Evening capital and Maryland gazette. (Annapolis, Md.) 1910-1922, 1918-09-14
u. S. POLICY MAY
AFFECT COLONIES
Algerian Will Have French
Rights Without Having To
Bear Burden OF Its Laws
WOMAN'S POSITION ACUTE

The policy of the United States in
the Philippine Islands promises de-
cidedly to affect the colonial policy of
France as illustrated by the Governor
Generals recent manifesto issued in
Algeria which may naturalize the Al
gerians as direct result of the war.
In fact the Philippine policy is now
being held up by Jonnart, the Cover
nor General. as a model to prove that
the plan has already worked.
This word was brought yesterday to
the offices of the Joint Centenary
Committee, Ill Fifth avenue, New
York by Josiah t. c. Blackmore, a
Methodist missionary who has just re-
turned TO America from his station at
Fort National, Kabylia, Algeria, for
work in connection with the Centen-
airy celebration.
IF the sentiment of this manifesto
becomes law. the Algerians will have
French rights without having TO bear
the burden of French laws" said Mr.
Blackmore AT the present time,
when an Algerian becomes a French
citizen he has to adopt French law in
stead of Mohammedan in matters of
property and marriage,-which means
no polygamy. This new policy will
give a limited franchise allowing Ka-
byle, Berber and Arab alike to vote in
municipal affairs without interfering
with their oriental customs or relig-
ion The natives will not, however,
have the right to vote for members to
sit in the French Chamber of Depu-
ties The manifesto begins like this:
The time has come, seeing that the
Berhers have so faithfully served
France, to do something real for them
and TO reward them; not only to re-
ward them but to adopt the policy to
assure this country of our good wishes
ton is strictly left aside. We will
confer voting powers which will per-
nit the people to vote on many ques-
tons. "
Jonnart, who liquidated the Greek
situation and turned Constantine off
his throne, was appointed by the
Chamber of Deputies to outline poll
cy whereby native rights might be
greatly increased and his modelling a
program similar to that in operation
in the Philippines is the result
Many thousands of natives have
been conscripted into the French
army since the beginning of the war,
according to Mr.. Blackmore, and for
the most part they take it all in good
spirit. "The Arabs are quite refrac-
tory over the arrangement but the
Berbers are keen on becoming Euro
peans," Mr.. Blackmore declared.
Woman's position is going to be
greatly affected and may be entirely
changed after the war simply by lit
tie matter of thirty cents day. 1.-The
French government is giving the ma
tive women the same allowance as the
French woman whose husband is in
the army. That sum may seem small
to the French woman who has to buy
shoes, clothes and is accustomed to a
much higher station of life than the
native woman, who finds herself prac-
tically a million-heiress on this sum.
AS consequence, the native woman is
taking on a measure of life of which
she had never dreamed. Many of them
even have stopped working in the
fields Native women are also learn
ing to take baths-an almost unheard
of experience for them This has
come as a consequence of their men
having gone TO France where they
have become used to the neat and chic
Parisians, and therefore upon their re-
turn home turn up their nose at their
native wives.
There are a great number of men
who volunteered to work in French
munition factories that are earning
from four to five dollars per day.
While they think it is very nice to
work for France, they are far more
anxious to come to America where be-
fore the war, their fathers and rela-
tives were able to amass comfortable
fortunes by acting as pedlers of furs,
laves and other oriental goods, but
passports are not obtainable at this
time because of the war"