The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1902-05-04

moved, at least greatly relaxed and the
effect upon production will be the same
| there as it has been in the Hawaiian Is
| lands.
| In less than ten years" says Mr.
| Robertson in the speech from when !
| have quoted. after the adoption or the
reciprocity treaties with these lslahas
| (Hawaiian) the amount of sugar import
| ed into this country from them had IN
| creased 1000 per cent" The Govern
| ment reports show that in 1875, the year
before the treaty, the Hawaiian Islands
| imported to this country only 25,00O.OO0
| pounds of sugar, valued at $1,216,OO0 III
round numbers. In 1899 they imported TO
this country az, 800 537 pounds, valued at
$21 ,S9S.900
| If the effect of American thrift and
| enterprise and the relaxation of tariff
restrictions shall have the same effect in
| stimulating the production and exporta-
| tion of the staple agricultural crops OF
| the Philippines as it has had on the
| growth and expectation of snugar in the
| Hawaiian Islands, will not the producers
of rice, sugar and tobacco, and perhaps
| cotton, in this country find in these is
| lands a dangerous competitor? Our
sugar and tobacco planters are alarmed
over competition of Cuban sugar and to-
| bacco, and are vigorously protesting
against the proposition of a 20 per cent
cut on the duty of sugar from this is
land. The Philippines are many times
| larger than Cuba and can produce sugar
| and tobacco chaper than Cuba can pro-
duce them.
These staple products can not only be
| raised III abundance in the Philippines,
but they will be raised more cheaply
| than they can be raised in America, not
! only because Of their cheaper manual
| labor, but cheaper beast. Mr.. Foreman,
in his valuable work on the Philippines,
| from which | have before quoted, tells
us that the native laborer of the Phil
| ippines can live in luxury upon 20 cents
| a day. In America farm labor costs
| from so to rs cents a day. The farm
animal of the Philippines is the water
| buffalo. He costs never more than $50
| and generally only from $15 to 500, while
| the farm mule and farm horse in this
country costs from 800 to 5000
| 1t is said that the islands can never be
developed with Philippine labor because
! ii is lazy and thriftless. Perhaps that is
true. 1t certainly is true unless, under
| the stimulus of American thrift and the
| influence of an opportunity to labor for
! better wages, the Filipino shall become
| a more effective farm hand. But that
these islands will be agriculturally de-
VelOped if We retain them, ! have no
doubt. If not developed by the employ
ment of native labor, then with what
| sort OF labor?
Certainly we cannot develop them
| with Caucasian labor, for the white man
/ cannot work under that tropical sun. If
| we cannot develop them with native or
| Caucasian labor, | ask again with what
| labor will we develop them? Without
hesitation | answer, Chinese labor. AL
| ready considerable proportion OF the
! best population of LuZon is said to be OF
| Chinese extraction. | know it is said by
some that we will exclude the Chinaman
from the archipelago, as we have eX
| cluded him from this country. | do not
| believe that. That law we have recently
passed to that effect. will not be per-
| manent.
know there is prejudice in this
| country against the Chinaman as la
| borer in our mines and on our railroads
and in our factories just as there is
prejudice against the negro laborer in
| these industries. But I do not believe
that prejudices exist against the China
man as a farm laborer in this country
| any more than it does as against the
negro as q farm laborer.
| However that may be. if we keep the
islands we may be absolutely certain of
one thing-they will be exploited, and
| by whom? They will be exploited by
those great syndicates and land corpora
| tions that are already organized and be-
| ing organized for that purpose, and in
whose interest much of the pending bill
! is manifestly framed. 1t contains about
| 100 pages, and at least so of them are
| devoted to devising and putting into
statute law a scheme by which the land.
and the timber. and the coal, and the
oil, and the minerals in those islands
may fall into the hands of these corpora
tions and syndicates at a nominal price.
There is one most significant provision
| in the bill 1t is with reference to leas-
ing the land. 1t says that an individual
may acquire 100 acres, but corporation
may acquire as much as 5000 acres. 1t
is perfectly manifest that the bill was
prepared and is to be passed here in the
interest OF these very syndicates and land
4
that stand like hungry wolves upon the
border ready to enter and to take these
lands and to exploit them
We asked the committee to tell us
what they ultimately proposed with re-
gard to these island and these people.
They decline to answer But. Mr.. Presi-
dent, we are going forward as rapidly
as we can to seize and appropriate every
thing upon the islands that is valuable.
1t reminds me of the case of a man who
has acquired title to tract of land that
may be technically good, like our title
to the lands of those islands. but that
has no foundation in morals or in JUS
tice When he is asked to surrender his
| legal title because of it's lack of morality
he says, "Wait; after a while I will give
you an answer" and he proceeds to cut
the timber and to mine the ore and the
coal and the oil, and when he has
stripped it of timber and ore and oil
and everything that is valuable, says, Il
am ready now to surrender you back
your title"
Mr. President, I cannot contemplate
without some feeling of alarm the pros
pect of building up in the archipelago