The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1911-06-21
WHY THE FAILURE.

An Eastern contemporary, apparent
| " gloating over the failure of Ameri-
cans to exploit and occupy the Philip
pines, eSrlts in failures Of all efforts
making TO iuiplamt Americanism in that
archipelago. you said that great things
would come Of American occupation
| why don L you. get on with them, and
show results!D And that, in general,
| is the attitude of the self-styled anti
imperialists aud their newspapers.
It is a taupt like that which one in.
vited to climb creased pole might re-
ccive from the one who had creased it.
American exploitation of the Philip.
pines is expressly guarded against IN
our own laws. Americans are forbidden
| TO have large holdings, and they are
denied the same opportunities for oc.
| cupan$yy expansion, and development
in the Philippines that they have con.
tinuously enjoyed at home. Their eff.
forts at exploitation are headed off in
every direction, "the Philippines for
the Filipinos. .the cry, although the
dearest wish Of the Filipinos as a mass
is TO lie in the shade, do nothing, and
resent the idea of anybody doing any
thing progressive, especially if he, the
Filipino, is to be disturbed
Americans only can develop the is.
lands But the law forbids them to do
it. FiGpinos are inefficient, incxpe
rieDccd. and distrusted No one will put
money into their hands for devclop
ment or any other purpose. and, as
Americans, who only can develop the
natural resources, arc forbidden to do
1T. there is nothing doing; the
region is at standstill.
A writer in recent number of the
Journal of the American Asiatic Asso
ciatlon shows the result of all efforts
under present conditions He shows
that the market for Philippine securi.
ties is absolutely dead. The Philip.
pine railway per cent bonds, guaran.
teed by the Philippine government.
and which sold at 96.5 and interest In
1908, are refused now at 81. "Even
the per cent gold bonds of the Philip
pine government itself, which has be.
hind it all the power and credit Of the
United States, have declined within
a few wears from Ii to l00N Bankers
who have these securities arc burdcned
with them, and don I want any more
of them. Investors who ask the
bankers about these securities get cold
advice. and the economic outlook for
the islands is dark, The work in the
way Of progress is done by the L. S,
officials, and their field of operations is
narrow, and the wider field is unoccu.
pied.
This wider field could and should be
occupied by people of the United
States, il VIC arc to remain IN the
Philippines. If we are not. we should
get out, But what we ought TO do is
to announce our permanent occupations.
remove all restrictions as was done III
Cuba while we occupied il, and after
ward in Porto Rico. Then American
capital would flow in AS flood. Ameri
can money would build roads,
open plantations, utilize the vast
forests of valuable timber. drain the
swamps, and make. garden spot OF
that group Of islands. With n strong
and enterprising policy. the Philippines
would become speedily a resource of
wealth incalculable: and in II all the
f'ilipinos would get advantages and
spirit which under present conditions
they, cannot reach in n thousand years.