Arizona republican., 1902-01-24

congress that the United States pur- ] chase the property of BUYING the friars in the Phil ! OUT THE ippines If this rec
 FRIARS. ommendation is car ried out it will do
 more to restore peace in the islands
 than can be done by military opera
 tions alone. It is. therefore, the most practical and statesmanlike recommen-
 dation that the administration could
 make to congress concerning the Philippines. It is the solution sug-
 gested by McArthur. Chaffee. Funston,
 and other army officers, so far as they have felt at liberty to make sugges-
 tions. and it is well known that the
 army officers are quite unanimous in the belief that complete and perma- nent pacifcation of the islands cannot
 be accomplished until the ''friar prob lem is settled. II is to be hoped that
 congress will have the good sense and courage to carry out Secretary Roots recommendation.
 Heretofore there has seemed to be a disposition on the part of senators and congressman to approach the friar question in a very gingerly manner. It has been feared, it would seem, that any action on the subject might incur
 the wrath of the Catholic church. but
 this is undoubtedly a deiusion natural
 to timid politicians. The holy father at
 Rome is one of the greatest statesmen of the century, and his far-seeing wis ion long go perceived that the intense hostility Of the natives against the frairs constituted the chief obstacle
 to a satisfactory end of the war. And the heads of the church in the United States likewise recognize that there has grown up an insuperable barrier in the Philippines.
 Following the purchase of their prop erty, the emigration of the friars from the islands will, of course, follow a necessary corollary, since the transfer of their immense real estate holdings to the government would accomplish nothing should they themselves re- mann.
 The various insurrestions with which Spain had to contend, and the present rebellion as well. have all had their real origin in agitations against the friars and in the hope that their ex- pulsion would follow the triumph of the insurgents. The testimony of the most intelligent and reliable Filipino leaders bears this out. There can be little doubt that Aguinaldo's rebellion against American authority would have made little headway had it been pos sible to assure the inha of the islands that American supremacy meant an end to friar rule. There is no occasion to go into the merits of the controversy between the natives and the friars. There can be little doubt that much could be said in fair ness on each side of the question. On the one it is a fact that to the friars is due nearly all the credit for the progress made by the hybrid races of the Philippines in civilization and edu- cation, and they have performed better than could anybody else. perhaps, the difficult task of leading savage tribes through the slow evolution from heath enism to their present status. On the other hand, there can be no doubt that the isolation of the friars, their free dom from supervision by the mother church, and their surroundings, have all been conducive to the development of the excesses and abuses and oppres- sion with which they are charged. And that is enough for Americans to know. The practical question is how best to settle the muddle in fairness to all. inquire into the methods whereby the friars acquired the most valuable real estate in the islands. Ii is theirs, and has been accumulated under the pro tection of Spanish law through cen turies. and it is proper that they should be paid for it on fair valuation. Then, their emigration, voluntary or com pulsory, should speedily follow.
 The religious belief of the Filipinos, so far they have any, is that of the Catholic church. The Republican be- lieves that the government should see to it that the school teachers sent out from this country should be Of the Catholic faith so far as practicable, and ct any rate earnest efforts should be made to induce American prie-ts to go to the Philippines to take the places of the friars. The Catholic