Arizona republican., 1902-11-20
Vice Governors PrOudeSt Day
Continued From First Page)

as it stands for it at home The task of our soldiers was to restore and main tain order in the islands. The army
 had the task to do. and it did it well and thoroughly. The fullest and heartiest praise belongs to our soldiers who in the Philippines brought to triumphant conclusion a war. small in deed, compared to the gigantic strug- gle in which the older men whom l am addressing took part in the early sixties. but inconceivably harassing and difficult, because it was waged amid the painless jungles of great tropic lands and against a foe very elusive, very treacherous. and often in- conceivably cruel both toward our men ana toward the great numbers of peace-loving Filipinos who gladly wei comed our advent. The soldiers in- cluded both regulars and volunteers. men from the north, the south, the east and the west, men from Pennsylvania and from Tennessee, no less than men from the Rocky Mountain and the Pa cific slope-and to all alike we give honor, for they acted as American soldiers should. Cruelties were com mitted here and there. The fact that they were committed under well nigh intolerable provocation affords no eX- cuse for such cruelties, nor can we aG- init as justification that they were re- taliatory in kind. Every effort has ! been made to detect and punish the wrongdoers and the wrongdoing itself has been completely stopped. But these misdeeds were exceptional and their oc- renee in no wise alters the fact that the American army in the Philippines ! showed as a whole not only splendid soldierly qualities but a high order of humanity in dealing with their foes. A hundred thousand of our troops went to the Philippines. Among them were some who offended against the right. Well. are we altogether immaculate at home? l think not. l ask for no special consideration to be showed our friends and kinsmen, our sons and brothers. who during three years so well upheld the national honor in the Philippines. l ask merely that we do the same equal justice to the soldier who went abroad and faced death and lived hard as we show to his fellow who stayed at home and lived easily and in comfort; and if we show that equal justice we will doff our hats to l NilF IAlei4 W lAO ilsiS put NllG NlOit tOulllg
 under obligations by the victory he helped to win in the Philippines.
 But the soldiers work as a soldier was not the larger part of what he did. When once the outbreak was over in any place, then began the work of establishing civil administration. Here. too. the soldier did his part. for the work of preparing for the civil . ] la6Tninigtra tinn Harp ha
 dier did his part, for the work of pre- pairing for the civil authority was often done by the officers and men of the regular army. and well done, too. Then the real work of building up a system of self-government for the people who had become our wards was begun, un- der the auspices of the Philippine com mission. Judge Taft being made gover- nor. During the critical period when
 the insurrection was ending and the
 time was one of transition between q
 state of war and state of peace, at the time that I issued a proclamation declaring that the state of war was
 over and that the civil government was
 now in complete command, General Wright served as governor of the archi-
 pelago. The progress of the islands
 both in material well-being and as re-
 gards order and justice under the ad-
 ministration of Governor Wright and
 his colleagues has been astounding.
 There is no question as to our not
 having gone far enough and fast
 enough in granting self government tc
 the Filipinos; the only possible danger
 has been lest we should go faster and
 farther than was in the interest of ths
 Filipinos themselves. Each Filipino al the present day is guaranteed his life
 his liberty. and the chance to pursue happiness as he wishes, so long as ht does not harm his fellows, in a way which the islands have never knowr before during all their recorded history There are bands of ladrones, of brig. ands, still in existence. Now and ther they may show sporadic increase. Thi: } will be due occasionally to disaffectior 5 with some of the things that our gov ernment does which are best--for ex
 ample, the efforts to quarantine agains , the plague and to enforce necessary 2 sanitary precautions, gently and tact