Hurley-burly

Filipino politicos like to talk a lot. Faced by a man who says little, goes about patiently asking questions and scrupulously keeping his counsel, politicos are likely to become nervous and uneasy. Wherever Secretary of War Patrick Jay Hurley flew during the past three weeks in his effort to bring back to President Hoover the insular attitude toward independence, the wash of his plane's propeller, the dust kicked up by his horse or motor magnified itself into daily monsoons at Manila. The native House of Representatives began devoting a daily half-hour period to bombarding Secretary Hurley. Speaker Manuel Roxas, leader of the independence bloc, nearly beside himself with impatience at Secretary Hurley's failure to commit himself on what his three weeks on the islands had shown him, truculently declared that "if Mr. Hurley believes what we think he believes, a compromise is impossible." Equally amazing was the cabal's declaration that if Secretary Hurley asked for a round table conference--which he did not--the independence bloc would not attend. Chief cause of this Hurley-burly was that the swart little legislators felt slighted, and perhaps anxious at the Secretary of War's going around asking the people what they thought of U. S. dominion instead of coming to the people's duly elected officers for his information. Meanwhile, the trim War Chief kept going, kept asking questions. At Zamboanga he was told that 300,000 Moros were temporarily satisfied with American rule (total Philippine population: 12,604,100). A fatalistic delegation of them presented a petition: "If independence must come, return to us the arms the Americans took away from us so that we may defend ourselves." At Baguio, mountainous summer resort, fortnight ago, Secretary Hurley remarked upon the unwillingness of many of his witnesses to have their testimony made public for fear of boycott. "What is told me in confidence I must hold in confidence," he explained. "Furthermore, I cannot assume responsibility for statements made by men who have not the courage to express publicly their real opinions." He was also quoted as saying that the U. S. had the same right to the Philippines as had been exercised by the Indonesians, the Malays and the Spaniards--the right of conquest. This set the Manila politicos sputtering. Through their news organs they demanded elucidation, comment, argument. But Secretary Hurley could not be reached. He had made off into the Igorot country. Back from the Igorots, who pleaded against immediate independence as did the Moros, Secretary Hurley made his first official utterance in the islands. It was not about insular independence. "For several months." said he, "Governor General Dwight F. Davis has wanted to resign owing to illness in his family.* Filipino leaders have suggested that, instead of resigning, he go on leave of absence in order to visit his family before making a final decision. I concur in this suggestion, having urged the Governor General to adopt this plan instead of resigning." At Manila both legislative houses adopted a carefully prepared memorial reiterating their demand for immediate independence, presented it to Secretary Hurley. Said Acting President Sergio Osmena of the Senate: "We are not seeking reforms in our government. We are not interested in new government formulas. The desire now is for independence." Secretary Hurley read the memorial, commented: "Heretofore all petitions have demanded immediate, complete and absolute independence. This memorial speaks of immediate political separation from the U. S. The change, as well as the insertion of the word political, cannot help but be regarded as significant." Apparently the Secretary of War believed that the Philippine Legislature wished to retain its beneficent economic ties with the U. S., become only governmentally autonomous.

That night the Secretary and his pretty wife danced at a legislative ball, were given military honors next day as they started home.

Sapient Filipinos and their talkative politicos know that U. S. support of their independence agitation is born not of altruism but of economics. Philippine products, notably sugar, are admitted duty-free into the U. S., competing with Rocky Mountain beet sugar and Louisiana cane. Lock the Philippines out of the Union and they will have to jump over a tariff wall.

* Mrs. Davis is invalided in Paris. Governor Theodore Roosevelt of Porto Rico (see p. 11) has been boomed to succeed Governor General Davis.

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