Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-09-25
ROOT DEFENDS ARMY
SPEECH AT PEORIA, ILL, LAST
NIGHT.
Quotes Eminent Men in Support of
His Argument-Ignores Trusts
and Tariff.

El!hu Root, Secretary of War, was the
speaker at meeting of the Illinois League
of Republican Clubs, at Peoria last night.
dispatch says: The Coliseum was packed
to the doors, and time after time the Sec
rotary was vociferously applauded. His
address was confined entirely to the recent
troubles in the Philippines and Cuba, and
not once during the evening did he mention
the tariff or the trusts.
In opening his address he paid a high
compliment to President Mckinley. He
said:
Once before, and only once, 1 have visit
ed the city of Peoria. 1t was on that day
in the autumn of 1899 when the stately and
beautiful monument which adorns your
public square dedicated to the soldiers
of the civil war. 1t was day of festivity
and rejoicing. All business and contro-
versy and selfish cares had been laid aside,
and from all the town and all the country
around, the people had gathered to look
upon the face and listen to the voice of
their beloved President, William Mckinley.
LAS his sweet and vibrant tones carried
his words to the very limits of the great
throng every sentence was an impulse of
patriotism. Every wave of responsive SYM
pathy, lifted the people up to high planes
of citizenship and of manhood. Men may
| find, or think they find, error in his judg-
ment. Men may differ as to the wisdom
of his policies, but that his judgments were
formed in sincerity as he saw the right no
one who knew him as we knew him will
ever doubt. His memory lives
The first spoken words by his success
sor when taking the oath of office at Buff
falo, Were 1t is my purpose to continue alb
solutely unbroken the policy of President
Mckinley, for the peace, prosperity and
honor of our beloved country / challenge
judgment upon the truth and loyalty with
which Theodore Roosevelt has redeemed
his promise
of all the executive problems following
in the train of the Spanish war the prob
lem of the Philippines alone remained.
Success there had not then been dem
onstrated, and it was still possible that
the failure there might lead the American
people to withdraw power from republican
hands. Accordingly, the Philippine policy
of the administration was attacked. The
policy was simple. Spain, which for more
than three centuries before Dewey's VIC
tory had exercised undisputed sovereignty
over the Philippine Islands, ceded the is
lands with all her title and sovereignty
there, to the United States by the treaty
of peace which was signed at Paris on De-
cenber 10. 1898, and was confirmed by the
Senate on February 6. 1899. Upon the
ratification of the treaty. and the payment
of the money, sovereignty over the Phil
ippines was vested in the United States"
The Secretary stated that in the early
months of 1899, when the course of the
United States toward the instruction in the
Ill!lpplIltS Ildu 10 De determined, there
no difference of opinion between the two
parties as to the duty of the administration
He read a number of editorials from the
press throughout the country, both republi-
can and democratic, showing that there was
| only one thing to do, and that was to con-
| quer the forces of Aguinaldo.
Secretary Root said that, notwithstanding
the insurrection, the business of the island
hourished and has become nearly double
what it was in the most peaceful years I'M
der Spanish rule. Then he spent some time
in denial of the reports circulated by the
democratic party during the Instruction
he gave statistics as to the number of SOL
diers in the islands. the losses by war and
| sickness. and then he read a number of the
| kilograms captured with Aguinaldo and
| other generals. He read a letter written
by Jose Rial, the greatest genius and most
| revered patriot of the Philippines, in which
| he pleaded with his people to submit to
! American sovereignty as the only way in
| which to gain their freedom.
The Secretary devoted some time to a re-
| cital of the attacks made upon the admin
| istration by members of the Senate and
| House, and said:
| THE whole army and its generals were
involved in common denunciation. The gal
| liant and fearless Funston was stigmatized
| by the senator from Tennessee as a 'blath-
| erskite brigadier. L do not know who
| Gen. Wheaton is particularly said the SEN
ator from Idaho, but l imagine he was a
| charity boy who was appointed to West
Point by some representative or senator
and educated by the government
Said the senator from Utah: Did Chat
fee alone. unaided, in GOODNESS and in bru-
| tally and in savage and unrelenting disre-
| gard of every human sentiment or posi-
| bility of human suffering, conceive this in
| iquitous scheme? Whence from what dia-
| bolical source was 1t derived? The Ameri-
| can people ought to know. Is there any
| penalty beneath the sun adequate to be
| meted out to the merciless wretch who has
| thus brought such dishonor upon the Amer
| lean name and the American people?
| Against these contemptuous and iniu-
| rious aspersions upon the soldiers of the
| United States l will call four witnesses
! The first is William Mckinley: If any or
| ders of mine We're required to insure the
merciful conduct of military and naval
| operations they would not be lacking but
every step in the progress of our troops
has been marked by a humanity which has
| surprised even the misguided Insurgents
| THE second is President Schurman and
| joining with him Admiral Dewey and the
| other members of the first Philippine COM
| mission: To those who derive satisfaction
from seeing an isolated occurrence regret
| table, indeed, but incident to every war.
| and making it the basis of sweeping accu-
sations. this commission has nothing to
| say. Such wrongs were actually COM
mitted against the natives were likely to
be brought to our attention. and in every
case that We investigated we found a will
| ingness on the part of those in authority
| to administer prompt Justice
1.-The third is Gov William H. Taft OF
Ohio. who said: desire to say that It is
my deliberate judgment that there never