Waterbury Democrat., 1901-02-11
UND|NAK0FF|CERSLE1TER
Civil or Military Government
 the Absorbing Topic.
The Officer Says Time Is Not Ripe in the Philippines for Civil Government Elections Ordered. but No One Cared to Take Oath of Allegiance.

Elections Ordered. but No One
 Cared to Take Oath of Allegiance. Ncw> York, Feb ll.-I'hc Washington bureau of the Tribune. says d special to that paper from the capital, has just received from an officer on duty in the Island of l'anay, in the Philippines, an interesting letter, Written just before Christmas, giving an account of That t lS one of the absorbing topics through out The archipelago. He says ill part
 Most of the officers on duty through out the fourth districr. department of the NiSayaS, have had little or no sym pathy with anything relating To civil government. They believed the time was not ripe for It, and that military administration was all that the circum stances demanded or justified. Al though this spirit was thoroughly un- GerStOou at district headquarters, and fully taken account of, nevertheless the district commander. Colonel Ed mund Rice. TWenty-SiNth infantry. T.. S. N., insisted on his policy being carried out of combining as much aS possible the civil and the military. Month after month the work went oll. everything possible being done to get IN and to inform the natives of their priv | ilegeS and opportunities. Time ana time again elections were ordered to he held in certain of the PuebloS, only to get the report no one here cares to take the necessary oath Of allegiance to the niteu States government.
 At last Colonel Hice'S aid. I.icuten- ant G. l.. D. MacEregor. IWrnty-SiXth l infantry. whom the district commando CT had put in charge of civil affairs last l April, cut the GOriiiau knot. Through acting as counsel before Il military commission in defense Of some news paper publishers who were charged with publishing SeditiOuS articles. he won the friendship and esteem of the most clever and influential clicur of the Island of I'anay. Those were men of wealth. education and travel. and called themselves 'neutralS. so far ;!i the war was concclltd. After lhe trial the lieutenant had kept in touch With them. and had brought much in tlucnrc to bear on them 70 make them | pro Americam. It is we'll to make il pIant what this neutrality, or appar- enl apathy. meant.
 At most everywhere on the island
 American officers and soldiers were
 lltt Al II -A' SH. o''-
 sanceS and the utmost deterence. But when anything is asked to be done ill the nature. of cooperating with the Americans, or that might be regarded ill the least by the compromising TO their own absolute Independence, ihr natives became cold as haSiliSks. T ne heads had been turned by fulSome rhetoric. by ambitious projects for power. and. moreover. they were ill mortal fear of assassination by Quen tin Sails and his miniOnS if they re- cedeu one step from the prescribed neutral status.
 But on November last .\pollanio de DeSma. one of the clique. decided 1C take the oath. He said he had thor oughly canvaSScd Jaro. and asked that
 to all the people of that district might be given an opportunity to take the oath on the day following. I.e DeSmn and NillalohoS were then duly sworn
 and on the following day hundreds of |Jaro citizens of all classes surgcd about post headquarters endeavorin2
 to swear allegiance. Two days latel Molo followed suit and ihe OathS there quickly ran into the thousands Col Onel Rice telegraphed all over the is land, announcing that the ice had been broken. and that JarO and MOlo had
 fallen into line. With the island of Panay becoming AmericaniZed at the rate of 1.JCO a day. the end is in sight DiveSted of the support from the towns
 the bands of insurgents that still cX liSt must languish and diSintegrate, and when they can no longer operate the native scouts and police can SOoD
 (and With much delighJ wipe out 1he
 other banc-the ladroncs or robbers Then the few remaining problems will
 rapidly solve themSclVeS.'