The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-05-09
THE REAL QUESTION.

The Republicans are in no way response
bic for the mischievOus discussion which
has been precipitated in the Senate regard
ing the conduct of the war in the Philip
pines. The real question before the Senate
is on the adoption Of a bill for the govern
ment of the Philippines. The bill was
formulated with great care by the Senate
Philippines committee before it was re-
ported. 1t is quite a voluminous bill. oc-
cupying twenty-eight printed pages, and
embraces a number of important topics,
among which there is not the slightest
reference to the conduct Of the war. The
bill assumes that the executive department
OF the government and our army in the
Philippines are doing their duty, and that
the time is near at hand when it will be
necessary to establish civil government in
the islands and bring some matters into
conformity with American ideas. Refer
ence TO the salient features Of the bill will
Indicate its scope and comprehensiveness-
1t embraces a complete mining law, based
on provisions prepared with great labor
by the Philippine commission and revised
by a subcommittee of the Senate committee
in accordance with the best ideas Of Amer
lean experts. The coinage provisions of the
bill occupy six pages and provide a coinage
system for the islands. Opinions will diff
fer as to the propriety of retaining the
long-established silver standard. but that
is a legitimate subject of discussion. AS
the coinage provisions of the bill were
prepared by Senator Allison, Oh Iowa, it is
needless TO say they were carefully con-
sidered. The bill provides for the c%ontinu-
ance, for the present, of the Philippine
commission. headed by Judge Taft, the
only change made being that the commits
sioners shall be appointed by the Presi-
dent and confirmed by the Senate, instead
of being appointed by the President by
virtue Of his war power. Judges of the
Supreme Court are to be appointed and
confirmed. in the same way. Provision is
made for taking a census of the islands
and obtaining statistics needed in the es-
Establishment of permanent government.
The bill also contains sections providing
temporarily for the control of the public
lands in the islands, of which there are
about 100000 acres belonging to the
United States. 1t provides for giving good
titles to natives who have occupied and
cultivated homesteads for a long time with
out getting titles from Spain. There are
several sections relative to municipal loans
which are intended to facilitate the i'm
provement and development of the coun-
try. Provision is made for the purchase
of the friars' lands, thus settling an impor-
tant and vexatious question and getting
the lands out of the hands of a religious
corporation and into those of the people
who cultivate them. Such are the main
provisions of a bill whose object is TO re-
place military government in the Philip
pines with civil, to advance self-govern-
ment and to promote the development OF
the islands and the prosperity of the peo-
pie. The adoption of this carefully-consid
cred and benefcent measure is the real
question before Congress. which the Dem
ocratic insurrectos are using as an am
bush for attacking the army.