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Until comparatively recently, the territorial acquisitions United States consisted wholly of land adjacent to the te already forming part of the United States, unoccupied or sp inhabited, but suitable for extensive settlement by people of pean origin. To such territories were given forms of gove essentially colonial in character, but designed to be temporary and to permit of and promote the eventual assimilation of G territories into the Union as sovereign States as soon as the attained a sufficient degree of development. Later, especially d and after the Spanish-American War, the United States ac noncontiguous territories already densely populated in the mai non-European races possessing organized government, and not so able for extensive settlement by European peoples. Such tories were also given forms of government essentially colon character. Although these territories are frequently spoken "colonies" both by Americans and by foreigners, the nomencla developed during the days of the extension of the boundaries of continental United States to adjacent undeveloped territory applied also to them, and official usage uniformly refrains from ferring to them as colonies.

The task of deciding, even in the nontechnical way permissible adopted in this report, which of the territories under American ‹ trol are in effect colonies, and which are not, presents consider: difficulty. Merely for purposes of convenience, this report will ex from consideration Alaska and Hawaii, and include the Philipp Porto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Canal Zone, and the V Islands.2

In addition to the territories named above, the United St exercises sovereignty over Wake Island, Midway Island, How and Baker Islands, and the Guano Islands scattered over the N Pacific, "but these are either totally or practically uninhabited. no provisions has been made for their government." 3

1 Except Alaska.

2 The Isle of Pines, situated in the Caribbean, off the southwestern coast of Cuba, and ceded by in the treaty of Paris of 1898, is sometimes classed as a possession of the United States. Whether relinquished it to the United States or to Cuba has never been determined. Under United States decisions the Isle of Pines must be regarded as at least de facto under the jurisdiction of the Reg Cuba, and hence as a "foreign country" within the meaning of tariff legislation, since the Unite, “ has never taken possession of the island as included in the territory ceded by Spain to the United in the treaty of Paris, but instead, through its legislative and executive departments, has reco Cuban Government as rightfully exercising sovereignty over the island as a de facto governmesi its de jure status shall be determined. (Pearcy . Stranahan, 205 U. S. 257 [1907].) Willoughby, W. F.: Territories and Dependencies of the United States, p. 306.

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f the territories here classed for convenience as colonies, Porto › in its relations to the United States resembles most closely ka and Hawaii. The last two, however, have been constituted nized Territories of the United States, whereas Porto Rico has Both Alaska and Hawaii are customs districts of the United es, subject in every respect to the customs legislation enacted the country itself, with no separate taxes except for local purPorto Rico, while it is also a customs district, differs from n as to tariff regulations in several salient particulars: It has free le, but not customs union, with the United States; it keeps the toms_revenues collected at its ports; it receives back from the ted States the internal-revenue taxes collected on its products. ported into the United States; until 1909 its import duties were in eral respects not identical with the tariff on imports into the ited States.

es.

None of the United States colonies just mentioned was acquired ore 1898. In that year Spain ceded to the United States the ilippine Archipelago, Porto Rico, and the island of Guam in the drones. Sovereignty over American Samoa by the United States agreed to in the tripartite treaty signed by the United States, eat Britain, and Germany, on December 2, 1899, whereby the noan Islands were divided between the United States and Gerny." The Canal Zone was transferred to the United States "for in perpetuity" by the convention with the Republic of Panama, ned November 18, 1903. The West Indian islands formerly owned Denmark, namely, St. Thomas, St. Croix, and St. John, were quired by the United States from Denmark by purchase by the eaty signed August 4, 1916.

AREA AND POPULATION.

The following table presents the latest available statistics of the ea and population of the noncontiguous territory of the United

ates:

TABLE 1.-Area and population of the United States and noncontiguous territories.

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119, 333 3,743, 455

11,718,652

117,427,423

Except Wake, Midway, Howland, Baker, and Guano Islands, which, because of their lack of importance, receive no attention in this report, and of Pago Pago in Samoa, ceded to the United States in 1878. The United States purchased the islands for $20,000,000.

