Proceedings of the first Independence congress : held in the city of Manila, Philippine islands, February 22-26, 1930 / Published under the direction of Dean maximo M. Kalaw, executive secretary, University of the Philippines.

DEFENSE AND COMMUNICATIONS

251

young men of age who would be obliged to serve may be called
and be made to take part in military exercises for a few days
in the year as well as those who receive military instruction
in our centers of learning, all of whom will constitute in time
of war an army or a small navy capable of presenting the necessary resistance to demonstrate our vigorous protest. In case of
defeat there would still be left for us the decision of the League
of Nations, who will determine our definite fate in accordance
naturally with their own convenience.
I advocate that the nucleus of our army in time of peace
be a sort of police force and not a regular army as it is,
because I am convinced that militarism, wherever it has been
planted and has taken root, has always caused failure to democratic institutions.
The army is an organism which is not only fruitless but
also expensive. The army men, because of the fact that they
carry sabers and have their own laws, have learned to consider
themselves superior to the rest of mortals whom they look
upon with scorn and disdain. Such happened in Russia, Germany, and Austria and continues happening in many other
nations.
On the other hand if the nucleus of the army be the police
force, they will render in time of peace a real service maintaining
order, and in instructing them well in the art of warfare it
is enough to increase their number in such a way that while
one half of the force are actually doing police work the other
half in turn may receive the necessary military instruction.
Finally I believe that the best guarantee of our existence as
an independent nation should be a stable government, honorable, efficient, and just but worthy, whose acts inspire confidence with other nations, and which proceeds in such a way
that in all questions that might arise between our government
and that of another nation, we can always prove before the
world that reason and justice are on our side.