The independent., 1903-12-10
FILIPINO AMERICANS

f FILIPINO AMERICANS
Not many people know that there is
a colony of about 1000 Filipinos in
New Orleans. The first of them came
here nearly hundred years ago. The
colony was started by petty officers
and seamen who had served in the
Spanish navy, but Filipinos have been
coming from the islands ever since,
nearly 400 of those now living in the
city having been born in the Philip
pine islands. These brown-skinned
Filipinos of New Orleans are in all re-
spects treated as white men. Their
social and trade relations are with
white men; they have, with one or two
exceptions, married white women;
their children rank as white mems
children and are not obliged to attend
negro schools; they enjoy the same
naturalization privileges as white for
eigners, and their American born sons
are citizens of the republic.
They are great linguists and nearly
all of them speak English, Spanish
and Tagal. They are engaged in
shrimp fishing and canning. Many of
them are comparatively wealthy.
While being in the south and hav-
ing all their interests and associations
in the south, it would have been nat
ural enough for them to have espoused
the cause of the south in the civil war.
But not so; they had ideas about lib
erty then as now. To their lasting
credit be it said, they joined and
fought with the soldiers of the Union
in order to free the slave, and some
of the blood that helped to wash the
stain Of slavery from Old Glory was
Filipino blood. A widow Of one of
these Filipino soldiers still lives in
New Orleans, and is the recipient of a
small pension from the United States
government.
Sixto, Lopez has recently visited
these people and published a full ac-
count of them in the Springfield Re-
publican. In his gentle way he tries
to show that the idea that Americans
have that the Filipinos are savage and
uncivilized is mistaken idea. This
colony of Filipinos takes a very active
interest in all American affairs and all
of them, with the exception of one,
are anti-imperialists. One of them re-
marked that Senator Hoar differs
from Senator Lodge as much as Abra-
ham Lincoln differed from Simon
Lagree."
&S&SSSS&
After the harmony dinner and af-
ter Hanna had paid a visit to New
York the question again arose: rs
Hanna really in favor of the nomina-
tion OF Roosevelt?" Tom Platt was
appealed to and he settled 1t after this
fashion. He said: Hanna Is as
much In favor of Roosevelt's nomina-
tion as | am" The Independent Is
OF the opinion that Tom Platt told the
straight truth that time.
$c>>SS~&
The New Haven Register, after re-
counting the instances In which
Roosevelt has attacked foreign affairs,
enumerating the attempt 10 interfere
In domestic matters OF Russia, his
dash for the Turk and his exploits In
Panama, says: The belief Is wide
spread that Theodore Roosevelts ma
ture IN too imperial for an agricultural
and manufacturing people"
$S>>$S>
The Independent would like to in-
dulre what gentlemen mean when they
talk about organizing a new party"
Do they mean To organize party adj
vocatIng different principles from
those advocated by any Of the exist
lng partieaT Or DO they mean to or
ganlze a party advocating the prln-
elples now advocated by some one OF
the existing parties, but simply give