Evening star., 1925-01-15
The Future of the Philippines
By FRANCIS B. LOOMS.

without means of self Defense and
that fact taken with their unlimited
capacity for getting into trouble,
their lack of training and self-re-
straint, would mean that they prob
ably would be involved in embarrass-
ing complications with the nationals
and governments OF foreign countries
within short time. They would be
a prey to any aggressive, ambitious
nation which chose to conquer or
oppress them. We have a grave duty
and responsibility in this case and
would be extremely remiss in the
performance of that duty and in the
discharge of our Responsibility if We
T~ere to turns. oNer these 100000
mostly hslt-cfyf1fzed, people TO the
cont troll ct q few thousand Intriguing
politician ,int Manila
| The Ffitr3nas have already too
large a measure OF autonomy. They
are at present self governing 10 a
very great extent They have. in
deed, more liberty today than is com
patible with their greatest good ami
/ thescontinUance Of best relations with
this country. No visitor to the Phil
tpHine Islands who travels extensive
I ~ outside OF the large cities and
towns can be convinced that the Fill
pino people are ready for the great
experiment of self lf-government inde-
ing hand of this Nation.
High Percentage of IlIitcracy.
In spite of the efforts which have
been made to educate the Filipinos,
the percentage of illiteracy is dis
couragingly high. Ignorance and su-
perstition are still widespread. One
of the most competent writer's on the
Filipino people in the islands is Dean
c. Worcester, who was Secretary of
the Interior and a member of the
Philippine commission. He sayE that
one of the easiest kinds of business
to start in the Philippines, and one
OF the most profitable TO conduct is
the establishment of a new religion.
Early last year there was excite
| menc attended by disorder and rfotins
| over the activities of the "colorum."
Mr.. Worcester, referring to similar
outbreak a few years ago, says con
cerning the "colorum." with head
quarters on Mount San Cristobal, an
extinct volcano: People visited this
place and paid huge sums in order to
persuade. the god to talk to them. A
big megaphone, carefully hidden
away, was so trained that the voice
of the person using IL would carry
| across a canyon and strike the trail on
the other side. II payments were
| satisfactorily large the god talked
| with those who had made them in a
most impressive manner when they
reached this point in their homeward
journey
I'VE have also had the Cabaruan
! fasco in Pangasinan, in the course of
which a new town with severaI
| thousand Inhabitants sprang UP in a
! short time. There was a place OF
! worship where the devout were al
prayer day and night. There was also
| a full-f1edged Holy Trinity made UP
of local talent. Unfortunately, some
OF the principal people connected
| with this movement became involved
| in carabao stealing and other forms
| of public disorder, and on a trip to
| Lingayen ] saw the persons who had
| impersonated God, the Son and the
| Virgin Mary in a provincial Jail. We
| have had Pope Isio" in Negros, who
! was in reality the leader of q strong
| ladrone band, and we have had vari-
GUS other popes elsewhere who oc-
cupied themselves in similar ways.
Miraculous HeaIers Prosper.
+ Hardly a year passes that miracu-
| lous heaiers do not spring into ephem-
| eraf existence in the islands, and
the people invariably fiock TO them in
| thousands.
The belief of the common people in
| asuang and in the black dog which
! causes cholera is we'll established. A
very large percentage of them are
| firmly convinced of the efficacy Of
| charms, collectively known a antinG
! antfng, supposed to make the bodies
Of the wearers proof against bullets
or cutting weapons. Within the past
year a bright young man in Parana-
que, town Immediately adjacent to
| Manila insisted that a friend should
strike him with bolo in order that
| he might demonstrate the virtues of
his anting-anting. and received an in
| jury from which he promptly died
| Again and again the hapless victims
of this particular superstition have
gone to certain death, hrm in the
| conviction that they could not be
harmed" 10y.
+ The worst of II iszsthat,- even the
native press does not dare to combat
such superstitions. il indeed those
who control it do not still themselves
: hold to thsE-