The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1901-03-19

Washington, March 1S.-The records
in the cases of thirty-four Filipino ma
tives charged with various offenses
against military discipline in the Phil
ippines, including murder, treason and
other acts of violence, have been re
ceived at the war department. These
records make plain the methods pur-
sued by the insurgents to terrorize the
native inhabitants of the islands and
show cases of atrocities committed
upon the latter where they declined to
comply with the demands and the eX-
actions of the sO-called Filipino gov
eminent In one case nine inSurgenC
sympathiZers, fully armed, seized n
the night family of five persons and
killed them with boloS- The motive Tor
the murder was the punishment of the
family for refusing TO pay taxes in
support of the insurgent government.
The guilty natives were sentenced to
hard labor for thirty years. In an
other case, under the orders of a lieu
tenant colonel in the insurgent forces,
a native was seized, bound and made
to sit down while a soldier held his
head and with knife cut his throat"
The murderer was condemned to be
hanged.
Most of the other cases were the
murder of innocent FilipinOs by al
legged soldiers of the insurgent army,
several of whom are described as no.
torious BANDITS and outlaws The
most atrocious, according to the rec
OrdS, is that of EuSebiO ROJaS, who
was sentenced to be hanged, styling
himself lieutenant of infantry in the
insurgent forces under the command
of Alejandrino. Rojas claimed to exer-
else summary power over the lives
and property OF the natives who did
not bear arms against the United
States, and conceived it, to be his duty
to murder peaceful and law-abiding
people living within his sO-called mill
tary jurisdiction.
Laws of the Islands.
A number of the acts of the Philip
pine commission, as promulgated by
the authorities in the islands, have
been received at the war department.
One of the most important-that of es-
tablishing Z department of public in
StructiOn in the islands-haS been re-
ported by cs.o4e from Manila, and pro
videS for a department. of public in
StTuctiOn, with a central Office at Ma
Mia, under the direction of a general
superintendent to be appointed by the
commission at a salary of $4,000 per
annum.
Schools are to be established in every
pueblo in the archipelago. where prac-
teal. and those already established
shall be reorganized where necessary.
The English language, as soon as prac-
ticable, shall be made the basis OF all
public instruction, and soldiers may be
detailed as instructors until replaced
by trained teachers. Authority is Civ
en- to the general superintendent to OBJ
tain from the United States 1000
trained teachers, at salaries Of not less
than SO nor more than 800 per month,
the exact salary to be fixed according
to the efficiency of the teacher.
The act provides that no teacher or
other person shall teach or criticise
the doctrines of any church, religious
sect or denomination, nor shall at
tempt to influence the pupils for or
against any church or religious sect in
any public school" Violation of this
section is made punishable by sum-
mary dismissal from the public service.
May Teach Religion.
It is provided, however, that it may
be lawful for the priest or minister of
the pueblo where the school is situated
to teach religion for One-half hour,
three times a week, in the school build
ing, to pupils whose parents desire it.
But if any priest, minister or religious
teacher use this opportunity for the
purpose of arOuSing diSlOyalty to the
United States. or of discOuraging the
attendance of pupils or interfering
vision superintendent may forbid such
offending priest from entering the
school building thereafter
The act also provides for normal
school at Manila for the education of
natives in the science of teaching.
Among the other acts is one declar-
ing all persons in arms against the au-
thority of the United States in the
Philippine islands and al persons aid