Theodore Roosevelt actually said...

It should not be under the control of the authorities of the Philippine Islands, for it should be undertaken as a national work and subject ...

The surveys, while of course beneficial to the people of the Philippine Islands, should be undertaken as a national work for the information...

Only preliminary explorations have yet been made in the archipelago, and it should be a matter of pride to the Government of the United Stat...

No such organized surveys have ever yet been attempted anywhere; but the idea is in harmony with modern, scientific, and industrial methods.