The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1903-08-03


thanks. Well, you will probably say,
But we will educate them Well, so
was Scotchman educated to play the
bagpipes and when a certain character
OF Shakespeare's heard the result of
Scotty's education You know what he
did. You would want to do likewise
if you saw the result of fifteen months
education in this town by American
teachers.
SAMPLE OF EDUCATION.
During the year 1902 here a mixed
population of haif-bred Chenos and
F'ilipinos attended the local school.
The average attendance was sixty-five.
Half of them attended four hours
daily five days a week, the other half
two hours daily for the same number
of days. The cost of building the
nipa school and paying two American
teachers all the year and one AM
erican teacher six months was over
$1,000 Mex, or about $500 gold Amer
lean dollars, and what is the result?
A few of them can sing nursery rhymes
such as My pony lies ober de ocean,
and can swear in English like an Am
erican cow-puncher. Our boy henry
went to school there during this time.
When he started he was in the fifth
class and at the end of a year he
was put back to the fourth, and his
writing was also worse at the end of
the year than when he went to school
We took him away and are teaching
him at home. I wrote to Mr.. Town
send (whom you know. the Superin-
tendent of the Division, complaining
of the case and the teacher who was
neglecting his work to trade, and the
only thing that came of my complaint
the Inspector General of the Division
military was asked to investigate
and he said the school was the best
conducted in all the department So
you can imagine what the other
schools must be. The teachers can talk
nothing but English and the scholars
(save the mark swear at them in
Spanish and Moro and the poor devils
of teachers don't know any better.
A WHITE ELEPHANT.
my opinion of the Islands and the
Filipino inhabitants, after nearly five
years residence, is, as you say,
white elephant. The Islands have cost
Uncle Sam $20O, 0OO, 900 in addition to
the 10000 900 paid for them. They
are costing annually $4,000, 900. while
the revenues for the whole of the ISL
ands are about $12,0OO,00O Mex, or &c.
900, 900 gold, and withal this being paid
by the United States taxpayer for the
food of the Filipinos. I expect to see
$4,000 American soldiers back in the
Islands before a year and the whole
present policy changed. The old say
ing that you cannot make a silk purse
out of a sow's ear holds good with the
Filipinos.
CENTURY PREMATURE.
For this 1 am sorry, not for the
Fflipinos but for poor Taft, because he
has tried to do the right thing for
the Americans. only his policy is a
hundred years ahead of the people and
they cannot reach out that far, and
in endeavoring to bridge the chasm they
will fall into it helpless. OF course what
I have said does not apply to the
Moros or Mahomedan population, such
as is in all the country surrounding
here. The only Filipinos here are in
the small towns and the whole of
them do not number 500. while the |
Moros number in the vicinity of 100,-
BOO for the Rio Grande and Lake San |
do.
ct have now lived in this place over |
two years. I have made exploring |
expeditions into the interior of the |
island, extending over several weeks |
at a time, and have crossed the ISL |
and of Mindanao at three different |
places. 1 had no one but Moros with |
me and my life was entirely in their |
hands and have never been modest |
a ht-
perior to the Tagalos and other Fill
pinos, as has been shown in the past |
by the Spaniards never being able to
conquer them, and from my expert
ence of both peoples I am sure the
Moros will make much the best citi-
zens and will never be any trouble to
he Civil Government or Military once
tley are taken in hand. They are
nearly all cultivators of the soil and
here are no ambitious half-breeds a
them to give trouble in the
uture.
"I never expect to see an uprising
amongst the Moros, and I know them
better than anyone else in the Islands,
or I am the only one that has been |
amongst them trading and studying |
hem and prospecting their country.
which I always found peaceable and
he people kindly disposed toward the
Americans. The Moros will appreci-
tie anything the Americans might do
or them, and they can and will do
much.
General Wood is coming to this De-
,artment, and I expect many chang
$ for the better in the conditions OF
he Moros during his term here. His
york in Cuba speaks for itself.
CANE BEATS EVA.
Speaking of sugar, I saw sugar
ane grown in this valley which meas
lred over % feet long when cleaned
Me country is very wonderful in agri-
.ulture. The soil is rich The eli
nate is good. The rainfall is abund-
mt and the country well-watered oy
ivers and canals and there are very
ew people in it. and all it wants to be
made the most productive island on
arth is American capital, energy and
contract labor"