Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1902-08-07
Washington Aware of Fact.

Washington, Aug. 1.-THE war de-
partment has known for some time tina,
portions of the friar lands in the Phil
ippines have been disposed of to COM
panies. and all of the recent negotia-
lions conducted by Secretary Root have
carefully taken into account any con-
tingencies which might arise thru these
transfers. The facts We're fully CONS
municated to the government by Cow
ernor Taft. The latter also explained
this matter of alleged transfer to the
senate committee on the Philippines
In the course of his evidence before the
committee Governor Taft said in an
swer to the question whether the friars
We're in actual possession of the lands:
Generally, in order to avoid hos
tilities. they have transferred their
titles to companies and retained the
ma jority of the stock
Being asked as to these compaies
Governor Taft explained their satus as
follows:
Il wish to say that one of these COM
panes. or stakeholder of one of these
companies. has filed a protest with the
acting givernor, which I have with me,
against the condemnation of these
lands, because of the interest some in
dividual owners have in them. But
want to add that | do not think that
protest has sufficient weight to vary the
truth of my statement that the COM
mission has reasonable ground to be-
leve that with she authority 1T asks
to wit, to issue bonds, 1t can at rea-
sonable prices purchase this land
AS to the bona fide nature of the
transfers to certain companies. Cover
nor Taft said that he had s-eSam-
ined the heads OF religious orders. He
added:
Il think after you read the evidence
it will become obvious that while it is
true that transfers have been made,
they have been colorado in this sense
not fraudulent: do not say that--but
they have been colorado in the sense
that the transfer made was for The pur-
pose of giving the public the impress
sion that the friars had parted with
their titles, and thus facilitating the
collection of rents, while in fact, the
ownership is still retained. That is my
information as TO the condition of the
titles now, in spite of protest filed by
some stockholders with respect to the
ownership of some haciendas."
Having in mind this information that
the friars had sold portions of their
lands to companies Secretary Root said
in his last dispatch of instruction to
Governor Taft, sent to the latter in
Rome, that in case of a successful close
of the negotiations, lists must be fur
nished not only of the land, but also of
the titles which had been merged in the
stock of corporations, with the total
stock of such corporations and the
amount of stock held by the religious
orders.
Aside from this information given by
Governor Taft the war department. has
been advised from time to time of GER
tain individual transfers made by re-
ligious institutions in the Philippines to
persons and organizations in this
county. One such transfer is repre-
scented by a leading firm of attorneys in
New York, and another is represented
by a Washington firm of attorneys. The
negotiations have proceeded, however,
with the idea that these transfers We're
not of a character to interrupt the con-
summation of the main object of secur-
ing a transferance of the lands as an
entirety.