The border vidette., 1898-09-01
A NEW DEPARTURE.
An Address From Spanish Prisoners
to the American Army.

WAsHINaroN, August pa docu-
ment entirely unique in the annals of
warfare was cabled tonight to the war
department by Shafter. 1t is in the
form of u congratulatory farewell ad-
dressed to the soldiers of the American
army by Pedro Lopez de Castillo, Il
private Spanish soluier, on beh;iif of
Ii, OU0 Spanish sJIdiers. No similar
document perhaps has ever before been
issued 10 victorious arms by the van
quished adversary.
The president was very much i'm
pressed by the address and after read
ing it carefully authorized its publica-
ton. Following is the text of of the
address as cabled by General Shatter:
''The following letter has just been
received addressed to tho soldiers of
the American army:
Soldiers of the American Army
We would not be fulfilling our duty as
lives gratitude and courtesy, should we
embark for our beloved Spain without
sending you our most cordial and sin
cere good wishes and farewell. We
fought you with ardor, with all our
strength, endeavoring to gain victory,
but without the slightest rancor or ha-
tired toward the American nation We
have been vanquished by you $50 our
generals and chiefs judged in signing
capitulation), but our surrender and
bloody battles proceeding it have left in
our souls no place for resentment
against the men who fought us nobly
and gallantly.
''You fought in compliance with the
same call of duty as we, for we all but
represent the power of our respective
states, You fought as men face to face,
and with great courage as before stated,
a quality which we had not met durin g
the three years we carried on this war
against people without morals, with
out conscience, and of doubtful origin,
who could not confront an enemy, but
hidden, and shot their noble victims
from ambush and ther Immediately
fled. This was the kind of warfare we
had to sustain in this unfortunate land
L
laws and usages of war as recognized by
the armies of the most civilized nations
OF the world, you have given honorable
burial to the dead of the vanquished /;
you have cured their wounded with
great humanity; have respected and
cared for your prisoners and their COM
fort, and, lastly, to US, whose condition
was terrible, you have given freely of
food. of your stock of medicines and
you have honored us with distinguished
courtesy for after fighting the two
armies mingled with the utmost har-
mony.
with this high sentiment of appre-
citation from us all, there remains but
to express our farewell, and with the
greatest sincerity we wish you all the
| happiness and health in this land which
will no longer belong to our dear Spain,
but be yours, who have conquered it by
force and watered it with your blood
as your conscience called for, under the
demand of civilization and humanity,
but the descendants of Congo and OF
Guinea, mingled with the blood of un-
scrupulous Spaniards and of traitors
and adventurers, those people are not
able to exercise or enjoy their liberty,
for they will find it burden to comply
with the laws which govern civilized
communities.
From II, 600 Spanish soldiers.
PEDRO LOPEZ DE CASTILLO,
Soldier of Infantry -