The San Juan islander. [volume] (Friday Harbor, Wash.) 1898-1914, 1913-09-26
SLAVERY IS RIFE
IN PHILIPPINES
Borah Says Situation Demands
Action by Congress.
Warning Tribes Capture Enemies
and Sell Women and Children
-PeOnage Common.

Washington, D. Cat the first fa-
rorable opportunity, Senator Borah,
If Idaho, will lay before the senate
documentary proof of his charge that
slavery and peonage exist, to large
degree, in the Philippine islands and,
based on that evidence, he will ask
congress- so to legislate as to wipe out
these two practices. Slavery and
homage in the Philippine islands are
now prohibited under the terms of the
Philippine government bill, passed by
congress July 1, 1902, but that act
nrovides no penalties and makes no
nrovision for the enforcement of the
law.
Some time ago the senate, on mo-
tion of Senator Borah, called upon the
secretary of War to furnish any evil
denee in the files of his department as
70 the existence Of slavery and peon-
age in the Philippines. The secre-
tary's reply, written in the bureau of
insular affairs, conveyed the impress
sion that there was neither slavery nor
peonage in the islands. Senator Borah
has evidence that native children and
women and occasionally men, are sold
and held as slaves or poems, and in
that condition are often brutally treat
ed by their virtual owners. His chief
reliance, however, is on report writ
ten by Dean G. Worcester, secretary
of the Philippines, April 80, which is
repete with evidence substantiating
the charges.
After citing innumerable cases, Civ.
ing names, dates and particulars, Sec
rotary Worcester concludes this re-
port, saying:
"Negritos, Infugaos, Manobos, Tag
banuas, Moros and Filipinos have
been captured by armed men, who in
order to obtain them, killed their par
ents or other natural defenders, and
have subsequently been sold as chat
tells and compelled to render services
for which they were not paid.
Members of the aforementioned
tribes, as we'll as Christian Filipinos,
have been kidnapped and subsequently
sold, held and required to render SER
vices as above.
Filipino slaves have been shipped
to China. Filipino school children
have been secretly enticed from their
homes by false promises of education
and remuneration and have been sold
into slavery and peonage.
while there has been much noise
about slavery, there has been pro-
found silence relative to peonage,
which, in the Philippines, is by far
the greater evil of the two, because
of the large number of persons who
suffer from it's prevalence.
The report of Secretary Worcester
shows that natives of the Philippine
Islands are often sold for as little as
Sl.5O, American money, and the aver
age price paid for slaves is only few
dollars, in rare cases price of $3.50
having been paid. In most instances
the slaves are held as household serv-
ants, though some of the more comely
women are handled as are the white
slaves in more civilized countries.
One common method of obtaining
slaves is to negotiate with Negritos,
savages of low mentality, for as many
slaves as may be desired. The Negri-
tos make a raid on the town Of some
enemy, capture the children or women
and turn them over to the slave-trad-
ers These Negritos will take the
children from their own people, If
they want the cash, and commonly
Will get Negrito parents intoxicated
with vino and buy their children from
Ihem while they are drunk. Other
natives have been found selling their
children to procure food for them
selves, when they happen to be in par
tcularly destitute circumstances.
, When they are starving says
secretary Worcester, cit is compare
lively easy to buy their children.
ohder such circumstances, l have per-
sonally known Negrito girl of mar
rlageable age to be purchased for rice
worth 1.50 gold.'