The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-04-08

ernment which seems to have avoided serious criticism presented this uni versal commendation as evidence of the good intentions of the people, pointing out to the Filipinos that peoL pie are apt to assert their rights in proportion as they increase in intelli- gence and that our people would not be foolish enough to encourage educa- tion if they really intended to do in- justice to the Filipinos.
 The large increase in the number of students and the interest taken in the establishment of schools must be talk en into consideration by any one who attempts to forecast the future of the islands. In many communities there are more people speaking English to- day than could ever speak Spanish. and the multitude of dialects will soon be dissolved into a common language. One superintendent of schools told me that in his district the attendance was more than fifty per cent above the school population. owing to the fact that grown men and women with chill dren insisted upon studying. Another superintendent reported that she could not find teachers for all the villages which offered to erect school houses. An incideat was related by still an- other teacher which Illustrates the ann DlIlOn OI IH6 PlfipihO youih. <h II 'Aa pino boy who was working in the home of an English woman notified his mistress that he wanted to go to school Being anxious to keep him. she offered to raise his wages from twenty pesos per month to forty, but he re- jected the offer. saying that he loved wis 1om more than he loved money.
 Besides the public schools, primary, secondary. industrial and normal. there e. 70 ~1If f.-s4 nnIo a Jesuits had their school and colleges under Spanish occupation, one of the boys schools which we visited at Cebu being older than Harvard University. The Catholic sisters also have numer- ous girls schools throughout the fs- lands. At Manila the Jesuits have an observatory and weather bureau which, for equipment and scientific accuracy, probably has no superior anywhere.
 The Prostestant churches are also es- tablishing schools. some of them indus- trial Who will measure the effect up- on coming generations of these multi plying agencies for the training of the boys end girls of the Philippines?
 The northern islands are inhabited by a Christian population. Whatever may be said of the governmental methods of Spain or of the political corruption of her colonial representa-
 
 faith in the islands. Prior to Ameri- can occupation the higher officials of the church and many of the priests were Spanish, but since 1900 Amerf- can and Filipino bishops and priests are being substituted. Under the lead of Archbishop Harty, the work of the church is being vigorously pushed and a large number of baptisms are re- ported. Several of the Prostestant churches are gaining a foothold, there being upwards of 10000 Filipinos en- rolled in the evangelistica1 churches. The Presbyterian church of the Tondo district Manila, has something like 400 natives, Senor Buencamino, secre- tary of state under Aguinaldo. and af- terwards a member of the civil ser vice commission. being president of the Tondo congregation.
 No discussion of the religious situa- tion in the Philippines would be com plete without a reference to the inde- pendent Catholic church of which Sem or Gregorio Aglipay is the head. "Ohispo Maximo" Aglipay is a native Filipino. forty-six years old, with an intelligent face and fine presence. In three and a half years he has estab- Iished church with some 300 priests and about 700 congregations. He claims membership of about 100000 but the clergy of the regular Catholic church de not coneede nearly so large a following. Tn fact, they deny that he has made any considerable impress