Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-06-03
WILL TRUST TO TIME
GEN. BELL CONFIDENT his ACTS
WILL BE JUSTIFIED.
Distressed at Necessity for Using
Severe Measures-Adoption of
Concentration Camps.

Ter py zen. j. r. Bell, dated BatangaS,
Batangas province, April TO- 1t was writ
ten without any intention of publication,
and the recipient. Mr.. George F. Becker.
takes entire responsibility for making it
public:
He (Buencaminop can tell you all about
my policy in Batangas and its results,
something l have not the time to write
about at length but you can rest assured
that. when the truth is known. there will
be absolutely nothing for the administra-
ton to be anxious about and nothing which
the most ardent anti-imperialists could
Justly be ashamed of. The people came
voluntarily into zones of protection in order
to be protected against impositions and bar
barous outrages by outlaws, people of bad
character and criminal antecedents, who
have been masQuerading under the para
phernalfa of patriotism. There has been
absolutely no hunger; on the contrary,
they have had more to eat than usual at
this season of the year. AS you well know,
among the improvident poor there are times
each year when they are very hungry.
There has been no hunger this year in this
province or in Laguna.
we have vaccinated over three hun
dred thousand persons, and. as a conse-
quence we have not had the annual cpl
demic of smallpox; besides this the sick
nave been attended to by our doctors and
given food and medicine free Of cost.
Revolt in Batangas Dead
But the best thing of all is that. as
am writing to you, Malvar is fugitive,
hiding in the mountains, accompanied by
his family, but without a single armed
companion, and being searched for by
many troops and several thousand native
volunteers, who want to catch him in order
to put an end to trouble in their province
The instruction here is absolutely dead
at present. There are still some guns out
buried IN secret places, but We hope in
time to discover and secure them. A large
majority of the people have already re-
turned to peaceful homes without fear of
assassination or the necessity of paying
involuntary tribute. Before you receive
this letter peace will be completely re-
stored and all people in their homes. This
Will all have been completed in four
months-January. February. March and
three thousand five hundred firearms, and
Will probably get several hundred more.
The Only Policy.
THE policy which has been pursued here
is absolutely the only one which could have
accomplished such results. Well knowing
the views of the American people on the
concentration in Cuba you can readily be-
lieve that it has been a time of great ankle
ter for a month. l finally became thor
oughly convinced that 1 could not bring
peace to these people and fulfill my obliga-
tons to the government in any other way
Once convinced of this, l hesitated not
moment for l clearly realized that if from
fear of personal consequences 1 shirked
adopting the only measure that could paci-
fy the province and defeat the purposes of
the ignorant and INSCRIPTIONS outlaws who
were Keeping up the war in order to enrich
themselves, L should not only be faithless
to my sense of duty to the government and
TO these people, but outrage my conscience
and lose my sef-respect by being morally
guilty of the contemplate cowardce.
Distress at Demands of Necessity.
Il have no time to write you at greater
length, for no one has ever been buster
and no one has carried in the Philippine
Islands greater weight of care and re-
sponsibiity than I have borne for several
months. Knowing my disposition and kind
ly feeling toward the natives full well, you
Will have no difficulty in understanding
that the necessity for severe measures has
been a source of distress to me- The only
consolation l can derive is by keeping my
thoughts on the end and object In view.
When one has worked faithfully con-
scientiousy and unselfshly for his country
IN a health destroying climate for four
years without relaxation or rest it is
somewhat discouraging, not to say dis
tressing, to find that even some of his own
countrymen appear to have no confidence in
his motives, judgment or integrity
Confident Of Vindication.
e Il expect to make a report of my stew
ardship soon, and, as 1 hope my country
men may some time learn the truth from
that (and from these people themselves af-
ter tranquility has been restored, and after
they have begun to enjoy a freedom from
molestation and a sense Of security which
they have never enjoyed before in their
lives), 1 am fairly content strong in the
conviction that time and thorough knowl-
edge thereof will justify my acts