The bee., 1908-10-01
PHILIPPINES FOR THE FlLIPINOS"
Mr.. Taft Coined This as a Permanent
Motto For His Own Guidance and
That of other Americans in
Civil and Military Life.

Mr.. Taft took up the problem in the
Philippines in characteristic fashion,
as schoolboy would a slate covered
with the marks of fruitless efforts to
do sum. He started by wiping the
slate clean. That is, he delivered a
statement in such explicit, unequivo-
cal language that for the first time
since we went into the islands the
Filipinos knew precisely where they
stood. He said 1t was the definite
purpose of the United States to main
tain sovereignty over the Philippines.
There was to be no immediate inde-
peDdence. We were not going to get
out. The commission would not me-
gotiate with men bearing arms. With
the revolutionist as such, the army
would treat. The commission was
willing and ready to remain in the
islands for years, or until civil gov
ernment was well begun" There
was hard and fast promise that the
Filipinos would have as great a part
as possible in the civil administration.
That was the only comfort the Filipi-
nos received as salve for the unsoft-
ened blow that came upon them in
the shape of the statement that we
were in the islands to stay. Directly
after this came another move by Mr..
Taft, which emphasized what he had
already said, and brought the Filipi-
nos to full appreciation that he meant
what he said. A peace banquet"
had been arranged by Filipino lead
ers, at which II was designed to reit-
crate afresh the alleged promises that
had been passed to Aguinaldo by our
military commanders, to the effect
that we were there to grant imme-
diate independence to the islands.
Mr.. Taft, in the name of the commits
sion, refused to countenance any such
proceedings byits presence, and wrote
In cancelling the acceptance of the in
vitation: mo one having any author
ity to speak for the United States has
ever said one word justifying the be-
lief that a protectorate such as this
speech promises will be established.
II is impossible The discussion of a
protectorate as a possibility involves
a Misrepresentation which may in
duce submission to the United States
by deceit The members OF the com
mission cannot be parties to such
misrepresentation.
Thus Mr.. Taft inaugurated the new
policy of attraction" that was to win
the Filipinos He cleaned the slate.
set out the sum afresh in bold, plain
characters, and for the solution OF 1t
applied rules tried and untried, some
of which worked and others of which
didn't. But they all were based by
him upon the broad and solid foun-
dation of truth, candor, the square
deal. the Golden Rule, justice and a
growing and profound knowledge of
what was best for the Filipinos, which
was infreQuently apt to be not what
they thought they wanted.
1t was a novel experience for them.
They were accustomed to being ig-
nored, or having delivered 10 them
promises which were seldom fulfilled,
and In which they themselves took
no stock. But here was a man who
received them in private or public
with the distinguished courtesy that
one hidalgo would accord another,
listened untiringly TO what they had
10 say, who let them talk themselves
out without suggesting boredom or
impatlenee; who was deft, tactful and
indefatigable at seeking TO read their
hearts. TO find out what their griev-
ances were, what II was they wanted.
Immediately they conceived for him
the respect, the confidence that one
always feels toward him who scorns
to fiatter, who tells one unpleasant
but truthful things. SO Mr.. Taft
gained HIS first great triumph in the
Philippines He took the Filpinos
into his confidence and was taken into
theirs All of the consummate exec
utiVe and administrative genius which
he afterward developed and displayed
would have been discounted by half
had he not progressed 30 far al the
start Mr.. Taft laid down a perma-
nent motto for his own guidance and