Evening star., 1939-11-03
Opposes Retention of
Philippine Islands
Jupon Held Unlikely to Seek
Annexation If Freedom
Is Grunted
70 the Editor Of The Star:

Is Grunted
70 the Editor Of The Star:
request the privilege Of commenting
on Mr.. De Nolascos interesting letter
about the Philippines in The Star
about . month ago. spent 10 con-
secuttve years Of my working days in the
service Of the Filipinos. Soon after ar
irving at Manila as one Of the first group
Of officers selected for Elihu Roots new
general staff for our Army, I accepted
duty under the Philippine civil author
ities-with the constabulary, Of which
was later the chief. resided in and
worked in all parts of the islands. My
work was In cooperation with the Fill
pino Governors, judges and other Fill
pino ofdcials. was therefore, witness
to the energy and capacity Of most Of
the Filipino oflcials and to the progress
throughout the archipelago.
Mr.. De Nolasco remarks that some
Filipino leaders Of President Quezon's
majority party now openly advocate the
retention Of the Philippines by the
United States. He also expresses the
belief that Japan will "gobble up the
Philippines after independence in 1916;
also that he feels that here in the
United States there is a preponderant
opinion that we should retain control of
and responsibility for the far-on and
indefensible, scattered archipelago. Mr..
De Nolasco thinks America possibly has
not fully realized the strategic value of
the Philippines as an aid in expanding
American trade in the Orient. Colonel
Paul " McNutt, recently our High Com
missioner at Manila. has also suggested
that we retain the Philippines. II the
Filipinos make such . request.
The vitality in the United States Of
some illusions about the Philippines Is
remarkable. There is the illusion that
the Philippines is a new and rich land
awaiting development. That archipelago
Is an old country. The Oldest university
In Manila antedates Harvard University.
The islands never raise sufficient rice for
an under-fed population. The cost Of
raising sugar is so high that even our
Army at Manila must buy Java sugar for
the American soldiers. There is no
usable coal in the Philippines. Coal is
imported from Japan and Australia,
Prominent American companies made
thorough investigation as to rubber in
the islands before they bought lands for
rubber in Brazil and in Liberia. The
great Philippine forests are Of soft
woods. Mahogany and ebony do not
grow in the Philippines.
Our own great interest in the Orient is
our trade with Japan. Our trade with
Japan comes next to that with Britain
and Canada. 1t is favorable to US, while
the trade with the Philippines Is un-
favorable. because we buy from the
islands. duty-free at our ports, nearly
double the amount we sell the islands
1t is no secret that our Philippine trade
has been a disappointment Our trade
with Japan is favorable trade with q
large balance in favor Of the United
States. Also 1t is much greater than our
trade with China and the Philippines
combined. The Filipinos have paid
from their slender taxes many millions
Of dollars to make up the difference be-
tween the earnings of the American
built railways and the amounts the
railways were guaranteed to earn.
Two recent incidents have an i'm.
portant bearing on the Philippine sit
uation. One Is that last March Congress
rejected the plan for improving harbor
facilities at Guam. The other Is the
recent rejection Of former floor leader
Romero's motion to request Congress to
re-examine the Philippine question.
The Assembly at Manila rejected the
motion by vote Of SO to Z, on Septem-
Der 20.
AS to the strategic situation-for the
United States-of the Philippines, Ad-
miral Leahy's testimony on a number
Of successive days before the Naval
Committees at Washington last year
was the most exhaustive discussion of
the North Pacific area we have had In
the forty years we have controlled the
Philippines. With other things, the
admiral said: "The Navy which America
now has and the Navy which it will have
when 1t Is increased by the authority in
this bill will be seriously inadequate to
the task Of sending naval force to
the Philippines" The bill under dis
cussion was for one and one fifth billions
for naval increase. Again from the
admiral, II said 1t would require at
least three times this amount of increase
Of our Navy to warrant such an expedi-
ton, and I doubt If we could with three
times the increase" Also from our
chief naval authority: "The defensive
line Of the American Navy at the present
time reaches from the Aleutian Islands
to the Hawaiian Islands. to Samoa and
to the Panama Canal"
believe the general feeling in our
country is that we should now with
draw from the Philippines. feel that
the law for independence in 1916 ought
to be carried out. President Quezon was
correct in his declaration last March
that the mass Of the Filipinos are over
whelmingly in favor of independence.
We have always promised to grant them
independence. General Douglas Mac
Arthur, field marshal of the common
wealth army at Manila, recently said:
1T has been assumed, in my opinion
enormously, that Japan covets these
islands. Strategically, possession of