The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-04-23
A POTENT COMMISSION
Il Holds in the Philippines Autocratic
Powers.
RIVER AND HARBOR BILL HITS A SNAG
The House Oisagrees to the Senate Amendments
and tke Measure Co.'s to Conference,
Military Academy Bill Passed
by the House.
by the House.
(By the Associated Press. J

Washington, D. c., April 22.-Formal
discussion of the bill temporarily to pro-
vide a government for the Philippine Is
lands was begun in the Senate today,
ity member of the Philippine Committee,
opening the debate with a speech in op-
position to the measure. He denounced.
the bill as an unwarranted imposition
upon the Filipinos, declaring that it would
establish one of the foulest olgarchies
in the history of the world. He main
tanned that the Philippine Commission
was given too great power by the bill
and asserted that under it's provisions
the islands would be exploited for pri-
vate gain. He will conclude his remarks
tomorrow.
While he was speaking two efforts were
made to maintain a quorum the second
resulting in lively tilt among several
Senator'S, Mr.. Scott, West Virginia. inti-
mating that no argument that could be
made upon the subject would influence
any Senator.
I'VE seem to have arrived at that point
in our history, said Mr.. Rawlins,
where there are those who affect to be-
lieve that it is sedition to think and trea-
son to talk. For Gods sake, let us keep
silent Until the war is over exclaims a
peripathatic hero and graduate from the
Philippines who wants to make free
speech treason and to cart US away to
the gallows, although he might give the
Senator from Massachusetts the benefit
of clergy on account of his sympathy for
a super heated conscience All, if we are
to believe him, with the approval of the
President of the United States
S"Congress no longer has to declare
war. An Otis or a Chaffee are prepared
to attend to this any day in the week.
few days ago a message came to US
that Malvar, the last of the insurrectos,
had surrendered. The next day it was.
announced that General Chaftee had de-
claTed a new war and had dispatched an
army to wage it against two millions of
people in the island of Mindanao. But
mud is to be the word so long as there
is any disturbance anywhere within our
borders or in any one of the more than
thousand islands beyond the seas.
This bill strikes it's roots into and
derives it's support from that excrescence
upon the army appropriation bill of 1901,
known as the Spooner amendment. The
qualification of the absolute power there
in conferred, adopted at the instance of
the Senator from Massachusetts, by this
bill is eliminated.
"All property rights in the islands and
the fate of their inhabitants are turned
ever to the control and disposition of the
commission, without any qualification of
Importance.
"The commission may declare war and
axe peace; raise armies and provide
pavies; regulate commerce with all sorts
of Determinations etween islands and
ports; levy taxes without limit and with
out uniformity. 1t may coin money and
regulate the value thereof; and may es-
tablish religion and punish those who do
not conform to it's tenets. 1t may de-
stroy free speech and punish as an act
of 5edition the publication of the truth
in regard to their administration. 1t
can establish an equisition, devise and
apply methods of eXcrucatng torture,
compelling persons to be witnesses
against themselves and disclose informa-
tion which the commission may desire
to extort 1t may practice any or all
Of The acts of tyranny which history has
disclosed or genius may devise.
1T is useless to say that this power
will not be abused. 1t will not be in
yited to some instances in the history of
our relations with the islands showing
the extent to which our representatives
have gone in acts of perfidy, injustice, op-
preston and cruelty"