Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-09-23
WILL Be CONSERVATIVE
Radical Action by Philippine As
sembIy Not Expected.
NATI0NALISTS IN CONTROL
Demand for Independence Will Not
Have Big Majority.
MAY NOT BE ADOPTED
Dominant Party Made Up of Many
Elements, Some of Them Wholly
With tho GoverDment
NATIONALISTS IN CONTROL
NAY NOT BE ADOPTED
MAY

MANILA, +. l., august IL. l5t
When the first Philippine assembly meets
there will be a great many surprises. One
will be the conservatism of that body and
| Its attitude toward the government In gen.
eral. To a person who has no more knowl-
edge of insular affairs than Is gathered
from reading the newspapers. either those
published here or in the United States. the
| assertion that the Filiplnos will not de-
| mand immediate Independence will prob
| ably seem to be based on a false estimate
| of the people and conditions
Yet after talking with the leaders Of all
sthe factions of the dominant party l am
convinced that no such demand will be
made by the first assembly. II the matter
Is brought up much discussion will ensue,
and If the resolution is adopted. 1t will
be by such close vote that it will not be
accepted. either in the Philippines or in the
United States, as voicing the sentiments of
the people.
Formation Of Federal Party.
To fully appreciate the results of the re-
cent election In the islands It is necessary
| to go back to the time when Secretary Taft.
then governor general. was trying to bring
order out Of the chaos war had caused
Many of the shrewd politicians. bright men
all of them. saw the way the wind
blowing and made overtures to the author
tiles for peace. They came into the fold
and offered to help to bring in the other
recalcitrants. Gov. Taft accepted their aid
and they formed most important factor in
the establishment of civil government Just
how important can only be guessed. the
men who came in first were among the
strongest in the insurrecto government
Trinidad Pardo de Tavera was probably
the brightest and shrewdest of all those
who held high office in Agulnaldo's cabi-
net: Benito Legarda was member of the
insurrecto congress. the congress Of Malo-
las, as 1t was ca led Both of these men
are now members of the Philippine COM
mission. Gregorio Araneta. now attorney
general of the islands. held a high legal
office with Mabini and Aguinaldo. Felipe
Buencamino was another high cabinet Of
f1cer of the revoutionsts. The list could be
extended almost without limit. all of the
men named being high officials of the in
surrectionsts. but quick to see the power
of the United States and quick to
cumb to it's strength.
AS soon as they had surrendered abso-
lutely to the government forces these men
formed what was known as the federal
party, its name being significant of the at
titude 1t held toward the powers. This was
the first political combination made and it
Immediately resulted in the formation of
all of the other factions INTO an alliance
against the federals. These people raised
the cry of immediate independence, and the
various independista parties that have gone
into the field since then have had two i'm
portant planks in their platform. First and
foremost was bitter enmty toward the
federalS. Independence came next. This
hatred of the first party came naturally be-
| cause the men who first surrendered and
proved themselves the friends of the gov
eminent were the ones to whom the offices
were given when FIJI pinos were appointed
to office. AS civil service was Immediately
established these offices are still being held
by the members and supporters Of the orig
inal friends Of the government.
Union National Party.
In the municipal and provincial elections
that have been held since the pacification
of the islands the federals have generally
won, because they had the best organiza-
ton. Lately the name of federal became
such red rag to the independence orators
that the leaders of the party met and made
a change, calling themselves progresistas
or the party devoted to the material prog
ress of the islands. There were at least half
a dozen factions of the independence party
styling themselves variousiy, un.onists. i'm
mediate and urgent lndependstS. and by
host of other names that would have no
meaning to an American, but were fun of
significance to the Filipino. they denoted
the shade of his independence leaning to
hairs breadth At the beginning of the re-
cent campaign ii few of the leading spirits
of these factions met and decided to fuse
their following with the set purpose of de-
feating the progresista element. 1t was a
rather peculiar gathering. that fusion con-
vention. 1t contained men of every stamp
and caliber, men who were bitter enc
mics of each other they were, com ined.
of the progresstas. But the fusion was
formed, and for time was known as the
union nacional' Later the name was
shortened to .'nacionalista," and as such it
continued to be known.
Many Factions in the Nationals.
The cementing of friendship between the
lion and the lamb WIS simple thing COM
pared with the task Of keeping the warning
factions of the national union together, al
though for long tine they remained
friendly and many Of the best men Of the
party believed that the bonds would hold
to the end. There were men in this union
who were drawn to it solely through their
bitter hatred of the old federalists. In this
category might be placed Sergio Osmena
and Manuel Quezon. both of them at the
time of the formation of the union provin-
cial governors and strong supporters of the
insular authorities. Both have been elected
to the assembly from their provinces on the
nacionalista ticket, but 1t is difficult to be-
lieve that they are In any sense independ-
ents. Both have told me repeatedly that
their one ambition was to defeat certain of
the old federal leaders. Osmena is an an
nexationist and QueZon Is strongly pro-gov-
eminent. Osmena will be the speaker Of
the assembly and Qnczon is likely to be the
floor leader. There were others Of the same
caliber who trained with the nacionalistas
principally for the pun pose of downing the
progresistas, subordinating their personal
political faith to their one idea.
After the campaign had been under way
1t became apparent that either these men
or the rabid independents must lead the
party. The biggest fight came In Manila
where Dominador Gomez held forth He 1t
was who had been active in forming the
union and he wished to dominate He be-
gan his campaign in a fiamboyant manner,
as candidate from the first Manila dis
trict and his methods were so extreme that
the party split and the seceders placed an
other candidate in the field. This was the
signal for the conservatives among the ma
cionalista candidates to put themselves be-
fore the people without political afftliation
of any kind. to draw away from all par
ties, as 1t were. and practically elect them
selves All of than did not follow this
plan Osmena. for instance. had his ma
cialista organization so we'll In hand In
Cebu that it was not necessary. With Que
ION in Tayabas, it was different He de-
c,ared himself an Independent candidate
and carried his campaign without aid from
the nacionalstas and was elected 1t must
be remembered, however, that the party had
started the campaign and organized II so
effectively in the interests of the candi-
dates who later bol.ed that 1t had become
more of a personal following of the candi-