The Washington times., 1902-03-30
MILES PHILIPPINE
PLANS IN CONGRESS

the Philippines has been conducted with
marked severity: on the contrary, the
warfare has been conducted with marked
humanity and magnanimity on the part of
the United States Army"
General Miles Reply.
On March "a General Miles took up
the matter again and defended his propo-
stion in another communication to the
Secretary of War, in the course of which
he said that his comment that the war
fare in the Philippines had been con-
Quoted with marked severity was based
on letter from Governor Taft to the
Secretary of War, dated Washington, Feb
ruary Z, and on other communications
He does not ask further consideration of
his proposition TO take natives of Cuba
and Porto Rico to the Philippines and to
bring back Filipinos
Mr. Roots Criticisms.
On March % Secretary Root again sub
mitted the matter to the President, in the
course of which he refers to General
Miles request of July Is, 1900. to be sent
to the Philippines and China il his Off
cial capacity, and that Il 600 troops be
Withdrawn from the Philippines and sent
to China. AT that time" says the Sec
retafy, General Macarthur had report
ed that not a single additional regiment
could lie spared from the Philippines
without putting our interests there in
jeopardy"
Military Dictator"
Taking up General Miles request for an
order to go TO the Philippines, the Secre-
tary says:
That means, if il means anything,
authority to do himself. or to require the
civil officers of the Philippines to do I'M
der his direction, the very duties which
were charged upon the Philippine Com
mission and the civil governor in the ISL
ands by President Mckinley, and which
they are now engaged in doing. The au-
thority asked is not to recommend, but
taken are to be determined by General
Miles. then the power of the Commission
to determine upon them must end. There
is no place for any such authority under
the present government, and if il were to
be granted the system of civil government
by which we have been gradually and
steadily superseding military control, and
have superseded it throughout the great
er part OF the archipelago, would again
be subordinated to military power, and
the people of the islands would be sub
jected to the arbitrary control of mill
tary dictator
The Taft Letter.
The letter of Governor Taft referred to
by General Miles is declared by the Secre-
tary to have been one transmitting tor
investigation a report from the civil
governor of Tayabas, making general
charges against the military administra
tion in that province, and against .hc
army generally in its relations to the
civil government. The Secretary says this
report was forwarded to General Chaffee
with instructions to institute thorough
enquiry. to apply the proper correction
and disciplinary measures. and to report
as soon as possible. There has not yet
been time, says the Secretary, for the re-
port to be made, and he continues:
1T is to be regretted that the officer of
the highest rank in the army should as
sumo the truth of charges rejecting upon
the credit of the army in advance of the
investigation which has been ordered, and
without giving General ChafTee, upon
whose particular command the charges re-
fleet, an opportunity to be heard"
"Much to Be Regretted"
The Secretary concludes his commune
cation to the President as follows:
las the Lieutenant Generals memoran-
dunn OF March q was not made until after
the introduction of a resolution in the
House of Representatives calling for all
correspondence and papers in the matter
of mis- application to go to the Philippines,
the putting into those papers of the spe-
ciic reference TO the letter transmitting
the charges plainly evinces a design to
procure the publication of the charges,
and of the Lieutenant Generals accept
ance thereof as true, in advance of the
of their truth, and of re-
port thereon by General Chaffee. In the
interest of good discipline and effective
service such d course is much TO be re-
gretted. Such charges ought not to be
published against our countrymen whom
we have sent to labor and fight under our
flag on the other side Of the world before
they can be heard in their own defence"