bright, and, but for sbvious =
though probably uninteniioBal -perversions
of fact, would be an important contribution
to current history. It's writer describes the
alleged clashes between the civil and mill
tary authorities, citing many incidents in
point. She says that the wife Of an army
officer landed some Chinese servants against
the orders of the civil government, and that
when they s0ere sent back campaign #
retaliation began. One side ordered the
soldiers of the Lunets, the fashionable pro-
menade, while the other refused to allow
the military bands to play there. Gov.
TAFT wanted to buy some silverscare at the
commissaTy, and its officers refused to sell
to him; over their heads hs secured permis
, sion from Washington, and to retaliate the
3 military government teek the official csrria.
, ges away from the civil officers,
!. The writer then goes on to describe the
- Inconvenience which reault to the teachers
0 from the withdrawal Of the privileges Of
70 buying at The commissary, alleging that the
lprices of suitable food are FIVE or six times
as much on the outside, which would indi
cate that large profits might be reaped by
an enteypriei1g firm in the grocery business
lin the Philippines. |" Nearly ell the tes
i chersr, she concludes, "wish to live within
M their salaries'-an assurance which shoult
ah afford some comfort to the merchants VIII,
extend them credit.
-. It il not denied 81 the War Department
% that there has been some friction betweel
the civil and military government, nor
it surprising, bpt its causes haye now an
Il then been apparent rather than real. j
regard to the carriages for civil officers
le sttentipn is called to the fact that betor
W July the military Goyer9or and the civi
y. Governor were the same person, Nbut whsl
~ the Taft Commission went into power
= = naturally vss efPested 70 provide its owl
of iusular funds, or 80 without. Gen. Oorbil
"a reports that the military government turpe
20 900 ponies over 10 the civil administrator
at at that time, because these had been puI
10 chased opt Of the civil funds, and so belong
De cd to thst administration,
The trouble over c6n9missary stores ha
been often discussed, and its settlement wa
recently described In these dispatches. CIV
\ comHaisksriee, such as the British Govern
u, meut' has established in several of ito trop
cal ports, have been started. Until tia
was done the military commissariss % wer
forbidden by law to sell anything to out
isiders, except by public auction under cor
demnation proceedings, without special 90
i'll thority from the War Department.; and
Gov. Taft desired some plated silverwars
/. the only kind carried in the Government
40 stores, he would have needed an order fror
10 Washington to antitle him to bay it or any
IN thing else.
m The Ohinese-servant episode is explaine
in much the same way. The Ohinese wer
70 first excluded BY Gen. Otis, but his polio
has been warmly approved by MacArthu
of and Ohaffee, and is said to be fully endorse
at b Gov. TAFT. 1t is not surprising that til
" wife of an army officer wished Chinese sci
ve..tz, as the Chinese are said to be th
n only stworking people, in that quarter
le the globe, but that she should have intel
"a preted the refusal of fresh importation :
4. any clash between the military and the ciyi
pn authorities seems absurd
The publication at homo OF letters frou
ne the Philippine teachers is one of the effsc.
Of the educational movement which had an
parently not been anticipated. A body
10 persons containing the elements of ven
ut turesomeness and philanthropy which th
teachers represent, are likely to be intel
=, esting chroniclers Of Philippine affairs, an
- in their several home 1eighborhoods ,oi
os be readily accepted as authorities. Here
Or toiore most first-hsnd information has com
an from army and navy officers, and, althoug
a there are wellequippsd men, the peculia
- interests Of their profession could not bu
Us color their observations. War Qepartmer
officers assume that this Lewiston letter
blt the beginning OF q series, and that froI
all parts Of the United States they will b
compelled to meet similar reports. Thu
far, the teachers have made the impressio
here of finding q good deal Of fault. The