Daily capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1896-1899, 1898-08-23
FROM DISTANT MANILA.
A Salem Boy Writes of His Trip and
Impressions.

A Salem Boy Writes of His Trip and
Impressions.
interesting letter from his son Tom
with the Salem boys, and kindly al
lowed us to take few extracts from
it.
With the letter Mr. TOwnseEd re
celved small piece of chain taken
from one OF the Spanish warships
sunk by Dewey ia Manila harbor.
CAvITE, July 5, 1893.
After 80 days from Frisco we were
landed at the Philippine Islands. We
landed on the first day of July and all
eyes were wide open to see anything
that was of interest to us. We landed
at the Spanish department, and were
macrhed through where the goyer-
nor OF the island liYes, all fixed up,
the yards in beautiful condition with
an immense statue in the middle Of a
beautiful grove of banana trees. We
then marched where the cavalry was
stationed and then inside the bar
racks where great guns lOomed up
over the stone walls and cannon balls
from IL to inches in diameter were
formed In shape Of fence. Og:
quarters are where the Spanish sol
dlers once were and little they
thought that the u. $. soliicrs would
ever tread there.
We were just settled when we were
dismissed and then we began on Il
search to find what curios We could,
but the natives had gathered almost
everything before us. The houses
once occupied by Spaniards are now
occupied by natives. We went up to
see the Cathedral. 1t Is a lovely
building. Great pictures hang on the
walls, and hanging lamps more
beautiful than great many people
ever saw before, and in the back a
statue of crusiliXlon of Christ andI a
great organ 10 times as large as the
one In the Methodist church are
there. But one thing distigures it.
When Dewey aud the Spanish were
lighting a stray shell filled with gun
cotton and dynamite from Dewey's
fleet went clear through the thick
stone wall and struck the organ,
leaYing nothing but It's frame To tell
OF It's once immense size. The shell
then crossed the street aud demolished
a stone building, tearing great rocks
into pebbles.
The roofs that the Spanish live
uhbSi diC biiSi bub bilN OuC tilt uublNtS
live In is thatch, kiad of a weed
that grows very abundant. AS soon as
the Spaniards were captured the
natives moved right into their houses.
suppose you would like To know
what these natives are. They are no
Wild race as you would naturally sup
pose, but they talk the PHILIPPINE and |
Spanish language, but 1t is very hard
for them To get onto our language. 1t
Is very queer Ia hear them try To talk /
English.
The lay before Dewey had his
battle, the governor had what he
supposed would be sure victory, aud
be had a long table set with all kinds
Df wines aud ali the luxuries the
island afford aud when they saw their
great mistake they He'd leaving the
good Things to Dewey's thirsty tleet,
During the tight IL is said that the
soldiers never let their pipes 20 out.
There are about 700 Spanish soldiers
lere now. The natives are lighting
III the time, They hate The Spanish
oldiers because the Spaniards made
hem do all the work building the
orts aud barracks. There has been
everal million, dollars spent here for
'roteelion, but with all their work II
ould not stand against the American
iuns.