The Washington times., 1911-02-18

as has repeatedly been done before this
| committee.
Acted As Master Toward Serf.
Their attitude is that of the aristo-
crat toward the plebe, the master to-
ward the serf. Too ignorant to know
they should not speculate in things as
to which they were trustees, they have
had the effrontery to judge as to what
was good for the people over whom an
unkind Providence has placed them.
One of the particular charges or law
violation which Mr.. Ralston makes con-
Germs the purchase of real estate by Of
ficialS of the Philippine government at
Baguio, the health resort in the noun
tains, where the Philippine Commits
Sioners established the summer capital
The portion of the brief devoted to this
follows:
Under the public land act, passed by
the Philippine Commission. a commits
sion was appointed to value the lands
of the town site in BaguiO. This COM
mission acted unGer the direction and
with the approval of Secretary of the
Interior Worcester. The lands having
been thus valued, Secretary Worcester,
on May 2S, 1906, bought at the appraised
he had, as he says was known. long
desired to buy and which he considered
the lest building site in Baguio, al
though, as Is e"ident from the report
of all the circumstances, not land of the
highest appraised value.
with this resume Of facts in mind.
let us consider the law and the pro-
prieties of the situation.
1T seems TO us of the highest i'm
pOrtanCe to call attention to certain
rules Of the common law. and one or
two embodiments of the rule in statu-
tory law, which seem to offer a touch
stone to determine whether the actions
of Government officials in the Philip
pines in the cases to be enumerated
were consistent, or inconsistent, with
the principles of sound business moral
ity.
1T is principle of law so we'll known
as to need no Citation-save II were to
convince persons as ignorant Of funda-
mentals S seem to have been the lead
ing officials of the United States in the
Philippine Islands-that a person oc-
cupying trust relation cannot deal in
the property with relation to which he
Is trustee, and can gain no profit out
of or from such dealings if he so far
transgress as to deal in it.
Statutes Specifically Forbid.
THE soundness of this rule was
tory law in section ASP of the Revised
Statutes of the United States, which
reads as follows:
" The officers, clerks, and employees
in the General Land Offices are pro-
hibited from directly or indirectly
purchasing or becoming interested in
the purchase of any of the public
land: and any person who violates
this section shall forthwith be re-
moved from this office.
THE present governor general of the |
Philippine Islands is w. Cameron For |
Oes, who became such governor in the |
tTry fnI
governor on July l, 1898, previous TO
which time he was secretary of COM |
nerce and police.
Governor Forbes purchased at
Baguio, on May rs, 1906, two tracts OF |
and aggregating 64,6OO.03 square meters. /
If ground. For this he paid 1888 pesos.
or, approximately, Sc pesos per acre;
n gold, about $43.
1T is a fair assumption from the evil
lence that this was the appraised value, |
ind this assumption is borne out by the !
estimony of Secretary Worcester. The
appraised value was fixed by an as
essment committee whose actions were
subject to the approval of Mr.. WOrces-
er. To the extent, therefore of fifteen
Icres of land, in what was designed to
,e the summer capital of the Philip
lines, Mr.. Forbes became the purchaser
f a tract of land which, according to
secretary Worcester, he, Forbes, con-
iderS the best site in Baguio.
since the time of his purchase, Mr..
'Orbes has become governor general,
nd there has been erected for his use
S governor general, at the expense of
he Philippine government, mansion
osting nearly or quite, 10000 pesos, so
hat so far as the record dlscloses. this
and is now held for investment or
peCulatiOn
From the time of his purchase up
o his appointment as governor or vice
Overnor, Forbes was secretary of COM
lerce and police. and under his juris~
iCtiOn came the bureau of public
.orks This bureau had and has charge
f the expenditure of public moneys at
Iaguio, and under it large amount
f money, only in part as we believe.
scertainable from a careful perusal OF
ne reports of the commission. has been
xpended for the Improvement and de-
elopment of Baguio.
For instance, an automobile road has
cen constructed, public buildings have
cen erected, a sanitarium has been
stabIished, drives Of an extensive char
cter have been made, and expenditures
ygregatinR hundreds of thousands of
1ilars, the effect of which has been {
, increase the value of lands in Baguto, !
ave been made or provided tor, many
these expenditures antedating the ]
me of purchase, and many occurring
Secretary of Interior Arraigned. l
mo thought of the improperly of his
,nduct seems to have entered the head :
the governor general of the Philip '
ne Islands. t
For many years-in fact, nearly, or J
ute, from the beginning-Dean {.
forester has been secretary of the :
lterior of the Philippine Islands. The :
nd laws, with all their incongruities,
18th their defiance in spirit and in text
the statute of the United States
,rming the Philippine government, :
ave been framed or supervised by
i'm.
Mr.. Worcester controlled the board
.aking the appraisements upon the
nd at Baguio. He knew in advance
the establishment of the new town
lie tract he desired for himself. AS he
lys: 1T was known for fully five years
Lat I intended to bid for the lot which
afterward occupied His appraisers,
lerefore, whose actions he confirmed,
ust have known the same thing. He,
xe Mr.. Forbes, considered that he had
lie best site. h
He purchased on May 2S, 1906, the =
ate of the purchase Of Mr.. Forbes,
,67697 square meters of land, paying
erefor 59515 pesos. In other words,
IT approximately ten acres he paid 60
esos per acre, or $50 in gold, in the
mmer capital of the Philippines, upon
e approach to which hundreds OF
ousands of dollars had been expended,
I'd hundreds of thousands of dollars,
stated, had, or have been since then,
id out for public buildings and public Z
lprovements, under the direction of {
e Philippine Commission, consisting
himself and his immediate official ,
Id personal associates.
1T is not to be wondered at that many
tho American officials followed the -