Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-05-28
BEST OF THE FILIPINOS
PEOPLE OF PANAY SHOW REMARK
ABLE INTELLIGENCE.
Provincial Government Organized by
the Taft Comm missiOn-FOrmer
InsurEent Given Office.

| ILOILO, April 12.-In brightness and
mental and physical activity the people Of
| the Island of Panay are unsurpassed by
| those of any other locality in the Philip
pines. These characteristics were especial
ly apparent in the public sessions of the
Philippine com mission, which ended yester-
day in the organization of the populous and
prosperous province of IlOilo, the seat Of
the metropolis of the Nisayans, and the
second city of the archipelago. 1t was ev-
ident throughout that the Visayans, of
Panay at least, think and act for them
selves The leading men of the pueblos Of
Iloilo province present delegates in the
convention gave plenty of evidence of a
studied familiarity with the new general
laws covering the conduct of municipal and
| provincial affairs, and they were not at all
backward in taxing the platform and crit
| icising what they conceived to be the vul-
nerable points in those acts.
| For the first time the commissioners
| found it necessary to defend the American
system of land taxation and the wisdom of
| its application in the Philippines. Senor
| Paynuendo- -Melliza, eXjustice of the SUI
preme court of the Philippines. led an at
tack in questioning the efficiency of real
! estate valuations under the American sys-
! tenn and the Justice of the results in the
cases of appeals. Senior Melliza objected to
| the commissions fixing the rate of taxa
ton combining it within maximum and min
| fmum limits on the ad valorem valuation of
land. He advised making valuations on
the earning value rather than on the guam
| tity of the lands.
| Much was said by the delegates about In
| cooperating together several of the pueblos,
| between which there appeared to be most
| healthy rivalry, but the commission ad-
v1sed that such questions be decided by a
| vote OF the people at some future election.
| The moneyloanng question is a serious
| one in lloilo. A great deal of money is
| loaned by Englishmen here to sugar plant
| ers IN Panay, but more especially to the
! planters of Negros, the great sugar-raisine
| island. at fabulous rates of interest Not
| withstanding the money made in sugar
| growing, not only the land but the
crops are usually mOrtgaged, largely to
| llollo men. The latter make contracts un-
! der which the product must be sold to
them then they habitually pay lower grade
prices for high-grade products, and the
piahter is helpless save when he eludes
ms creditors enough to sell to outsiders
When the interest grievance was pre-
sented to the commission the response was
thdt While under the Spooner act the
commission is practically powerless as to
authorizing interpretations, it would recon-
mend that Congress establish ban1.s in the
Philippines which shall make a business
OF loaning upon agricultural property at
reasonable rates of interest. After great
zeal OF talk the minor apprehensions of the
Nisayans seemed quite set at rest and an
act was passed applying the general pro-
v1nclal law to 1loilo province. The naming
by the commission of Delgado-until Janu-
airy IL last leader of the insurrectos Of
Panay-seemed at first rather startling
appointment 1t was immensely popular
with the natives. and was strongly recon-
mended by General Hughes. commander
of the department of the Visayas, and his
staff. The new governor made telling
little speech after taking the oath of Of
flee. The people here are anything but
stolid or Indifferent, and their very ac-
tiV1ty may cause difficulties of government
at times, but army officers who have been
intimately associated with the Panayans
for two years speak in warmest terms of
their honorable dealing and patriotic Amer
lean spirit.