The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1906-06-15

FBVa
DR.. Stuntz is thoroughly In sympa-
thy with the American occupation
of the Philippines and he believes
our government is making a most
magnificent record for itself over
there. He said that to speak OF the
Philippines was simply to open the
controversy that has been caTlied on
against the army and the president
OF the United States yer since the
American occupation. He declared
most emphatically that the presence
OF the government in the Philippines
was not an overt attempt to steal
that territory, but that we were
drawn into it step by step, unwill-
ingly perhaps, and vet what was
done had to be done, and on the
whole it appeared providential.
He told of the capture of Manila
bv Admiral Dewey, and the ques-
tion that confronted this govern
ment after the flag had been run up.
To have sailed away would still have
left the Filipinos at the mercy OF
the Spaniards, and there was not an
other point where a coaling station
could be found. He told of the final
purchase of the Islands, the appoint
ment of Aguinaldo as sort of a lieu
tenant under our government con-
troll, his treacllery, els effort to es-
tablish a government of his own,
and the war that followed. Speaking
of the criticism that has been
offered against the government i'm not
allowing the Filipinos to form their
own government, he declared that
these people owned nothing in the
Islands, had no right to organize a
republic, and that the United
States dealt wholly with Spain as the
owner of the Islands and there was
no question as to. the subsection of
the Filipinos to Spanish rule.
In referring to the date of Aug.
IL, 1898, when the Americans we've
in possession of Manila, DIR. Stuntz
saidit was Il day to be proud Of our
army 1t had teen the custom in all
! former wars in that country to allow
a certain number of days at the end
of the war for footing and pillage,
and the Fill pinos supposed that they
would be able under the same condi-
tions to carry off a great deal of
plumber from the city, and had gath
cred thousands of bags outside for
tho purpose. The American com
manders did not allow them to do
anything Of the kind; the soldiers
pollced the town and kept a close
watch on the movements of the ma
tives to prevent any stealing.
Dr.. Stuntz gave an interesting re-
citai Of what the government found
IN the way Of climate and soil, the
richness Of which we over here had
not the slightest conception. He
summed up In q brief way Of what
the government had accomplished in
the way OF establishing a judiciary
that had liberated Men and women
who had been thrust into prison
years ago without the slightest foun-
dation for their incarceration sani-
tary laws had been established and
enforced. which he declared had been
the means Of saving the lives Of more
people than were killed during the
war; the free school system had been
established, and it vas q grand sue
cess under the ministration of over
500 American school teachers who.
we're training 10000 Filipino chill
dren In the English language; the
establishment Of experiment. stations
where the natives were taught the
best methods Of getting all the pro-
ducts possible from the rich soil.
DR.. Stuntz referred to the temper
ance question in the Islands and
stated that he was amazed that John
g. Woolley had made such a sense
less and foundationless charge that
intemperance vas stalking abroad in
the land and that his son was the
only total abstinence man he met
over that, and further, that the
government was encouraging the
liquor traffic. The speaker made it
very plain in his presentation Of the
actual situation that the govern
ment was not encouraging the liqour
traffic, and that there were thousands
and thousands OF total abstainers ir
sthe Islands; he referred to the re-
strictions that the government had
placed over the sale of liquor, and
That 1T followed even stricter rules
there than in this country. In
CLOSING DR.. Stuntz stated that the
future of the Islands was more or
less questionable, for the reason that
a great deal of the stock in the
try was diving of bv reason Of an IN,