Los Angeles herald., 1909-08-11

lin 1 ia Nl OF the American dulillilS-
EI traitors in the Philippines,
ia 81 MINl the islands have not great
lHs1kzksxssl ly prospered in material
sense in the past decade
The readjustment of the tariff laws
and the full opening of the markets OF
the United States to certain Philpplne
staples, is expected to have whole
some effect upon business, but as a
matter of fact the tariff was only part
ly responsible for conditions in busi-
ness, and its revision can only partly
aid in building up prosperity
Not since the visitation of the ten
plaques upon the people Of Egypt mas
q people suffered a greater variety OIL
disasters than have befallen the FIN
pinos. War is the most destructive en-
gine in the hands of mankind, ana tHe
/ Philippines have felt its devastation
cruelty. When it is remembered that
it required thirty years for the states
of the IJnon which formed the Com
federacy to regain their ante-bellum
status as to agriculture alone, the ell
| feet of n more terrible kind of war
upon a community far less susceptible
to reorganization may be imagined.
The war in the Philippines began IN
1896, when Aguinaldo captained the
| revolution against Spain. This was q
!
| the Friar's estates-a vexing questloia
settled only by the great diplomacy OF
| Mr.. Taft. That war had scarcely ended
when hostilities between Spain and
the United States began Admlral
| Dewey struck at Manila, Agulnaldo re-
turned and assisted the Americans 10
! take Manila. The Filipino leader found
that the Americans would not perlills
him TO realize the full fruits OF the JOINT
victory. and the insurrection began.
! After the organized insurgent army
had been defeated and routed, guerrilla
warfare was begun.
This meant that no farmer was safe
| from the operations of either slde' anu
| that everybody was frightened INTO 40
ing nothing. After the guerilla war
fare was broken up and civil rule es-
! tabIished organized bands of ladrones,
or bandits. terrorized the country. They
DESTROYED crops and houses, stole cat
tle and continued the reign OF terror.
All of this disorder is now practlcally
at an end, but 1t will require many
wears to restore the idle fields TO culu-
walton and to win the people PACK 10
peaceful habits Of industry and thFllt'
Not only war and the destructiveness
of man. but the powers or nature
have also been used against the tlll-
! ninos A series of most destructive
! typhoons has cut off the cocoanut crop
| and reduced the hemp production. IN
| precedented droughts have cut OH tne
| rice production. Locusts nave sWeps
o1,er The country leaving It stripped of
| living green-but as the F1l1plnos ear
| locusts the plague was not as unwel-
| come as II might be in other countries
! The tobacco has fallen on IN quailty'
on account of the loose ana irregular
habits of cultivation resulting lroLl
war and ladronism.
But the crowning plaques were tnose
of disease. A great epidemic of cholera
swept over the islands, killing people
! nv thousands Then came the rlnder-
nest. which in two or three years killed
80 ner cent of all the working live STOCK
| in the country Carabao, or water puL-
| falo, are used everywhere Tor dratt
prrposes. and the rinderpest almost
RGr 1yine6 them ont. Horses cannot be
nsed. because Of the Indian disease
"surra." which killed many more than
half the horses in the islands.
In spite of all these drawbacks 1t is
n fact that the Philippine islands have
not retrograded under American rule'
It is often stated, in careless fashlon,
that the Philippines do not export as
much as thew did under Spanish rule.
/ This is untrue. There has not been a
wear since 1903, the date of the restora-
tion of peace in the archipelago. that
| the exports have not amounted 10
more in dollars than they ever did un1 i,
der the rule of Spain. From 1885 until
1895. just before the beginning OF the
revolution against Spain, the average
| annual value of exports was about
S20, OOO, 900. Under American civil gov
ernment the average annual exports
have been s32OO0,0 900. The record for
the current year probably will show
a great reduction on account OF the
| slump in the price of hemp, whlch
forms more than half of the total ex-
ports of the islands.
This showing is much better than
many critics of the American regime
expect to find when they go to the
statistics, But the fact remains that
the sugar, tobacco and rice industries
Of the islands do not approach their
former prosperity. This is partly due
|