The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1922-04-22
RUSSELL ANSWERS N0RTHCL|FFE'S
INTERVIEW AGAINST PHILIPPINES
BY CHARLES EDWARD RUSSELL.1

By CHARLES EDWARD RUSSELL.
The people of the United States
ought, to feel indebted to Lord
r. -Northcliffe for his interview print
cd IN the New York World and
~ other papers opposing Philippine in
dependence. 1t reveals for once the
q rear British attitude and real British
policy in regard to nations and peo-
pies struggling for liberty. Stripped
at last of the hypocrisy and SNUG
!, pfetense with which British states
men are accustomed to discuss this
attitude and this policy. we can un-
derstand now their plain bald terms.
The dominating idea of Great Bri-
3 tain, is monarcrira!. imperialistic,
y eXploitative and ,autOcratic. 1t has
been so in history. Lord Northcliffe
reveals it to us absolutely unchanged
The British attitude is that God
has delivered the world to the An
glo Saxon to exploit and plumber,
govern and maltreat for it's own
profit and pleasure. All other peo-
piles in the world are inferior, no
{other peoples have or can have any
! rights that the Anglo Saxon is bound
: to respect. We can behold in his ut
terances his favorite picture Of the
Anglo Saxon going out to subjugate
and rule the inferior races backed
with rifles enough to blow holes in
any inferior brother that may chance
to object.
1t is exactly and squarely on this
principle that Great Britain has
governed or mis-governed India,
Hong Kong, Fiji. Wei-hai-wei and
every other spot on earth where
her flag has been hoisted over men
of another color. On that principle
she purposes to continue to govern
and it is plainly the beliefof Lord
Northcliffe that since the WASH
inSton conference the government
Of the United States is enlisted to
support and further these ideas.
The simple fact is that. there is
no such thing as a race any where
in this world with an exclusive mo-
nopoly of the gifts Of democratic
self government. Democracy Is not
a matter of race; it is the universal
\and eternal principle as true in one
part 0 fthe world as in another.
IT is no more correct to say that
God designed some Of the people of
the ca til to be fit for liberty and
others t. he unfit for it, than it
used to D, to say that he sen the
nhajority OF people into the world
to be slaves and others booted and
spurred to ride the rest. Lord North
cliffe is intellectual heir and des-
.Gendant Of those that used to hold
this doctrine and appears to have
made very little progress from their
notions dominant in the Dark Ages.
"a" In pursuance Of his mediaeval
conceptions Of society he tells us
that the tilipinos are unfit to gov
ern themselves, and then that in
the period Of five years in which
they have been doing it they have
sadly refrigerated. L challenge both
of these statements.
I know more about the Philip
pin"- land the l'ilipinos than Lord
Northcliffe does, and I assert that
the Filipino government of the Phil
ippine islands in the last five years
so far from being a failure or dis
aster is a conspicuous and convinc-
ing example of government ability
and success. In support of that state
ment l refer to the statistics.
If any one can show me from the
records made in these five years that
in any important or significant as
Peet Of government, whether in the
control of public finances, education,
public safety. health the security
and progress of. commerce or de-
velopment in agriculture there is
apparent one indication Of lack of
ability on the part of the F'ilipinos
to perform the functions Of gov
eminent, | shall be greatly obliged.
l Rave examined the work of the
various departments, as they are
conducted from day to day in the
PHILIPPINE islands and I have not vet
been able 10 find. even from the tes-
timony Of The most virulent enemies
of Philippine Independence, one fact
or one figure that indicates incapa-
city to govern.
~, parallel with these astounding err
rors by Lord Northcliffe is his easy
and comfortable assertion that only
the presence of Americans keep the
lruipinos from cutting one another's
Threats. OF all the hosh that is
preached in behalf of the imperial
istic policy this is certainly the most
preposterous. All the American
! troops in the islands when I was
{ there would not be of the slightest
avail to prevent this throat cutting,
if there were any desire for it.
Lord Northcliffe probably is un
aware that order in the Philippine
islands is and has been for years
maintained by native officers and it
is so efficiently maintained that the
Philippine stands are among the
safest and quietest regions on earth.
Life and property are very much
safer in these islands than they are
in the average city of the United
States.
Lord \orthcliffe conveniently
overlooks the great pivotal fact that
the faith Of the United States is
'sojlemnly pledged to the freedom of
the Philippines, that the time set for
tn e fulfillment Of that pledge has
arrived and that the only question
involved is whether the United States
will or will not fulfill it's covenant
I'm the Jones law we entered into a