The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1899-07-24

glomeration of Tagalo, Yiscayan, Span
ish and Pampanga.
The day I arrived in I1oilo was mar
ket day, and squatting about the
plaza in front of the handsome church
building were hundreds of natives sell
ing their mangOes, cOcOanuts, bananas,
parcels of boiled rice, cigarettes and
betel nuts. The dignity of the ven
derS and their Self-impOrtance never
suffer because of the poverty of their
merchandise which is spread out before
them on the ground and in shallow bas
kets. Jabbering and smoking the wo-
men, as well as the men, putting away
at "cigarillOs" and elongated black,
fearful smelling cigars, they con-
templated their goods with unruff1ed
satisfaction and only lost interest as
came along dressed in the dark blue
serge uniform of a military engineer
and carrying a huge japanese UNI
brella- The miniature brass castle on
my gray campaign hat attracted their
attention and the peculiarities of my
costume became Immediately objects of
free, and imagined, not always re-
spectful criticism.
At JoIo, about three miles from Iloilo,
I visited the quarters of the Tennessee
regiment of volunteer infantry. I had
imagined, from newspaper accounts of
them, that they were all ruffians-
tOughs. I was greatly surprised in
finding them gentlemen in every sense
of the word, and though many of them
came from the regions much written
about by Opie Read-localities where
people of the present generations are said
never to have seen a railroads. ma
jOrity of the regiment We're well edu-
Gated and charming cOnVersatiOnalists
with their broad, southern accent.
On the 18th of March, when the rebels
We're driven out of JolO, they left in a
panic, leaving all of their belongings
behind them. The Tennessee regiment
is quartered in building formerly oc-
cup1ed as a young ladies' seminary and
they are comfortably situated. 1t is a
pretty place, surrounded by grounds
full Of shrubbery, flowers and trees.
The boys take great pride in caringfO
their Panayan home. They have col
lected from various sources fifteen
pianos and in the evenings between
tattoo and taps the great building re-
sounds with sounds of merriment min
gled with an occasional mutely express
ed longing for home and loved ones as
some of the flowers of southern chiv-
airy plays the pieces his mother played
when he was a child.
One night while I was there I met a
handsome mestfza lad whose mother
was a half-caste Filipino and whose
father was a Spaniard. He impressed
me as being the most Indifferent person
I had ever met-sO lifelesS and careless.
A crowd of US talked about the scenery
of the islands and the gloriousness of
the eVenings-but Senior Sebastian
a while he was asked to play for US
We entered a long room with low
stood Young Sebastian Sauntered along
unmindful of our eagerness to hear him
play. Dropping, literally dropping, on
to the stool he opened the lid and pull
ed up into position. Twilight had faded
into a darker gloom and the full moon
was well up over the hills on the main
land across the bay, flooding the room
with soft, refreshing light. For several
moments he sat looking out of the win
dow, dreaming. We all stood dumbly
awaiting the beginning. The silence was
oppressive Suddenly the silence sprang
into life. I thought some one from
another world had spoken to me-and
then I knew that he was playing. 1t
was a low sound, tender-breathlng
sound of most exquisite pathos There
was in that music an absolute simple
ity of tone that could not but appeal to
ones better self. 1 stood and listened,
in sort old ream, to the plaintive mel
ody, haunted by the feeling that 1 was
intruding on some sacred privacy-and
yet I could not have gone away. When
the beautiful, pathetic notes ceased.
felt that some supernatural voice had
spoken to me, and yet could hardly
tell what that trembling, infinitely sad
voice had said.
He played for nearly an hour and we
stood enraptured.
His previous air of utter indifference
vanished as soon as he touched the keys;
So; III - ~ - fIfi
Hancy- he dashed into a sonata or Bee
thoven's and, proverbiaIly finished with
las
While it is true that there has been no
fighting on the Island of Panay since the
middle of March, yet the condition of
things is much the same as in ,Luzon;
The American army is entrepched about
Iloilo and Jaro, and the rebel army IS
facing them behind strongly built forti-
fications- One is afraid to attack and
the other dare not Occasional shots are
exchanged between the outpOsts, but none
of our troops have suffered in conse-
quence- 1 am told that soon as Gen
eral Smith, who is in command there. is
adequately reinforced he viii make q gem
eral assault which undoubtedly win not