THE following are from an interview with a man who has been in the Philippines, printed in the San Francisco Report, of June 10:—
“The principal cause for the outbreak of the Filipinos,” said Mr. Snyder, “was the presence of the Spanish priests. Secondly, they wanted a part in the government. There are now 10,000 Spanish priests in the Philippines, and they are a source of trouble and expense to the natives.
“All of the people in the islands are Catholics, and I doubt if any other religion can live there. Nevertheless, General Otis stopped the sale of Bibles by other denominations. A man named N. H. Herriman was compelled to stop selling Bibles in the island of Cebu. It was stated by Otis that he did not wish the man ‘nosing around’ down there. But he stopped the sale of Bibles in the town of Manila. Of course I cannot say why he took such action.
“To show you how the people are bled by the priests. If a child is born the parents must pay the priests $2.50. If a person dies the priests will not9allow it to be buried unless they are paid $7.50.”
“The United States Government is forced to pay for holy water, wafers, and wine. These claims are regularly audited and settled. Of course they do not amount to very much, but they are regularly presented. All of the church property in the Philippines is now the property of this government. The churches, monasteries, and all that property were built and paid for out of the Spanish treasury. Therefore, when the islands were ceded to this country, the church property belonged to America. In spite of this fact, General Otis pays $1,000 a month for the Malate Monastery and $150 a month rent for the San Sebastine Monastery. They are used for hospitals. Why the government should be forced to pay rent for its own property is something nobody but General Otis can explain.”
And this is in perfect harmony with other reports; not of Spanish civil rule, but of Spanish Roman Catholic rule.