Evening star., 1926-05-09
i. S. RULE is ENDANGERED
BYPHILIPPINE SITUATION
Few Troops to Meet Revolt, Which Might
Be Started by Mere Act Of Hothead.
America Hated.

!
question is not the live issue the po-
liticos have made it around the capt.
tai 1t is not often discussed. In the
mountain province where the lgCr-
roteS dwell, the tribe which for years
has had the custom of wearing only a
gee-string, they know nothing or IN
dependence except when some orator
from Manila gets their ear. Even
then they care little about it. The Leg
islature a few years ago sought to
require the IgorroteS to wear trous-
erS and passed a regulation to that ef-
feet. The idea was that the naked
ness of the ISorrotes was reflection
on all FilipinoS and was harmful to
independence. The lgOrroteS gave no
heed to the reform and now no at
tempt is made to enforce it. 1t is sur
prisihg how quickly the first shock
of an Igorrote, naked save for a little
shirt and a gee-string. wears on. In
"a hours you are accustomed to 1t; the
first feeling is replaced by admiration
for their wonderfully developed bodies
Vote Would BE for Independence.
There is no thought that the people
of the islands would not vote for in
dependence were the question submit
ted to them. There is no doubt they
would, in overwhelming majority.
Some time ago the Legislature pro-
posed a plebiscite, but the governor
general vetoed it as an unnecessary
expenditure of money. Also there is
no doubt that the great majority of
the natives outside of the million or
more MohammedanS in Mindanao and
in the old Sultan OF Sulu territory, in
the southern islands, would vote for
independence, but what they want is
! not the standpoint from which the
United States has considered the sub
ject The American viewpoint has
been what is best for Filipino as we'll
as American.
Outside of the politicoS and the peo-
pie they influence, the bulk of the ma
tives are apathetic and need stirring
up. That is why Senate President
Quezon and the political leaders made,
| in February, speechmaking tour in
! islands to the south of LuZon.
/ The backbone of the agitation is
the educated classes. principally young
men who have graduated from Amer
lean universities. some from those in
England and from the University of
the Philippines. They are fired by the
dream of independent nationality.
They do not stop to consider eConom-
les and other practical obstacles to
the building of AN Independent repub-
/ viving in the vortex of European and
Japanese greed and aggression, ever
present in the Far East. They brush
these considerations aside lightly,
| although there is an occasional Sug-
geStion from more conservative Fill
/ pino sources that the dream of indie
| pendence without the protecting back
ground of the Stars and Stripes is not
as rosy as the politicos paint it
Words of Caution.
| The Manila Tribune, owned and
edited by F'ilipinos, an unequivocal
supporter of independence. gave these
words OF caution recently in speaking
of the responsibility assumed by the
supreme council":
Another mission of the council
/ is to educate the masses on the re-
| spOnsibilities consequent upon the
establishment of an independent
government. They must be told
/ frankly that independence does
| not mean the coming of the mil
| lennium. Far from it. Independ-
! ence will perhaps deprive us of
! many of the comforts and conven-
fences that we have now 1t will
! mean sacrifice and hard work 1t ,
will mean economy, reduction of
wages, an increase in taxes, higher
prices and more duties of citizen
ship. 1t will mean training in the
army and undergoing the trial of
q soldiers life. 1t will mean hard
ships, privationS and sacrifices All
I these must be explained to our citi-
! zenS that they may be fully con-
! SciouS OF what they are asking for,
| 1t is the duty of our leaders to un-
! dertake his work. and the mem
/ hers n
| Gil should take advantage of their
! visit to the provinces to accom-
/ plish a task that is as necessary
! as it is patriotic.
/ Not Analogous to l716
| The F'ilipinos who have been to
/ American universities are possessed
of the idea that there is an exact par.
! allel between the Filipino independ-
ence party and the American patriots
i of 1876. They quite fail to compre-
hend that taxation without representa-
tion was the basis of the American
revolt against England AS a matter
of fact, the United States receives not
one penny of revenue from the Philip
/ pines. Not only are all the taxes
raised in the islands spent for island
purposes. but the United States main
tains a part of it's Navy here to pro
/ tect from foreign aggression, without
cost to the Filipinos. and furnishes
diplomatic representation which would
have TO be borne by F'ilipinos were
! they to separate from the United
| States.
Not only is Philippine sugar admit
! ted to the United States free from the
duty of above cents a pound which
other countries pay. but the United
States internal revenue tax paid by
! the United States tobacco users Of the
| Philippine tobacco consumed by Amer
leans is returned to the Filipino treas
/ ury. This amounts to 81 900, 900 a
year.
These hard facts are brushed aside
by ,he independence orators, who pre-
fer tinkling phrases and soaring rhet-
oric to actual conditions.
At a recent Filipino dinner the toast
master concluded the Introduction of
the first speaker with a paraphrase
of William Jennings Bryans most ia
NOUS speech, concluding with: you
shall not cruelty the Filipino people on
a cross of gold" The audience, made
up chiefly of Filipinos who have had
university training, received it with a
gale of, applause.
Real Filipino Not i'm Manila.
The culture of the Philippines CEN
ters in Manila, and it is most fire.
quently encountered at the Manila
Hotel. which, incidentally, is one of
| the experiments in state ownership,
being a subsidiary of the state-oWned
railway system. There the visitor
from other parts of the world comes
in contact with the flower of Filipino
life. But it is not at the Manila Hotel
or in Manila that you find the real
Filipino, the pure Malay, who consti-
tutes more than 80 per cent of the
population of the archipelago. He is
sequestered in the little nipa hut far
from sight OF this man Judge d. r.
| Williams, for 20 years a resident of