The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1915-06-23
LDUATES RECEIVE DIPLOMAS BEFORE GREAT AUDIENCE

mic independence and the ability to
 decide for themselves eventually whether lf-government should be ac- companied by political independence. MT. Burton Harrison, who, as Pres ident Wilson's choice, is now goVer- nor-general of the Philippines, is cer- tainly of the best authority for inn | mediate independence. In his 1nau- gura1 address he states:
 we regard ourselves as trustees, acting not for the advantage of the
 United States, but for the benefit Of the people of the Philippines. Every step we take will be taken with a view to the ultimate independence Of the Islands, and as a preparation for | that independence, and we hope to | move toward that end as rapidly as the safety and permanent interests l of the Islands will permit
 Both of these extracts are analog- 1 ous in preparing the Filipinos for self government, and even MT. Harrison | agrees that the independence shall | be ultimate, for he states that each | step will be taken with view to the ! ultimate independence of the Indians
 In this last statement he seems to be ] in perfect harmony with MT. McKin- ley, MT. Roosevelt and MT. Taft
 1 The preparation for this indepen- | d0nc0 can only D6 property dGCO1h- | plished by an American majority in l the Commission, because Americans i alone possess the real spirit of in | dividuaI liberty, while tn eeducated | Fflipinos, from whom the Filipino l membership is naturally chosen, are graceful of speech, take easily to in l trigue, love politics, and lack the real appreciation of individual rights se- cured under our institution of civil l liberty.
 The Commission under the present | administration, has had the Filipino | membership enlarged so that it be- l comes a majority. The politicians l of the Islands, by arousing popular
 c1amor, will force their legislatio or through the Commission, even though l the Filipino members may wish tC | avoid it. Some of this Legislation
 may have to be vetoed by the Secre- l tary of War at Washington because l the governor-genera1 has not the pow. | CT to veto. 'This veto at Wash
 ington, after it has been exercised a number of, tines,'' says MT. Taft
 Twill be less satisfactory to the Ff1
 ipino people than the obstruction O.
 unwise legislation by Commission
 of the Islands in which American l predominated."
 There is, however, a possibility O 1 working efficiently with this Commis
 sion, even though we only dos posses
 a minority. If we can keep it in sym
 pathy with the people, strong and liv
 ing because it is a branch of tn
 American government at Washing ton, it will. succeed, and we can the1
 encourage 8 broad system of Ioca government under the supervision o
 the Commission. This system mus
 not be an imported one. It mus
 be composed of natural and indigen
 ous material. nodded into Democ
 racy.
 With this system and the Commis
 sion in the Philippines, we can con ! tinue to act as guardians to the poor
 the ignorant, and the weak, and W
 cannot discharge our duty as sucl
 guardians unless we remain there sufficient length of time to give tn #poor, the weak an the humble ,, consciousness and a. certainty of thei rights. If we do not remain ther 8. length of time sufficient to establis such consciousness and such certaint of individual rights guaranteed unde H true Democracy, we shall fail nc : only in that course marked out a de ~cade ago <by MT. Mckinley and MI Root, but even more, we shall SC our partly completed, structure c
 government, erected with so n1uc 2 effort and success, collapse under tn strain of the politicians of the Islands l upon whom the three hundred year N or 6pdL1Sn mas 1GII GL11 HI pression and a love of being regarde as the aristocracy of an oIigarchics
 form of government, resembling i , many respects the form of ana1 chy. But can a feeble and uninforme
 Democracy exist in the iron jaws C anarchy. No. It is therefore ou , duty to nourish and to strengthen thi | Democracy until it becomes sufficient , Iy' formidable to conquer and oblit : crate every attempt and every though of anarchy. This can be accom- plished only by completing the foun , dation, whose cornerstone we hay 2 already laid. That foundation is a
 enlightened people. We mus therefore, give the poor and the UT
 educated an understanding of wha
 their rights are, and how they shoul
 vindicate these rights. When sue
 understanding has been infused int practically every part of the Philir 2 pines. we may be certain that, Dem ocracy, the most stable of all goverr
 ments has been established, and " f may then, after securing the net
 tra1izaH1on of the Islands with othe fl powers, recognize the independenc e of the Philippine Islands, should the
 choose If-government to be accon = pIished by political independence.