The harbor of Pago Pago on the island of Tutuila had been ceded to the United States as a naval and coaling station by the treaty with the Government of the Samoan Islands, signed January 17, 1978, but no navalstation was established there during the following 20 years.

COMMERCE.

Table 2 gives a general view of the distribution of trade di colonies with the United States and with foreign countries fe years 1900, 1913, and 1919. For the last-named year impera Porto Rico from foreign countries were valued at only 7 per ce the total as compared with 37 per cent in 1900. The increase total volume of trade for all the colonies is even more striking exports show a difference between $24,000,000 for 1900 and £ 000,000 for 1919, those of the Philippines alone increasing froz 113 million dollars in value, and those of Porto Rico from 4 to 89 million.

TABLE 2.-Distribution of trade of United States colonies, 1900, 1913, avall

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Calendar year.

* First year given.

Exclusive of the Virgin Islands, for which available figures are incomplete.

II. GOVERNMENT AND MAKING OF TARIFFS.

GOVERNMENT.

The Philippines and Porto Rico have local legislatures, empowe to enact laws dealing with local matters, including taxation & revenue. Executive power is in the hands of governors who 1 appointed by the President and who have partial veto power er legislation. Veto power is also exercised by the President of United States or by Congress, and Congress has surrendered nont its authority to legislate for the possessions of the United States

1 See next subheading for further detail.

575 he authority of the Philippine Legislature rests on the act of gress of August 29, 1916, which restricts its power to enact ncial and fiscal legislation by the following provisions: That the ided indebtedness shall not exceed $15,000,000 in addition to ›t incurred in the purchase of church lands; that no export duties ll be levied; that the trade relations of the United States and Philippines shall continue to be governed exclusively by laws of › United States Congress; and that amendments to the Philippine iff shall not become operative until approved by the President. ngress has also enacted legislation applying to the Philippines in number of instances, and such legislation supersedes any conting Philippine legislation. With these limitations the Philippine riff upon foreign goods is now made wholly by the local authorities. In Porto Rico the authority of the legislature is derived from the t of Congress of March 2, 1917. This act grants the legislature I local legislative power, subject, however, to important reservaons, especially with reference to tariff matters. Thus export ties are specifically prohibited; import duties are not named in e list of taxes which the legislature is authorized to levy; bonded debtedness is limited to a maximum of seven per cent of the assessed alue of property; the provisions relating to the tariff in the act of ongress of April 12, 1900, and all other United States laws appliable to Porto Rico not inconsistent with the provisions of the act nder discussion, are continued in effect.

The other colonial territories enjoy no independent civil governnent. Guam, American Samoa, and the Virgin Islands are govrned by naval officers who report solely to the Navy Department. The government of the Panama Canal Zone was placed by the President, under authority of the act of August 24, 1912, in the ands of a governor appointed by the President and reporting to

im.

MAKING OF TARIFFS.

The act of August 29, 1916, empowers the Philippine Legislature, among other things, to enact fiscal legislation for local purposes, but subject to the provisions that the trade relations of the United States and the Philippines shall continue to be governed exclusively by laws of the United States Congress, and that amendments to the Philippine tariff shall not become operative until approved by the President, and subject also to the general veto power of the governor appointed by the President and to the higher legislative power of the United States Congress. The tariff at present in force on imports into the Philippines was drawn up in 1909 by the Philippine Commission, and, revised and enacted by Congress, it continues with practically no change to the present time.

Export duties were levied in the Philippines by the acts of the Philippine government and of Congress, until they were repealed by the act of Congress of October 3, 1913. The act of August 29, 1916, moreover, stipulates that no export taxes shall be levied by the Philippine Legislature.

In Porto Rico the general United States tariff acts of 1909 and 1913 were made to apply in their entirety. The act of March 2, 1917, on which the legislative authority of Porto Rico rests, not only con

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