Omaha daily bee., 1902-11-17
CHAFFEE SAYS WAR IS OVER
Returned General Declares Philippine
Trouble is Thing Of the Past,
NO REASON TO WORRY OVER THE MoRoS
says Onward March Of civil Govern
ment in Archipelago Has Taken
Firm Footing and f.
There to stay.

small number OF MorOS who are still hos
tile will be brought into line with les
trouble than people in America imagine,
said Major General Adna r. Chafee. former
military commander Of the Philippines, last
night to a party OF newspaper men.
General Chaffee, Vice Governor Luke r
Wright and the wives and parties Of botf
gentlemen, reached Omaha at $50 last night
over the Union Pacific and left within If
teen minutes for Chicago, where today
General Chaffee and Governor Wright will
be the central figures at a large banquet
The remainder Of the party consisted oil
Captain J. r. Lindsey. Major Phillips and
Roy Harper, son Of William H. Harper OF
Chicago. All the party. save Mrs. Chaffee,
came out of their car at the Union station
Mrs. Chaffee, since her arrival at San
Francisco, has been suffering from fatigue
Of the long journey on water and land.
The party was travelling in the private car
Of Vice President II. R. Mccullough of
the Northwestern, which was placed at its
disposal at San Francisco.
General John c. Bates. commander OF the
Department of the Missouri, Captains W.
NJ. Wright, w. H. Reeve, Colonel E. ]. Nc
Clernand and Lieutenant Van Leer Wills
and wife, President Horace G. Burt Of the
Union Pacific and Cadet Taylor met Cen
eTal Chaffee and Governor Wright and their
party. Both the general and governor ap-
peared heartily well and in the best Of
spirits. General Chaffee, the hero Of Ell
Caney, the Shining man in shirtsleeves. -
as the Spanish dubbed him, when at the
head Of his column at that memorable bat
tie he led his hosts on to a brilliant victory,
looks the part of a soldier every inch. But
he does not look like a man within three
years of that memorable age limit which
| will raIfra hfV, r.,I,.. - w.A--a- Ysg- -,
miral Dewey has done.
Resistance of MOrOs Futile.
Speaking further of the question OF recon
CLING the Moros, General Chaffee said:
81 am afraid some of our people over
here have the wrong Idea about this mat
ter. There are but so, 900 hostile Moros
now and this is such a hopeless minority
that any further resistance from them
could not fail to be futile. Those Moros
who have surrendered have become thor
oughly pacifed and are making the most
of their amicable relations with the United
States. So loyal and grateful are they that
they have manifested a willingness or an
e~agerness to take the leading hand in
q%uelling their stubborn fellow countrymen.
But of course this is not thought of.
NO, that question is no longer a serious
problem. 1t will work itself out in due
time. The American people can rest as
sured of that. The Philippine uprising is
over. II is a thing of the past and no
little handful Of $1,000 Moros can stop or
even materially check the onward and in
evitable march of civil government. It has
taken a firm footing and has come to stay.
The natives who have accepted 1t are in
love with 1t and the more they know of
its operations the better they like 1t. 1
Vnnfttro ~ cav th,A -
could induce them to return to their old
conditions. They have seen and felt the
uplifting and sustaining influences Of Amer
lean laws and customs; they find them
selves contented after such a brief inter-
val Of experiment and they are not going
TO be swayed from their present standards
OF living.
Normal conditions in the islands are
rapidly being restored. Farming has been
resumed and the wave of excitement con-
sequent upon the military disturbances is
subsiding, a calm surface is forming and
soon you Will see the last vestige of the
old hostility. OF course, in order to thor
oughly and completely accomplish our full
mission the United States must keen some
thing of an army in the islands, although
the instruction is over. How long this
army should be kept there is not for me
to say"
American Soldiers Better on.
General Chaffee said tina the physical
condition of the American soldiers in the
Philippines is much better than it has ever
been. A steady Improvement in the sani-
tary conditions since the first of the Amer
lean occupation has been noticeable and
this has wrought a benehcent effect upon
the health of the soldiers, for whom ac-
climatization was a difficult task.
When asked about the treaty bet ween
the United States and the sultan of SuIu.
General Chaffee evaded a discussion of
that subject. saying to his interviewers
that they had better strike Governor
Wright on that point. He reiterated his
statement contained in his report to Wash
ington, however, that the treaty could
be abrogated with profit. The way he puts
it in his report is:
The sooner the sultan of Jolo is (which
Is the sultan of Sulu) actual or assumed
as sovereign and as sole owner of the land
in the Jolo archipelago, is quiet the better
for the situation"
General Bates, the author Of this famous
treaty, who was present, Joined in a more
free discussion of it than either General
Chanee or Governor Wright. Governor
wright had about the same thing to say
10 pNhSiai Shdhet anu General Bates said.
Il think the treaty ought to be abro-
gated 1t has served its purpose and that
a good purpose. 1t was put into effect in
August, 1899, and has been operative.
therefore, more than three years. In this
period it has accomplished what was ex-
pected Of 1t and now there seems to be
no further necessity for IL. II was but a
temporary expedient in the first place. no
thought of it's peTmanency ever having
been entertained. At the time the treaty
was effected there was an incomplete and
inadequate number of American troops at
our disposal in the islands and we could
not afford to allow the sultan and his
people to stir up trouble that would de-
mand military forces to resist. We did
not have the forces and thus the treaty
was the only wise method"
Glad TO He Home.
Both General Chafee and Governor
Wright expressed keenest delight at the
privilege OF again being in their own coun-
try. They will enjoy their we'll earned
What Shall We