Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1902-06-07
the people on this continent. and much of


the people on this continent. end much OF
the future Of mankind as a whole.
You left us a reunited country. iVu
left US the right OF brotherhood with tns
men In gray, who with such courage, anu
such devotion for they deemed tne
right. fought against you. But you leLt
US much more even than your acnieVe-
ment, for you left us the memory OF non
ii was achieved. You, VINO MADE soou
by your valor and patriotism the states.
manship OF Lincoln and the soldlersnlp %
Grant. have set as the STANDARDS TOT oui
efforts In the future both the way YOU
did your work In war and the way N
which when the war was over you turIeu
again 10 the work of peace. IN war auu
in peace alike your example Will stand as
the wisest of lessons TO us ana our chh-
drcn and our children's children.
Just at this moment the army OF lhe
United States, led by men VINO serieu
among you IN the great war. IS cJrrylnS
to completion a small but peculiarly try.
Ing and difficult war Ia which - Involves
not only the honor OF the nag. but the tIis
umph of civilization over forces Nnlch
stand for the black chaos Of saNagefE aho
barbarism. The task has not been as
difficult or as important as yours put, on.
my comrades, the men IN the uhlloIin ~
the United States, who have lor lne iasr
three years patiently uncofnplallinsls
championed the American cause III lHe
Philippine Islands are your YOUNGER
brothers. Al sons. They nave SHOWN
themselves not unworthy 80
they are entitled TO the support or all men
who are proud Of what YOU dld'
The Philippine Soldiers.
These younger comrades OF yours nave
fought under terrible difficulties ana nave
received terrible prOyocation from u very
cruel and very treacherous enemy: thu2r
the strain OF these provocations l dteplF
deploTc 10 say that some among them
have so far forgotten themselves as to
counsel and commit, in retaliation, acts oi
cruelty. The fact that for every sullly acI
committed by one OF oar troops n huAnI'o
acts OF far greater ~atrocity have Deen
| committed By the hostile native upon our
troops, or upon the peaceable ana Jaw
abiding natives who are friendly 10 uS,
cannot be hold 10 excuse any Wrohsno't
on our side. Determined and unswerNliia
effort must he made, and Is being mace
to find out every Instance OF Darbaflt{ ON
the part Of our troops, 70 punish mos
guilty of Il, and TO take, IL possible. even
stronger measures than have already Deei
taken 10 minimize or prevent the occur
renee Of all such instances Ia the tuture
From time 10 time there occur IN our
country, TO the deep and lasting shame 81
our people, lynchings carried on uhu"t
circumstance OF inhuman cruelty anu
barbarity-a cruelty infinitely worse thah
any that has ever been committed Dy our
troops IN the Philippines, worse TO the
Victims, and far more brutalizing To those
guilty of II. The men who fall 10 con-
denim these lynchings, and YET ciaiioi
about what has been done In the Phillp-
uincs, ore inded guilty OF negleCtlng the
beam i'm their own eye while haunting
their brother about the mote In MS. Ih-
derstand me. These lynchings arord US
no Reuse for failure to stop cTuelty ~
the PHILIPPINES. Every effort Is being
made. and with be made, 10 minimize tht
chances Of cruelty occurring
Wars CrueltIes VS.. Lyhchins.
But keep IN mind hat these crueltieS
I'm the Philippines nave been wholly eN'
ccptioual, ana have been shamelessly eX'
nEgerated. We deeply and bitterly rcSre'
that any such cTueities should nave peer
committed, no matter how rarely, no mat
ter under what proVocatiOn, by American
troops. But they afford far less Justihca
ton for "a general condemnation or ON
army than these lynchings AFFORD Tor IN
condemnation of the communities ~
which they have taken place. In "arl
case fl Is well to condemn the deed, ah'
it is well also TO refrain from ihcludlhi
both guilty nnd innocent III the S"H'
sweeping condemnation. =,
In every community there are pcopl'
who commit acts Of well-niRh inconcelV
able horror and DaSoncSS. II we TX GU
eyes only upon these in~diNlduals ana upol
heir acts. and If we forget the far NOR
numerous citizens Of upright and homes
life and bltud ourselves TO their counties
deeds OF wisdom and justice ana phllan
thropy. IL Is easy enough to condemn IN
community. There Is not a city in thi
land which we could not thus condemn !
