Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1921-07-26

PHILIPPINES IS
LIKELY SOLUTION
Problem One OF Most
Difficult Faced By
Harding

| MANILA, July 26.-When Presi-
dent Harding comes to act on the re-
port which Major General Wood and
F! Governor Forbes will submit to him
upon their return from the Philip,
pines, he will find himself in hot wa
| ter, whatever he may do.
| If he fails to recommend that Con
gress grant independence to the is
lands, the F'iEf3incs will make things
! uncomfortable for him; if he does
| recommend Independence he may
cause a split in his own party.
For this reason 1t Is considered as
more than likely that the president
will seek compromise solution which
will not displease either Americans
or Filip:nos to such an extent that
there will be a revolt against this
| decision.
But this will be difficult Ameri-
cans here are emphatically in favor
| of the United States retaining con.
/ sro lover the archipelago. More than
/ that, they are in favor of strengthen
/ ing American control, instead of
Weakening it, while Filipinos are in
| sisting upon complete separation.
Ine situation, minus the fighting
| and bad blood, is not unlike that with
which England is confronted in Ire
land.
Both sides want what they want.
! Neither will they be satisfied with
! compromise, and the side that doesn't
Eeget what it wants in the fina, settle
ment may be relied upon to raise
merry Ned
When the president promised Resi-
dent Commissioner Gabaldon that
he would solve the Philippine, ques
| ton during his term in ottlceJ he let
himself in for a mans size job, IN
the opinion of the leading Americans
| out here.
eve are afraid the president eth
! er overrated his powers or under
! rated the complexity of the probe H.,
said the Times, owned by the wealthy
+ sugar man, George II. Fairchild, re-
Gently called to Washington tc confer
with Republican party leaders.
"There is only one way to settle
definitely the Philippine question" ,"
! the Fairchild organ declared, "and
! that IS to make the Philippines d
state of the Union.
! "A state may not secede from the
| Union nor can Congress ever sep
arate state from the Union.
"Yet that the Philippines shall be
made a state of the Union in the
near future is entirely outside the
range of probability.
| Granting the Philippines their
| independence would not settle the
| matter definitely as no one could say
whether or not the United States
would find it necessary subsequently
! to return to the islands.
| THAT the Philippines shall be
granted their independence in the
near future is also entirely outside
; the range of probability = So
to expect that the Philippine prob
! lem will be definitely settled within
the next three or four years is de-
lusion.'
Nevertheless both Americans and
Filipinos in the islands are vocifer-
ously demanding an early settle
ment.
Capital will never come to the
/ islands," natives and Americans
! agree, until the status of the coun-
/ try is fixed and business men can
know precisely what to count on"
Another factor which will not make
4 the decision any easier for Pros
] ident Harding is that Americans and
4 Filipinos alike are sore, not with one
i another, but because they claim they
I have been forgotten" by America.
j Since Mckinley and Bryan fought
out the battle of imperialism" in
J 1900, and the insurrection in the
! Philippines was put down, the island
ers claim they have been shclved
! and lost to mind
Now that General Wood and
Forbes are here making an lnvcstlga-
! ton for President Harding, and he
4 question, the expectations of both
has promised to solve the Philippine
sides are keyed way up.
For action we pleadp' is the cry
of the Manila Bulletin, speaking for
both Americans and Filipinos.
; at is very nice for visitors from
. the homeland to come and tell US
: how they are irnpresses with the Won
} derful possibilities here" the paper
t continues, "and hem the natural re-
sources of the country exceed their
expectations. . We have known
that long, long time. What we want
is support of efforts to develop the
undeveoped, to till the untitled and
open the unopened treasures.
eve urge the visitors to carry back
home the message: Hurry up and
do something
When Congress, upon recommen-
dations from President Harding and
backed by the Woods-Forbes Commits
sion report on the island, does some
thing" another battle of words sec
ond only to that over the peace treaty
seems likely
American and Filipino aspirations
are Numerically opposed.
Americans claim they would be
completely ruined by Philippine in
dependence; that they cast their lot
with the Philippines under the vir-
! tual promise Of their party that the
islands would be retained; that to &c