The Billings gazette. [volume] (Billings, Mont.) 1896-1919, 1902-01-21
INSULAR

JOURNAL. senate
Hoar, in supporting his resolution tC
have a senate committee appointed tC
investigate the administration of gov.
eminent in the Philippines. took oc.
casion yesterday to charge our gov.
eminent with crushing out a repub'
lie" crushing the liberty out of an.
other people, and he declared that
had we dealt with the Philippines as
we have dealt with the Cubans, 'the
Fflipinos would now be a happy, pros
porous people, sending their children
to our schools and initiating our in
stitutions.' OF course, there will he
no committee appointed. for there is
already a senate committee in charge
of the Philippines.
The charges of Mr.. Hoar are singu-
larly inaccurate, but such views as he
expresses are entertained by the eIe-
ment calling themselves anti-imper-
ialists who have been rather uuie.
since even they have discovered that
the nation is disposed to continue it's
work of spreading American civiliza-
ton in the Philippines and of bring
ing peace and orderly government and
security for life and property and op-
portunity for the investment Of cap
ital in the archipelago, giving a Slim
illus to the industrial activity of the
people and greatly lettering their con
dition. We have dealt so we'll With
the Islanders that, among other bena-
tits conferred, Senator Hoar ought to
know that there is an intelligently Or
ganized educational system. under an
alert American superintendent, who
has placed eighteen assistant super
intendents wherever it is possible to
organize a school district and has Sc
cured a thousand teachers from the
United States and is preparing ma
tives to teach. This year $500, 900 is
provided for school buildings, $500. 900
for school furniture, $4,000 for a nor
NAL school in Manila and a like sum
for normal schools elsewhere on the
islands. At the very start the boon
of liberal public education. after the
progressive American method. has
been bestowed upon the Filipinos and
the educational process and with it
Americanization, is extended just so
fast as the people are ready to re-
ceive it. Senator Hoar thinks that
II we had dealt with these people as
we have dealt with the Cubans, they
would be sending their children to
our schools and initiating our insti-
%tutions.' He knows hat it was i'm
possible to deal with the %Filipinos as
we deal with the Cubans, for the con-
ditions were entirely different. We
had sovereignty in the Philippines
and we had no sovereignty in Cuba,
but a trust to be carried out to a peo-
pie conditioned in an entirely different
manner. AS a matter of fact, the
Filipinos are going to well-appointed
schools in the American plan; the
agricultural department is about to
send an expert with a corps Of as
sistants to introduce modern methods
on the islands and develop the agri-
cultural wealth; municipal govern
ments are establishing and a judicial
system has been organized and bills
are preparing for the civil governmea.
of the archipelago on the basis OF tie
Taft commissions recommendations.
The Lodge bill is designed to give tie
islands a form Of territorial govern
ment under a civil governor and IN
tenn. something like that provided for
Alaska. Congressman Cooper has pre-
pared a measure looking to the pur-
chase by the government of the land
holdings of the friars, who have great
ly oppressed the natives, and the sale
of the lands to actual settlers, so pro-
viding many thousands of the people
with homes.
The truth is that, instead of "crusn-
ing anybody's liberty, the United
States is comforting the highest form
OF liberty upon a people who, under
the Spanish regime of nearly 400
years knew not what liberty was. The
American record is secure from cal
jimmy in the hands Of all intelligent
future historians.
LAW AND ORDER WIN,