The San Francisco call., 1898-11-28
INSIST UPON INDEPENDENCE
DICTATOR DECLARES THEY WILL
 FIGHT TO THE END.
Call Correspondent Gives General Otis the First News of Con- centration of Natives Near
 Manila.
BY SOL N. SHERIDAN.
Special Correspondence of The Call.

MANILA, Oct 21.-Aguinaldo has made to a representative of General Otis an official statement of the posi- tion of himself and of the Malolos Government. For obvious reasons am not permitted to cable this state ment. I am permitted to write for the same reason, possibly, that the Spanish newspapers here are allowed to say whatever they please, good, bad or in different, about the Americans and the American Government General Otis and his press censor argue that the papers will be so long reaching civiliza- ton that it does not matter a great deal what they say. A letter to the American press has the distinct ad- vantage for the Americans, that 1t may lead to some inquiry as to methods and to future reform. Thus we all work to- gether for the good of posterity.
 Mr. Aguinaldo, President and Dicta- tor, consented to make a statement when he learned that the gentleman who came to him bore credentials from Otis. The conversation lasted two hours, and was largely in the nature of a fencing match. The Tagallo leader, although he was once a butler, is also a diplomatist of no mean order, and he has some shreWd advisers, if they do not car. a great deal about how they attain their. ends. Also, he is a liar which fact does not lessen the value of his statement officially, nor is the state ment of it superfluous in view of what has gone before. A man may be diplomat and tell the truth by the inn plication of silence, although l admit that the talent is rare.
 Aguinaldo began by fencing. He finally said in effect, what he has said to me more than once before-that he is in favor of the independence of the Filipino Republic, with an American protectorate.
 T realize" said the dictator, "al- though my people do not, that the Filipinos cannot stand alone. There are two parties in the state, about equally divided. The first, and believe the stronger party, wants the Americans to guarantee the independence of the Philippines, leaving us to work out our destiny, as Cuba will, under the pro- lection of the Stars and Stripes. l am myself of this party. The other party, almost equally strong, is for independ- ence complete, with no foreign inter- Vention of any kind whatever. The Americans have beaten the Spaniards ! party Now, let them go home and let us alone We can care for ourselves. We have fought for independence, and won it. We will have it or we will l die"
 And are they not" General Otis representative asked, afraid of the 1 meddling of some of the great powers, that the land hunger of Europe will ] lead to the downfall of their republicT' "The great powers" Aguinaldo re | piled. have seen by our action In the 1 past four months that we can take care 1 of ourselves. None of them will inter l fere-or, if one does, some other great 1 and merciful pOWer-England, perhaps, | or Japan or even the United States will come to our rescue. If no power l saves us, we will fight to death. You | will bear in mind that this is not my view. It is the view of the extremists a very large party
 And is there no party in favor of annexation to the United States"
 'The people do not know what an- nexation means. It has never been ex- plained to them-and will not be. They do understand independence. They have fought for it. They will have it-or they will have death. The Filipino 1 knows how to die"
 Asked the reason for the recent hos ! tile gathering of native troops on the
 
 once became non-committal, although | he denied that the men were there with i any hostile intent, asserting that he did l not know men had been mObiliZed in any unusual number. He Is liar on both counts. This story of the gather 1 ing of the troops is another which l have not been permitted to cable. Gen eral Otis has been anxious, ever since l General Merritt went to Paris, to get the rebels who came in on August 13 out of the suburbs of Manila. He has l succeeded by adroit management, in getting them to retire from Ermita and l Malate to Santa Ana, but the division ! under General Pic Pillar still holds Paco. General Otis does not believe much in temporizing, although he does not wish to provoke a crisis, and sev-
 eral days ago he issued an order to
 Pillar to retire This stirred up hor- i nets nest Aguinaldo was asked by General Otis representative at Malolos
 to-day if Paco would be abandoned
 Pillar having said he would not give up the place. The dictator replied that he had already written Otis. as he had In fact that he had relieved Pillar from his command, and that Paco was even now being abandoned. Neither of these statements is correct. Pillar still holds his place, and the insurrecto pickets pace their beats In Paco. Further than
 that the Americans are in possession of proof that the dictator-or his secret
 council of six, which amounts to much
 the same thing-is directly responsible for the concentration of troops in front
 of Manila. When Pillar was ordered to
 move a circular signed by Aguinaldo
 was sent broadcast through the pro-
 vinces calling the Filipinos to come in
 and attack the Americans. whose az
 gression had become uncomfortable. The officials have a copy of this circular, the
 only one in Manila. I discovered the
 fact of it's issue and of the concentra-
 ton of rebel troops on Wednesday. On
 Thursday I gave General Otis the first
 intimation he had received of the ex-
 istence of a condition threatening
 trouble His own secret service had led him to believe the most peaceful
 state of affairs existed outside On Thursday night his own personal repre-
 sentative. an officer not attached to the
 secret service, going. over the same
 ground I had covered. confirmed what
 had told Otis. The General however
 while he was very courteous. would not
 permit my story to be cabled
 "The insurrects may not mean any
 thing" General Otis said. Tt is of no