New-York tribune., 1904-08-06
PORTO RTCAN PROBLEMS.
Light ThrOscn on Them by, a Dis
interested Observer.


sng ex;,er.erce which is bound TO be useful IN
tho la-ge~ 6cId of the Philippines. where the
uues;.1ns g permanent civil government Were
postponed By :he insa-9ection. This experience
moreover viii guiGe =, rs Professor Rowe
believes thcy mus. the rest Of the AhuleS
gravitate 70 US under the pressure OF cco'io'i'i'
necess. ~ The work of the United STATES 4ii
Porto Rico IS therefore worthy OF much Closer
intention than it has received. On one or two
occasions when Porto Rican legislation seemed
10 offer ~ ISSUE for political warfare At home
s;s supposed wrongs were exploited without any
reference 10 thc actual interests OF Pos'o Ilco
Otherwise Porto Rico has been ignored ny the
Antorlcaf. Tscf,le. Professor Rowe, who was sent
10 Porto Rico BIZ President Mckinley TO assist IN
revising and compiling the laws found in force
there on annexation, and was afterward chair
man of the Code Commission. with expert
knowledge reviews the progress made by the
United States in devisilg government suited 10
the island and by the Porto Ricans in fitting
themselves for participation in representative
government. He holds no brief for any party or
theory and does not blink the few mistakes and
partial failures Of the American officials.
In Porto Rico we are dealing not with primi-
tive people but with an arrested civilization.
our task wss simplihed by the enthusiasm of
the people for American rule and by the exist
ence Of an established order which required
adaptation 10 new conditions. but not revolution.
on the other hand, it was made difficult by our
own policy Of giving the Porto Ricans self-gov-
ernment as rapidly es possible in harmony with
their own desire. and by their unreadiness to
discharge the responsibilities which they were
eager 10 assume. Under Spain the Porto Ricans
had been almost entirely excluded from public
Affairs When the door OF politics was opened TO
them they took their diversion with undue
seriousness. A mans fellow partisans became
hts ''coreligfonists" and the bitterness and vio-
lence engendered were serious obstacles TO Porto
Rican progress. Only slowly is the sense Of
political moderation and obligation TO respect
che rights OF the minority growing. On their
side the Americans, especially those in minor
places ere contenptuous Of other races ar1 i'm
rafiant Of thsir ways, The effort TO draw the
Porto Ricans into the conduct Of their own gov
erulnent under American supervision has re-
suited "a an administration less efficient than
Americans alone might have set UP. while the
American leadership. though undoubtedly neces-
sary, has been an unwelcome restraint upon the
schemes of native politicians.
IN all matters OF administration the Porto
Ricans have been anxious TO copy American
models much faster than the Americans have
thought wise while in the domain of law they
have chung tenaciously to Spanish methods.
which to the Americans seemed utterly incom-
patible with the principles OF Anglo Saxon lib-
erjy. BY policy OF wise moderation both the
military and civil governors stTove 10 reconcile
aspiration with the necessities OF order. They
went too far II the matter Of local govern
:nents, aEG 1t has been found necessary TO CEN
tr;iiize authority and subject the municipalities
10 stricter control because of the abuse Of power
hy getty courts and officials. The codes have
heen re1}odelIed 10 harmorize with American
standards of domestic life and personal liberty
while retaining the features which suited native
conditions. The courts were reorganized, the
criminal law Hberalized 70 give accused persons
a faiver chance 70 defend themselves and jury
trial made optional
The working OF the fury law Is worthy Of the
consideration OF those who have held that il was
a monstrous wrong to the Porto Ricans not to
govern them al once as American citizens under
The Constitution. Had this been done jury trial
would have been compulsory In all criminal
cases and optional in al but minor civil cases.
Professor Rowe says that by the mass of the
Porto Rican population the right Of trial by jury
and the complete autonomy Of the municipalities
were regarded as the two Indispensable accom-
paniments OF American rule. The complete mu-
nicipal autonomy had to be abandoned 10 save
the lives and properties of Porto Ricans from
themselves, and 10 the trial by jury the native
lawyers were opposed. After it was granted not
a single jury trial was demanded for seven
months, and il has been resorted to since only
as accused persons have discovered that owing
10 the inherited disposition OF the native TO side
against the government a jury can generally be
relied upon 20 free guilty man. out OF the
hrst forty~seyen jury trials only eighteen re-
suited N conviction. Jury trial is based on a
popular respect for law and rules Of evidence
combining the unframed mind to the considera-
fion OF pertinent facts. These do not exist in
ForSo Rico The clannish feeling there prev
aien, the not unreasonable fear of jurors to con-
Wet and a lack OF any feeling Of popular re-
sponsibility FOR the maintenance Of order have
prevented the satisfactory working OF the sys-
tenn The experience demonstrates the fact that
political institutions must be judged with ref
ereRee 20 the character OF the people involved.
Professor Rowe shows likewise that the main
tenance Of Porto Rico as q separate estate for
revenue purposes was practically beneficial TO
the island. ana relieved IL from a burden OF fed
eral taxation which It could have III afforded 10
bear. he includes IL the volume an analysis of
the insular decisions OF the Supreme Court which
will be useful foE the study of Philippine as well
as or Porto Riean problems. On the whole the
author thinks that the progress Of Porto Rico
industrial political and social. gives distinct
promise OF a successful solution OF its problems.
The experience Of the last three wears leads him
TO question II We have not overestimated our
spirit OF tolerance and the elasticity OF our ideas
Our Impulse is 10 force our entire system OF law
and government. OF domestic and public fnstitu-
fions, upon peoples with system OF their own
We think because the English common law
under which we have been developing for a
thousand years, fits our needs that the people
under the Roman law must be deprived Of II the
instant they come under our dominion, or be
considered slaves. Our lawyers who went TO
Porto Rico wanted to adopt wholesale each the
system OF his own State and many OF our people
az home thought close conformity 10 our meth