Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1916-03-02
PHILIPPINE PROBLEMS
Affairs in the Islands
BY Frederic ]. Haskin
A RUNAWAY?

TIME Philippines to-day are one of
our big national issues. The is
- lands and their disposition form
the center of a storm of debate and
discussion that runs from the White
House, through Congress, to every
crossroads store. The question they
present to us as their owners and leg
islators is too well-known to need re-
stating. In the light of that ques-
ton, however, their own internal af-
fairs take on new Importance and
significance to the people of the
United States. 1t is the problems of
the Philippines that make our Philip
pine problem
They have questions of all kinds to
face, over in the tropic archipelago
that is home to the only Christian peo-
pie of the Orient-questions that run
from practical politics of our own
domestic variety, to the dilemma OF
dealing with wild, pagan tribes OF
humanity who have just been coaXed
down out of the trees, with frantic
Malay y-Mohammedans who run amuck,
imbued with the sole idea of dying in
the slaughter of Christians. The re-
cent progress of the Philippines has
been unprecedented in history. Both
Americans and F'ilipinos have rec
ord to be proud of, and record to
be lived up to in dealing with the
situation before them now.
First in Importance, perhaps, is the
matter of government--the constitu-
tion of the Philippine legislature, and
the causes that led to three-year
deadlock over the budget. But among
the Americans of the islands, at least,
the state OF the civil service seems to
take precedence over everything else.
We tackled a big job when the mill
tary turned affairs over to the civil
government fifteen years ago, and we
set about working it out on a big
scale. A civil service composed al
most exclusively of Americans was
instituted, and progress along all lines
law and order, justice, education,
science, economic development-cam
faster than the most sanguine had
hoped for The Americans of the serv-
ice threw themselves into the work
heart and soul. Then came the in
eVitable tragedy of the situation-the
fact that the less Americans the civil
service could get along with, the bet
ter.
According to our theory of govern
ment, no American has a right to a
place in the Philippine service which
can be adequately filled by a Filipino
The islands support the civil service
and thus have the first call on its
positions. Washington has always
recognized this fact, and the service
is being "fillpinized," as rapidly as
possible. AS a result, there is a con-
tinual unrest among the Americans
Many of them have devoted the best
years of their life to their work, and
now they must stand aside and lei
their places be taken by natives.
The lower ranks of the service are
practically all Filipinos to-day. The
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court
and two Associate Justices are Fill
pinos. Five of the nine members OF
the Philippine Commission, body
whose duties correspond to those o1
our Senate, are Filipinos. The AS
sembly( the lower house, is of course
entirely Filipino. AS time goes on
more and more OF the higher executive
positions in the service are being filled
by natives. This is no more than
right; but it is only natural that many
of the Americans who are still neces.
sary to the efficiency of the system
should be on the continual lookout
for positions elsewhere, where theiI
future is secure.
According to most Americans, the
result is lowering of efficiency. This
is a real dilemma, because the pol.
icy of giving the natives any job they
can hold must inevitably be con.
tinued. Thus, the civil service prob
lem is a three-fold one. There must
be some provision made for the mer