we GNcd our eyes purely upon It's polio
record and refused TO look at what 1t ha'
accomplished for dCCenCy and justice an
charity. Yet this Is exactly the attitud
which has been taken by too many me
with reference 10 our army In the Philip
pines, and II is an attitude both absurI
and cruelty unjust.
The rules of warfare which have bee
promulgated by the war department an
accepted az the basis Of conduct by on
troops In the field are the rules laid dow
I IN AItT4hgT m IInHnln whom Won ny hnD q
crs, were lighting for the union. Thes
rules provide, OF course, for the just sever
ity necessary I'm war. The most destruC
tive Of all forms of cruelty would be {
show weakness where SternneSS is de
manded by iron need. But all cruelty !
forbidden. and all ~harshness beyond villa
is called for by need. Our enemies In tn
Philippines have not merely violated CV
cry rule Of war, but have made Of thes
violations their only method of Carryin
on the war. We would V been JUST
fled by Abraham LinColn's rules of war /
infinitely greater severity than has bee
shown. The fact really Is that our warfaT
i'm the Philippines has ben carried on wit
singular humanity, For every act Of cTucI
~ by our men there have been innumeI
able acts Of forbCarancc, m~agnanimitN
and generous kindness. These are tn
qualities which ave characterized TN
war as q whole The cruelties have bee
wholly exceptional, on our part.
Justice to All Concerned.
The guilty are to be punished; but /
furnishing them, let those who sit at cas-
at home. who walk delicatcly and live /
the soft places of the earth, remembe
also to do them common justice. Let IL
the effortless and the untempted rail over
much at strong men who Will blood an
sweat face years of toll and days an
nights of agony, and at need lay, dow
bring The light OF civilization into I'll
worlds dark places. The warfare this
has extended the boundaries of civilizs
ton at the expense OF barbarism and SAY
agery has been for centuries one OF III
most potent factors In the progress {
humanity. Yet from It's very nature
has always and everywhere been liable
dark abuses.
to prevent these abuses and to punls
those who commit them; but II becauS
of them we finch from finishing the taS
on which We have entered we show GU
selves crayens and weaklings, unworth
of the sires from whose loins we spranI
There were abuses and to spare In II
civil war. Your false friends then Gale
Grant d butcher" and spoke of you wi
are listening to me as mercenaries, 1
"Lincoln's hirelings." Your open foes
I'm the resolution passed by the confede
ate congress In october, ls62-accust
you, at great length. and with much pa
itcuiarity, of "contemptuous disregard
the usages OF civilized war" OF subiec
ing women and children TO "banishmen
Imprisonment ana death; or murder
of ~"rapine,' Of "Outrages on women
Ia wless cruelty" Of 'perpetrating atroC
lies which would be disgracetul 10 sa'
ages and Abraham Lincoln was single
out for especial attack because Of b
'.spirit OF barbarous ferocity.' Veril
these men who thus foully ~slandered yC
have their heirs today IN those who tn
luce our armies In the Philippines, VI
fix their eyes on individual deeds
wrong so keenly that at last they becon
blind TO the great work OF peace and fire
dom that has already ben accomplished.
Peace n Freedom.
Peace and freedom-are there two be
ter objects for which a soldier can figh
Wen, these are precisely the objects f.
which our soldiers are lighting In IL
I, Philippines. When there is talk of y
! cruelties committed in the Philippines, r
member always that by far the great
[ proportion of these Cruelties nave be,
committed by the insurgents against the
! own people-as well as against our SC