The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-07-04

the United States or that of the phil
ippine Islands organized under authority
of the United States by way of coniisca-
f, tion or otherwise; and, provided furth-
| er, that every person who shall seek to
avail himself of this proclamation shall
| take and subscribe the following oath
before any authority in the Philippine
| archipelago authorized to administer
| oaths namely:
| "I --, solemnly swear
| Cor affirm that l recognize and accept
| the supreme authority of the United
| States of America in the Philippine
Islands and will maintain true faith and
allegiance thereto; that l impose upon
myself this obligation voluntarily with
out mental reservation or purpose of
evasion, so help me God"
Given under my hand at the CITY of
| Washington, this fourth day of July, in
| the year of Our Lord, one thousand nine
hundred and two, and one hundred and
| twenty seventh year of the independence
| of the United States.
| (Signed)
| THEODORE ROOSEVELT"
| BY the President.
Elihu Root. Secretary of War.
| General Chaffee is relieved of his civil
duties and the Philippine Commission is
made the superior authority in the fol-
| lowing order:
1.-The insurrectiOn against the sovereign
| authority of the United States in the
| Philippine archipelago having ended, and
| provincial civil governments having been
established throughout the entire terri
tory of the archipelago not inhabited by
| Moro tribes the general COM
mandng the division of the Philippines
| is hereby relieved from the further per-
| formance of the duties of military gov
ernor and the office of military governor
in said archipelago is terminated. The
! general commanding the division of the
| Philippines and all military officers in
| authority therein will continue to OBJ
serve the directions, contained in the
aforesaid instructions of the President,
| that the military forces in the division
4 of the Philippines shall be at all times
subject under the orders of the military
| commander, to the call of the civil au-
! thorities for the maintenance of law and
order and the enforcement of their au-
| thority''
Finally the President. through Secre-
| tary Root, pronounces the following
1
| The President, upon this anniversary
| of National independence, wishes to ex-
press to the officers and enlisted men
of the United States army his deep ap-
probation of the services they have
rendered to the country in the great and
difficult undertakings which they have
| brought to "a successful conclusion during
| the past year.
He lie 20 hn icto o5
men who have been maintaining order
| and carrying on the military government
/ in Cuba, because they have faithfully
given effect to the humane purposes of
the American people. They have with
sincere kindness helped the Cuban peo-
pie to take all the successive steps nee
essary to the establishment of their own
constitutional government. During the
time required for that process they have
governed Cuba wisely, regarding justice
and respecting individual liberty; have
honestly collected and expended for the
best interests of the Cuban people the
! revenues, amounting to over sixty mil
lions of dollars; have carried out prac-
teal and thorough sanitary measures,
! greatly improving the health and low
ering the death rate of the island.
\
| dignity and self control, so that nearly
four years of military rule have passed
/ unmarried by injury or insult to man or
| woman. They have transferred the gov
! ernment of Cuba to the Cuban people
amid universal expressions of friendship
and good will, and have left record of
ordered justice and liberty of RAPID i'm
provement in material and moral condi-
| tions, and progress in the art of govern
ment which reflects great credit upon
the people of the United States.
| Ihe President thanks the officers
ana enlisted men of the army in the
Phillppines, both regulars and volun-
teers, Tor the courage and fortitude, the
lndomltable spirit and loyal devotion
with which they have put down and
ended the great insurrection which has
ragged throughout the archipelago
against the lawful sovereignty and just
authority Of the United States
The task was peculiarly difficult and
| trying. They were required at first to
overcome organized resistance of supe-
rlor numbers, we'll equipped with mod
| ern arms of precision, ntrenched in an
| unknown country of mountain defiles
i 1ungles and swamaps, apparently capa-
bic of interminable defense. When this
| resistance had been overcome they were
| required to crush out a general system
| of guerilla warfare conducted among a
people speaking unknown tongues, from
/ whom it was almost impossible to OBJ
tain the information necessary for spe-
cial pursuit or to guard against sur
| prise and ambush
| ''The enemies by whom they were sur
rounded were relentless of all obliga-
tions of good faith and of all the limita
tions which humanity has imposed upon
| civilized warfare. Bound themselves by
| the laws of war, our soldiers were
called upon to meet every device of un-
scrupulous treachery and to contemplate
without reprisal the infiicton of bar
barous cruelties upon their comrades
and friendly natives. *Widely
| scattered over great archipelago ex-
| tending thousand miles from north tC
south, the gravest responsibilities, in
VolVing the life or death of their COM
| mands, frequently devolved upon young
| and inexperienced officers beyond the